Pursuit of Revenge in a Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

Because of the social and political ways of the aristocracy, tensions rose throughout France. This hostility between the peasants and the aristocrats started the French Revolution in 1789. Sixty years later, Charles Dickens wrote his novel, A Tale of Two Cities, in pieces. Dickens wonderfully portrays this war with his flawless imagery and reoccurring themes. One of his many themes throughout his novel is the theme of revenge. Dickens beautifully supports the theme of revenge through his clever symbols such as the candles during the burning of the chà ¢teau, birds of fine song and feather, and knitting. Symbolizing the unity and support for the revolution, the candles placed in the windows during the chà ¢teau fire is one way Dickens supports†¦show more content†¦The candles, which represents revenge, there are many more examples. Dicken’s symbolism of the birds of fine song and feather is a second example of revenge and accurately represents the aristocracy during the French Revolution. Illustrating this symbolism, Dickens writes, â€Å"†¦but, the times was not come yet; and every wind that blew over France shook the rags of the scarecrows in vain, for the birds, fine of song and feather, took no warning† (23). In this quote, there are two symbols. The first symbol is the birds of fine song and feather, where the birds are the aristocrats, their song is their voices, and their feathers are the showy clothing they wear. The second symbol is the scarecrows and their rags, where the scarecrows represent the peasants and the rags represent their torn, raggedy clothing. To translate this quote, the aristocracy has no idea what is coming, while the peasants know about the upcoming war to revenge the aristocrats. One of the main people that keeps up with the upcoming revolution is Madame Defarge, who is a major supporter of the rebellion and recruits other to her side bases on their actions and answers. Madame Defarge asks the mender of the roads, â€Å"’And if you were shown a flock of birds, unable to fly, and were set upon them to strip them of their feathers for your own advantage, you would set upon the birds of the finest feathers, would you not?’† (134). Madame Defarge isShow MoreRelated A Tale of Four Novels1596 Words   |  7 Pages Charles Dickens once stated, My faith in the people governing is, on the whole, infinitesimal; my faith in the people is, on the whole, illimitable.(Fido 102), this is certainly reflected in A tale of two cities, which is a historical novel written by Dickens that outlines the events of the French Revolution through the story of a French aristocrat named Charles Darnay. Darnay is a Parisian aristocrat that renounces his aristocracy in order to pursue a new life in London where he falls in loveRead MoreSydney Carton : The Sacrifice Of His Past And Present Self3040 Words   |  13 PagesSydney Carton In Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens uses Sydney Carton to show that sacrifice is necessary to achieve happiness and this is shown through both the sacrifice of his past and present self throughout the novel. One of the two ways Sydney Carton sacrifices himself is by transforming himself into a man of worth and thereby sacrificing his former self and his worthless past. At the beginning of the book, Sydney constantly reminds those around him he cares for nothing along with the thoughtRead MoreInterpretation of the Text13649 Words   |  55 PagesEpic Tragedy Genres^ Comedy Novel ... ....... : Prose 2 O Poetry Short story Creative nonfiction Fig. 1.1. Correlation of literary genres For practical purposes it might be worthwhile to adopt the point of view, according to which there are two main genres of literature - poetry and prose. Their types are shown in Fig 1.2. Poetry is a comprehensive term which can be taken to cover any kind of metrical composition. It has three types - Narrative, Lyric and Dramatic. Drama in general is anyRead MoreOrganisational Theory230255 Words   |  922 Pagesorganization culture Creating a culture that gives meaning to work Developing understanding of culture Developing a ‘practical theory’ of organizational culture The vehicles of culture The processes of the communication of culture The ‘heart of culture’ A tale of two cultures How neo-modernist organization theory develops challenges in the design of organizations The processual perspective Design and development Conclusions: does neo-modernist organization theory exercise challenges for new visions of the organizationRead MoreStephen P. Robbins Timothy A. Judge (2011) Organizational Behaviour 15th Edition New Jersey: Prentice Hall393164 Words   |  1573 Pages—San Diego State University Timothy A. Judge —University of Notre Dame i3iEi35Bj! Boston Columbus Indianapolis New York San Francisco Upper Saddle River Amsterdam Cape Town Dubai London Madrid Milan Munich Paris Montreal Toronto Delhi Mexico City Sao Paulo Sydney Hong Kong Seoul Singapore Taipei Tokyo Editorial Director: Sally Yagan Director of Editorial Services: Ashley Santora Acquisitions Editor: Brian Mickelson Editorial Project Manager: Sarah Holle Editorial Assistant: Ashlee Bradbury