A Tale of Two Cities
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A Tale of Two Cities
By: Charles Dickens
(In the year 1775, King George III sat on the throne of England, preoccupied with his rebellious colonies in America. Across a narrow neck of water to the east, Louis XVI reigned in France, not very much bothered by anything except seeing to his own comforts.)
On a cold and foggy night in late November, Mr. Jarvis Lorry was headed out of London bound for Paris, via Dover, on a matter of business. In the darkness of the coach, as he and the other passengers waked and drowsed by turns, Lorry was confronted by a gaunt and ghostly apparition, who engaged him in a silent and macabre conversation
The figure haunting him through the night was Dr. Manette, a French physician and the father of Mr. Lorrys young ward. When the doctor had disappeared from his home eighteen years before, his young English wife had diligently and sorrowfully searched for him, until she died two years later, leaving her small daughter Lucie, who was placed in the care of Mr. Lorry. Lorry had brought the child to England, where she was turned over to Lorrys servant, Miss Press, a wild-looking, wonderful woman who adored her.
At Dover, Lorry was joined by Lucie – now a young woman – and Miss Press. Lorry informed Lucie that her father had been found alive after years as a political prisoner, and that he, Mr. Lorry, was making this trip to Paris in order to identify him. Lucie, it was hoped, could then help “restore him to life.” The sudden reality of finally meeting her father was so great that Lucie could only mutter in an awestricken, doubting voice, “I am going to see his Ghost! It will be his Ghost – not him!”
In Paris, Mr. Lorry proceeded directly to the wine-shop of Monsieur Defarge, a former attendant to Dr. Manette, who was now looking after him. The company ascended to the attic. Lucie had been prophetic; indeed, Manette seemed but the ghost of a man, bending over his little shoemakers bench, unaware of anything around him. Still, together with the free and bewildered Manette, the little group journeyed back to England. Lucie already showed a love and understanding for her long-isolated father, and her companions felt sure she would accomplish the miracle of calling him back to his former self.
Five years later, Lucie and her father were called as witnesses in an English court, where a Frenchman, Charles Darnay, was on trial for treason. In the courtroom sat another young man, a lawyers clerk named Sydney Carton. Carton was immediately struck by the resemblance he and Damay bore to one another, and when a key witness identified the prisoner as the man he had seen gathering information at a dockyard, Carton managed to discredit the witness by calling attention to the fact that in that very courtroom sat another – himself – who could easily be mistaken for the prisoner. The jury was swayed, and Darnay was acquitted.
During the trial, both Carton and Darnay became acquainted with the Manettes. From that time on, they often visited the Manettes comfortable little house on Soho Square. Both men enjoyed the company of the good doctor, whose health of mind and body had been restored through Lucies patient ministrations – and they also came to see Lucie. As suitors, their physical resemblance was never remarked upon because they were so different in attitude and demeanor. While Darnay, who had turned his back on his ancestral name and title, showed his refined upbringing in his confidence and courtliness, Carton seemed to be his own worst enemy. He was only confident of continued failure, and assured himself of it through drink, slovenliness and a morose character. Though Lucie elcomed them both, she was most drawn to Darnay. Being of a sympathetic and loving nature, she listened and wept one day as Carton, in uncharacteristic openness, confessed his love for her. He asked from her nothing in return because he believed even her love would not be enough to redeem him. The conversation ended with Cartons strange statement and promise: It is useless to say it, I know, but for you, and for any dear to you, I would do anything, think, now and then, that there is a man who would give his life, to keep a life you love beside you!
Lucie and Charles Darnay were eventually married and began their family. They were happy; but always in the background of their lives lurked a cloud, which seemed to draw menacingly closer year by year.
Finally, in 1789, the French Revolution exploded into being. Centuries of aristocrat indifference to the plight of the starving peasants, and the years of third accuser. And Charles, for his ancestors crimes, cruelty and selfishness, had at last brought on a bitter rebellion that turned Paris into a cauldron of chaos. Madame Defarge, the wife of Dr. Manettes former servant, became a leader in the Revolution. Through the long years from girlhood on, Madame Defarge had always kept her knitting in hand, recording with