A Tale of Two Cities---Week 1

“A Tale of Two Cities” by Charles Dickens, the narrator states,

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way…”

Not only does this introduction assist the reader in better understanding the hardships before the French Revolution, but it also establishes the fact that for every positive part of life, there is also a negative. In the quote above, there are comparisons of light and darkness, and Heaven and Hell. This reiterates that although at one point, life may seem full of “light” and “Heavenly,” there will sure be darkness to follow.

In the beginning of the novel, we are introduced to Jarvis Lorry. Throughout the course of this week’s reading, repetition for effect is frequently used. At one point in the novel, Mr. Lorry dreams that he “digs” a man out of his grave that has been “buried for eighteen years.” This dream and repetition foreshadows how Mr. Lorry will assist Miss Mannette, an orphan who has not seen her father in “eighteen years,” in making sure her dad is “recalled to life.”

When Mr. Lorry and Miss Mannette go to the garret where Mr. Mannette is at, he is unable to see what is standing right in front of him. Although he is not physically blind, he has been secluded for “eighteen years” and is unable to see anything outside of what he normally sees. Ironically, when they enter the room, Mr. Mannette is constructing a little “girls shoe,” as if he is stuck in the past waiting for his little girl to come home. Now that she is in his presence again, he doesn’t see her, or initially recognize that she is his daughter. This scene is a representation of how humans, in general, fail to see what is right in from of them. Occasionally, we choose to only see what we want to see. Mr. Mannette finally begins to see the bigger picture once his daughter speaks to him, and pulls him close to her. Sometimes in life, everyone needs help stepping outside of their comfort zone, and that is just what Mr. Lorry helped Miss Mannette do, and what Miss Mannette helped her father do.