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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
While I found the first two-thirds of this book less than intriguing, the final section was exciting and interesting. Dickens' habit of writing as activism sometimes leaves me cold as a reader. Thankfully, I read along with the audiobook and also listened to the fabulous discussion held by the hosts of the Close Reads Podcast. I can see the value of this novel in literary history and enjoyed the discussions, even if Dickens still is not one of my favorite authors. The famous first and last lines of this book, I now finally have context for. (And Sydney Carton became my favorite character in the book by the end.) One question I'm still mulling over is whether knowing Dickens' history was inaccurate takes away from the novel. And did he know his sources were bad?
A Tale of Two Cities is Charles Dickens at his best. The language is vivid and infused with emotion, the plot is full of twists and turns, and the characters are intricately connected. Dickens paints a picture of the French Revolution through dynamic and vibrant characters representing both the aristocracy and the peasant class. There is a stark contrast between the rich and the poor in France through their attitudes, actions, and language. The aristocrats live in large castles of stone and disregard the lives of those below them. The peasants struggle to put food on their tables, work hard as farmers and laborers, and accumulate resentment and anger as years of oppression by the aristocracy wears on them. "The children had ancient faces and grave voices; and upon them, and upon the grown faces, and ploughed into every furrow of age and coming up afresh, was the sigh, Hunger. It was prevalent everywhere." The peasants flock to the streets when wine is spilled, symbolizing the bloodshed that is to come as the Revolution advances. Through rich and descriptive language, Dickens exhibits the juxtaposition of light, hope, and tranquility versus darkness, turmoil and violence. "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times... it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair." The book is dense with foreshadowing and symbolism on many levels.
The story is divided into three separate books (Recalled to Life, The Golden Thread, and The Track of a Storm) and bounces back and forth between Paris and London. In the first book, Dr. Alexandre Manette is discovered to be alive after an 18-year imprisonment in France, and he is reunited with his daughter, Lucie, thus presenting the theme of resurrection, which is evident throughout the book. After his release from prison, he is housed in a wine shop owned by Ernest and Therese Defarge, peasants who resent the French aristocracy. Madame Defarge is ruthless and violent, and even scarier in contrast to sweet Lucie Manette. Mr. Lorry, the manager of Tellson's bank in London, brings Lucie and her father home to England after they are reunited.
In part two, Charles Darnay is on trial for treason. The jury is initially intent upon finding him guilty, until Darnay's lawyer points out that the defendant bears a strong resemblance to another man in the courtroom, Sydney Carton, which negates the jury's basis for guilt. Charles had been a member of the French aristocracy under the name of Evremonde, but he renounced this name and all associated with it after his father, the Marquis, killed the child of a peasant with no regret. Later in this chapter the Marquis is killed by the vengeful peasants. His murderer was then hunted down by the French government, and Madame Defarge of the wine shop condemns the entire Evremonde family to death.
The "golden thread" for whom this second book is named is of course Lucie. Dr. Mannette reflects, "Only his daughter had the power of charming the black brooding from his mind. She was the golden thread that united him to a Past beyond his misery, and a Present beyond his misery: and the sound of her voice, the light of her face, the touch of her hand, has a strong beneficial influence." A love story develops when three suitors compete for the hand of Miss Mannette: Sydney Carton, C.J. Stryver, and Charles Darnay all desire Lucie's love. Charles wins her over, and the two are wed. During their honeymoon, Dr. Manette experiences days of stress and fear and resorts to a demented state of making shoes, which he how he occupied his time during 18 years of imprisonment. At this point in the story there are still some quite humorous parts, but in France the peasants thirst for revenge and the tone darkens. The Revolution is fiercely underway, and accumulates at the storming of the Bastille in July 1789. "The a roar that sounded as if all the breath in France had been shaped into the detested word, the living sea rose, wave on wave, depth in depth, and overflowed the city to that point." Mr. Lorry from Tellson's bank sets out to the Paris branch of the bank to secure some documents, and Charles Darnay leaves for Paris as well to aid a friend who has been imprisoned.
In the final book, Charles finds that the French peasants are more heartless and merciless than ever, and he is imprisoned because of his aristocrat status. Lucie and her father and small daughter travel to Paris to be closer to him as they wait over a year for his trial. During that time, Dr. Manette develops a solid reputation as a prison doctor, and this fact, along with his history of imprisonment at the Bastille, allows him some influence over Charles' fate initially. Charles is set free, only to be arrested again the next day. At this point in the Revolution, the guillotine has become a hungry beast, and beheading 52 people in a row is as commonplace as knitting a sweater. "Above all, one hideous figure grew as familiar as if it had been before the general gaze from the foundations of the world -- the figure of the sharp female called La Guillotine." There seems to be no hope for Charles, who by fate alone was destined to pay for his family's actions from the time of his birth. Sydney Carton is eager to be of service to the family and recruits a spy by the name of Barsard (who is actually Solomon Pross, the brother of the Manettes' housekeeper) to assist them in setting Charles free. Sydney, who always loved Lucie and wants to devote his life to her happiness, makes the ultimate sacrifice to save Charles. "It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known."
