A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens Essay - 1033 Words

Charles Dickens, the greatest novelist of the Victorian period, is well known for his skillful use of irony in moments of coincidence and chance within his stories. In one of his most famous books, A Tale of Two Cities, he showcases this skill by forming small connections between various characters throughout the story. These minute connections end up playing important, plot-twisting roles in the story. Dickens’ use of coincidence and chance weaves and enhances the plot, making readers consider how all of the precise details come into play as the plot thickens and shows that even the smallest detail can change a person’s fate. Dickens’ proficient use of irony through chance is shown through detailed character descriptions, the†¦show more content†¦Later on, coincidentally, Darnay and Lucie get married, and Carton becomes very involved with their family. In the end, Carton switches places with Charles Darnay, the man he once hated, to save his life for Lu cie’s happiness. Therefore, if Sydney Carton had not recognized the parallels between Charles Darnay and himself, the life of Charles Darnay would not have been spared, and Lucie Manette would have lived a disconsolate life. However, the fate of the innocent man is soon to be altered by a rekindled relationship between three important people. Charles Darnay’s fate is changed again by an impromptu reunion of a certain brother and sister, John Barsad and Miss Pross. On an afternoon in Paris, Miss Pross, Lucie’s caretaker, and Jerry Cruncher, the honest tradesman, walk through the streets of Paris, and stop by the Defarge’s wine-shop on the streets of St. Antoine. Dickens writes, â€Å"After peeping into several wine-shops, she stopped at the sign of the Good Republican Brutus of Antiguity† (227). Out of all the wine-shops in Paris, Miss Pross coincidentally ends up in the same wine-shop that her estranged brother John Barsad is in, too. This is an example of chance because two characters, that have not seen each other in many years, happen to reunite because of one, minute decision on Miss Pross’ preference of wine. Sydney Carton also enters the wine-shop, after following John Barsad fromShow MoreRelatedA Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens1420 Words   |  6 Pageshistory – th e best of times and the worst of times. The violence enacted by the citizens of French on their fellow countrymen set a gruesome scene in the cities and country sides of France. Charles Dickens uses a palate of storm, wine, and blood imagery in A Tale of Two Cities to paint exactly how tremendously brutal this period of time was. Dickens use of storm imagery throughout his novel illustrates to the reader the tremulous, fierce, and explosive time period in which the course of events takesRead MoreA Tale Of Two Cities By Charles Dickens1024 Words   |  5 PagesAt the beginning of A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens writes, â€Å"every human creature is constituted to be that profound secret and mystery to every other (14).† Throughout the novel, Dickens incorporates the theme of secrets to connect characters and add mystery to the story. The three characters with the significant secrets are Charles Darnay, Alexandre Manette, and Madame Defarge. Darnay, Manette, and Defarge are all of French blood, living in either France or England in the heat of the FrenchRead MoreA Tale Of Two Cities By Charles Dickens1704 Words   |  7 PagesA Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens is a novel set during the time of the French Revolution in England and France. The Revolution is a time of great danger and constant change. Dickens’ novel expresses the theme of fate through metaphors in many different ways. These metaphors connect the fates of Dickens’ characters that are intertwined in some way whether they are aware of how they are connected or not. Charles Dickens illustrates to his readers that fate is predetermined as shown throughRead MoreCharles Dickens Tale Of Two Cities1079 Words   |  5 PagesFated Coincidences Charles Dickens was a distinguished writer during the 1800s and was inspired by Thomas Carlyle’s book French Revolution. Dickens was influenced by this book to write his novel Tale of Two Cities. Even though he wrote the book seventy years after the French Revolution, he studied many different books from two wagons from Carlyle which he sent as a joke. Throughout the book Tale of Two Cities, Dickens has a recurring theme of fate. Dickens illustrates that everyone’s lives areRead MoreA Tale Of Two Cities By Charles Dickens1831 Words   |  8 Pagesthese horrific acts, there was a revival of French spirit after the Revolution had ended, in the sense that the French are resurging after being an inch from death. In A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens shows the reader that the general idea of resurrection can occur at any given point of time. The novel is set in two cities, London and Paris, during the French Revolution. The story begins with Mr. Lorry, an official from Tellson’s Bank in London, and Lucie Manette as they make their way to ParisRead MoreA Tale Of Two Cities By Charles Dickens987 Words   |  4 PagesIn a Tale of Two cities. Dickens juxtapositions suspense and humor in a intricate tale of love and loyalty. The book takes place in the late 18th century, during the french revolution. the book is set in England and France, more specifically London and Paris. These are the two cities that the book centers around. In the city of London, the neighborhood of SoHo, and Paris, the french countryside, and city of Dover. b city houses, palace of Versailles. The house in Paris where the Darnay s stayedRead MoreA Tale Of Two Cities By Charles Dickens1363 Words   |  6 PagesTale of Two Cities A Tale of Two Cities is a 19th century novel that conveys the terror of the French Revolution through the story of the Manette and Darnay family. Charles Dickens intertwined characters throughout the novel to convey the equivocal viewpoint of the citizens throughout England. The ambiguous characters of Charles Darnay, Madame Defarge, and Mr. Carton, work to show both the innocence and savagery of the revolution. Charles Darnay spent the early years of his life as nobilityRead MoreA Tale Of Two Cities By Charles Dickens1426 Words   |  6 Pagesanxiety, and misery, the French Revolution was a trying time for all involved, even the characters crafted by Charles Dickens’ imagination. Charles Dickens’ strongly enforces the hardships of this arduous era in his remarkable novel, A Tale of Two Cities, while exhibiting his keen ability to leave hints for the readers, allowing them to predict upcoming events in his skillfully fashioned plot. Dickens utilizes vivid imagery to construct menacing settings. He presents his characters as impulsive to indicateRead MoreA Tale Of Two Cities By Charles Dickens1398 Words   |  6 PagesHuman Cruelty is a Result of Hatred Charles Dickens is a very famous novelist, who was born on February 7, 1812, in his home of Portsmouth, England. He was a very dedicated man with a great imagination, and he shows his writing skills in his book A Tale of Two Cities, a historical fiction that focuses on the French Revolution. In this book Dickens uses both atmosphere and imagery to describe how brutal and inhumane men can be to each other. He uses scenes of a man’s need for tyranny, a man’s needRead MoreA Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens1381 Words   |  6 PagesOf the extraordinary amount of literary devices available to authors, Charles Dickens uses quite a few in his novel A Tale of Two Cities, which is set during the French Revolution. One of his more distinctive devices is character foils. The five sets of foils are Carton and Darnay, Carton and Stryver, Darnay and the Marquis de Evremonde, Madame Defarge, and Mr. Lorry and Jerry Cruncher. Dickens uses foil characters to highlight the virtu es of several major characters in order to show the theme of