Love From Lucy Mannette To Charles Darney example essay topic

A Tale of Two Cities by. Charles Dickens Charles Dickens the author of A Tale of Two Cities, was born in 1812. He was a great English novelist and one of the most popular writers of all time. Dickens was a keen observer of life, and had a great understanding of people. He died in 1870. This story takes place in France and England around the time of the French Revolution.

The point of view was first person. Characters in this story are Alexander Mannette; a former prisoner, Lucy Mannette; the daughter of Alexander Mannette, Charles Darney; the nephew of the king of France and also the husband of Lucy Mannette, Sydney Carten; a lawyer who falls in love with Lucy Mannette, Mr. La Farge; owner of a winery and long time friend of Alexander Mannette, and Mrs. La Farge; the scheming wife of Mr. La Farge. The story begins when guards from the prison find that Alexander Mannette is alive after they had thought he had died years ago so they release him. So he and his daughter Lucy Mannette, leave France for England. Meanwhile Charles Darney releases all his rights as an aristocrat and along with the rights of the king's nephew. So he leaves France with the Mannettes.

His uncle, the king of France, tries to have him jailed for being a spy but it does not work because the main witness was scared out of his testimony. He was a fake and the lawyer defending Mr. Darney, Sydney Carten, who ironically was an exact look-alike for Darney, found this out. Mr. Darney was then found not guilty and he began to court Lucy Mannette but Sydney Carten had also began to fall in love with her. Mr. Darney then marries her and Mr. Carten tells her that he still loves her no matter what and that he would give his life for her. Years later in France the peasants overthrow the royalty and aristocrats in jail. Mr. Darney decides to return to France to save an old friend from being killed.

When he arrives he is arrested. The Mannettes come back to France in order to get him freed. When Mr. Darney's trial comes Mr. Mannette's presence brings him respect and he is freed. Mr. Carten comes to France in order to help him also because he did not know he had already been freed. Before Mr. Carten arrives Mr. Darney is once again arrested because he has been denounced by three people; Mr. La Farge, Mrs. La Farge, and another that would be made known at his trial. The day of the trial comes and it is made known that Alexander Mannette is the third voice.

This is explained due to something he had written while he was in prison. It said that he denounced the whole royal family. The jury then finds Mr. Darney guilty and sentences him to death within twenty-four hours. When Mr. Carten finds this out he convinces the guard in charge of Mr. Darney, which was the same fake witness in the first trial, to let him go see Mr. Darney.

When he goes to visit Mr. Darney he makes him switch his vest, overcoat, and hair ribbon. He then tells him to write a letter to Lucy from himself, Sydney, that would explain this whole ordeal. After they have switched clothes and Mr. Darney has finished the letter he drugs him and gets the guard to take him away. The family then leaves for England.

Mrs. La Farge goes to the home where they were staying looking for Lucy Mannette but the housekeeper would not let her into the bedroom. They then get into a scuffle and Mrs. La Farge is shot in the stomach and killed. At the execution before Mr. Carten, pretending to be Mr. Darney, is beheaded he gives the most known quote from this book which is, It is a far, far better thing that I do that I have ever done. It is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.

He is then beheaded. The theme that love is more powerful than death is used for the love triangle that happens in this story. The love from Lucy Mannette to Charles Darney and from Charles to Lucy made Sydney Carten's love give sympathy in order for Sydney to give his love by taking Charles' place at death's table so that Lucy could have love from Charles. This was a wonderful show of irony that Mr. Dickens uses in his book.

Another way he used irony is by having Sydney Carten give sympathy to Charles Darney which he could care less about in the beginning.