Critically analyze the Tragic Elements of A Tale of Two Cities
Critically analyze the tragic elements of A Tale of Two Cities.
Charles Dickens’s (1812-1870) A Tale of Two Cities (1859) is not only a historical novel about the French Revolution but also a deep tragedy. Tragedy means a story where suffering, loss, and sacrifice lead to a powerful moral truth. Dickens shows how personal lives are caught in the violence of history. The novel’s tragic elements come from broken families, cruel injustice, wasted lives, and noble sacrifice. These elements make the story both painful and uplifting at the same time.
The Broken Life of Dr. Manette: One of the first tragic figures in the novel is Dr. Alexandre Manette. He spent eighteen years in the Bastille prison for a crime he did not commit. When he is released, he is so broken that he spends his time making shoes. He has forgotten his love, family, and even himself. Dickens calls it “recalled to life.” But Dr. Manette’s mental scars remain. This tragedy shows how injustice can destroy a man’s identity. The love of his daughter, Lucie, helps him heal. However, the shadow of his long suffering never fully leaves. His pain reminds us of the cruelty of the old society before the Revolution.
Cruelty and Suffering: Another tragic element is the suffering/misery of the common people. The peasants have hardly anything to eat. At the same time, the cruelty of the nobles makes the tragedy worse. The Marquis St. Evrémonde runs over a poor child with his carriage and throws a coin as payment. He says,
This cruelty shows why the Revolution came. Later, we realize the tragic truth that violence breeds violence.“It is extraordinary to me that you people cannot take care of yourselves and your children.”
Charles Darnay and the Curse of His Family: Charles Darnay is another tragic character. Although he is kind and rejects his family’s cruelty, he cannot escape revenge. As the nephew of the Marquis, he is hated by the French people. When he returns to France to help a servant, he is arrested as an enemy. His fate shows a tragic truth: sometimes people suffer not for their own sins but for the sins of their families. Darnay’s suffering is a tragic element in this novel.
The Revolution and the Terror: The French Revolution itself is a tragedy in the novel. The people’s anger is just, but their revenge becomes cruel. The guillotine becomes a symbol of endless death. Madame Defarge, who has lost her family to aristocratic cruelty, turns into a cold-blooded murderer. Her knitting records the names of those marked for death. The narrator describes her knitting in the following manner:
Dickens shows how the desire for justice can change into blind violence.“...Madame Defarge...knitted with nimble fingers and steady eyebrows, and saw nothing.”
Sydney Carton’s Sacrifice: Sydney Carton is a tragic figure in this novel. His unrequited love for Lucie, and later, his self-sacrifice for Lucie’s happiness, is very heart-touching. Nonetheless, this tragedy makes him a great character. At first, Carton is a lawyer with great talent but no purpose. He drinks heavily and calls himself a “jackal.” He loves Lucie Mantte, but she is married to Charles Darnay. At the end, he takes Darnay’s place at the guillotine. For Lucie’s happiness, he sacrifices his own life. His last words are:
His death is tragic because he died young. But it is also uplifting because it gives meaning to his wasted life.“It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done.”
In conclusion, Dickens combines personal pain with historical violence to create a true tragedy in “A Tale of Two Cities”. Dr. Manette’s suffering, the misery of the poor, and the cruelty of the aristocrats are all tragic elements. The novel also tragically shows that blind revenge leads to more violence. Through the character of Sydney Carton, Dickens shows that even in a cruel world, love and selflessness can give hope.