Book three was the most exciting and suspenseful as the entire story comes full circle. It seems that individual kindness no longer matters to the aristocracy nor the peasant class, as everyone is vengeful and wants to see others pay for the actions of their families. Good overcomes evil in the end, but not without sacrifice, loss, and bloodshed. I loved the strong women in this story who were true symbols of heroism and bravery in the Revolution.
The story is divided into three separate books (Recalled to Life, The Golden Thread, and The Track of a Storm) and bounces back and forth between Paris and London. In the first book, Dr. Alexandre Manette is discovered to be alive after an 18-year imprisonment in France, and he is reunited with his daughter, Lucie, thus presenting the theme of resurrection, which is evident throughout the book. After his release from prison, he is housed in a wine shop owned by Ernest and Therese Defarge, peasants who resent the French aristocracy. Madame Defarge is ruthless and violent, and even scarier in contrast to sweet Lucie Manette. Mr. Lorry, the manager of Tellson's bank in London, brings Lucie and her father home to England after they are reunited.
In part two, Charles Darnay is on trial for treason. The jury is initially intent upon finding him guilty, until Darnay's lawyer points out that the defendant bears a strong resemblance to another man in the courtroom, Sydney Carton, which negates the jury's basis for guilt. Charles had been a member of the French aristocracy under the name of Evremonde, but he renounced this name and all associated with it after his father, the Marquis, killed the child of a peasant with no regret. Later in this chapter the Marquis is killed by the vengeful peasants. His murderer was then hunted down by the French government, and Madame Defarge of the wine shop condemns the entire Evremonde family to death.
The "golden thread" for whom this second book is named is of course Lucie. Dr. Mannette reflects, "Only his daughter had the power of charming the black brooding from his mind. She was the golden thread that united him to a Past beyond his misery, and a Present beyond his misery: and the sound of her voice, the light of her face, the touch of her hand, has a strong beneficial influence." A love story develops when three suitors compete for the hand of Miss Mannette: Sydney Carton, C.J. Stryver, and Charles Darnay all desire Lucie's love. Charles wins her over, and the two are wed. During their honeymoon, Dr. Manette experiences days of stress and fear and resorts to a demented state of making shoes, which he how he occupied his time during 18 years of imprisonment. At this point in the story there are still some quite humorous parts, but in France the peasants thirst for revenge and the tone darkens. The Revolution is fiercely underway, and accumulates at the storming of the Bastille in July 1789. "The a roar that sounded as if all the breath in France had been shaped into the detested word, the living sea rose, wave on wave, depth in depth, and overflowed the city to that point." Mr. Lorry from Tellson's bank sets out to the Paris branch of the bank to secure some documents, and Charles Darnay leaves for Paris as well to aid a friend who has been imprisoned.
In the final book, Charles finds that the French peasants are more heartless and merciless than ever, and he is imprisoned because of his aristocrat status. Lucie and her father and small daughter travel to Paris to be closer to him as they wait over a year for his trial. During that time, Dr. Manette develops a solid reputation as a prison doctor, and this fact, along with his history of imprisonment at the Bastille, allows him some influence over Charles' fate initially. Charles is set free, only to be arrested again the next day. At this point in the Revolution, the guillotine has become a hungry beast, and beheading 52 people in a row is as commonplace as knitting a sweater. "Above all, one hideous figure grew as familiar as if it had been before the general gaze from the foundations of the world -- the figure of the sharp female called La Guillotine." There seems to be no hope for Charles, who by fate alone was destined to pay for his family's actions from the time of his birth. Sydney Carton is eager to be of service to the family and recruits a spy by the name of Barsard (who is actually Solomon Pross, the brother of the Manettes' housekeeper) to assist them in setting Charles free. Sydney, who always loved Lucie and wants to devote his life to her happiness, makes the ultimate sacrifice to save Charles. "It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known."
Book three was the most exciting and suspenseful as the entire story comes full circle. It seems that individual kindness no longer matters to the aristocracy nor the peasant class, as everyone is vengeful and wants to see others pay for the actions of their families. Good overcomes evil in the end, but not without sacrifice, loss, and bloodshed. I loved the strong women in this story who were true symbols of heroism and bravery in the Revolution.
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Maybe 4.5. I never know how to feel about A Tale of Two Cities, because the bulk of the novel doesn’t quite live up to other Dickens books for me, but my goodness, what an ending.
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I can see why its one of thehighest sold books of all time, its hard to putdown, the characters were compelling and interesting and the plotline is something i haven’t seen before
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Diverse cast of characters:
No
dark
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes