This novel shapes three deep figures.
One is the Marquis St. Evrémonde's brother, as a representative of the feudal
aristocracy, the only unshakable philosophy for them is oppressing people, and they
are the object for the author to put pain and lash.
Another is the revolutionary masses like Mr. and Mrs. Defarge. It must be pointed
out that their image is distorted. For example Mrs. Defarge, she was born in a farm
family who was insulted and persecuted by the feudal aristocracy, with depth regret.
The author deeply sympathizes with her misery, and before and after revolution broke
out he very admire her strong character, best talents and special organization and
leadership skills. But when the revolution further, it shows her cold, fierce and narrow.
Especially when she went to the doctor's to search Lucie and her little baby, she is a
bloodthirsty lunatic. Finally, she died in her own gun.
The third type is idealized person: they are in the author's mind use humanitarian
resolving social contradictions, use love overcome hate. Including Dr Manette and his
daughter, Charles Draney, Sydney Carton, etc. Love can advance everything. Like Dr
Manette's family was destroyed by the Marquis St. Evrémonde, but for the love of his
daughter, he abandon the feudal hate; Darney is marquis's nephew, but he relies the
guilty his family did, then he give up what he would get and determine use his own
action to atonement. Those person one is victim of noble's tyranny, tolerate everything;
another is the heir to the marquis. That is the love, almost their daughter and wife,
Lucie, let them forget the sin. They make a happy life! It is an opposite way to solve
the social problem by violence. The style of the novel is solemn, depressed, full of
worried and indignant.
As is common in English literature, good and evil are symbolized with light and
darkness. Lucie Manette is the light and Madame Defarge is darkness. Darkness
represents uncertainty, fear and peril. It is dark when Mr. Lorry rides to Dover; it is
dark in the prisons; dark shadows follow Madame Defarge; dark, gloomy doldrums
disturb Dr. Manette; his capture and captivity are shrouded in darkness; the Marquis’s
estate is burned in the dark of night; Jerry Cruncher raids graves in the darkness;
Charles's second arrest also occurs at night. Both Lucie and Mr. Lorry feel the dark
threat it is Mrs. Defarge. "That dreadful woman seems to throw a shadow on me,"
remarks Lucie. Although Mr. Lorry tries to comfort her, "the shadow of the manner of
Mrs. Defarges was dark upon herself". Mrs. Defarge is "like a shadow over the white
road", the snow symbolizing purity and Madame Defarge's darkness corruption.
Dickens also compares the dark color of blood to the pure white snow: the blood takes
on the shade of the crimes of its shedders
A tragedy of the history 历史悲剧
Crazily, but truthfully, I finished reading the most part of the novel "A Tale of Two
Cities" in just one day. Lost in the story, I felt like being together with the characters
and experiencing the same exciting events. Soon it came to an end. To tell you my
feelings, it’s infinite sadness and a strong emotion that can drive me to cry.
The story is set in London and Paris at the time of the great French Revolution. It
shows the causes of revolution and its effects on people's day-to-day lives. Before the revolution, the King and the aristocracy treated their people cruelly in France. The
common people were extremely poor and miserable. The crops in the fields were poor
as if even the land shared the misery of the people. And there were so heavy taxes that
all the villagers had nothing to hand over at last. On the other hand, the aristocracy
made their will as the law by using money and gold. There were no justice, no
equality and no fairness. Just as what happened to Dr Manette, he wrote to the
Minister to show the crime what Marquis St. Evrémonde had done, resulting in
himself being arrested and sent to the prison Bastille without any reason.
Then this situation of darkness was needed to be changed. As people such as the
Defarges prepared and arranged, at length the Revolution came to break out. When
the Bastille was captured and the King was tried and put to death as well as many
other aristocrats, things didn't go on as what they had been expected. The situation
stayed the same or even worse. The prisoners from the Bastille were set free while
more prisons were filled with people who had done no wrong again. People who once
lived on the bottom of class took the charge now and their heart had been full of evil.
The only thing they wanted to do was to revenge. And these so-called "patriots"
would like to see more and more innocent prisoners going to the guillotine and that's
their joy. As the novel wrote, “In everything they did were merciless, for they had
been hardened in the fires of suffering and the touch of pity could make no mark on
them".
Equality and fairness is what people seek, which led to the French Revolution. As
a consequence, neither equality nor fairness was got after the revolution. And that's
the tragedy of the history. I was heavyhearted when reading what Sydney Carton said
before death and I burst into tears finally.
A Tale of Two Cities is a novel by Charles Dickens. The key events take place just
before and during the French Revolution. The novel is set mostly in London and
revolutionary Paris.
In my opinion, it is a tale about love, tolerance and revenge.
First of all, let's turn to love. It is the love of Sydney Carton that makes this book
so impressive. When Sydney Carton hears that Lucie Manette will get married to
Charles Darnay, instead of being angry, he promises Lucie that he would give his life
to keep someone she loves alive because he loves her so much. This kind of love is
beyond love itself. In the end, he keeps his promise. He exchanges places with
Charles Darnay and is sent to the Guillotine. His sacrifice for love makes the story
reach the climax. Besides, it is etched in the mind of all the readers forever. We can
forget every character in this story except him.
Then it comes to tolerance. The old man, Dr. Alexander Manette, father of Lucie
Manette who cannot escape the memory of being held in the Bastille. However, He
deserves our respect and admire. Though he suffers a lot of pain which is from the
Evremonde Brothers ---- Charles Darnay's father and uncle, he doesn't change his
qualities. He is kind and tolerant as before. He agrees on the marriage of Lucie and
Charles and at last try his best to save Charles. Compared to the revenge of Madame
Therese Defarge, the tolerance of Dr. Alexander Manette is precious and meaningful.
