Sacrifice In A Tale Of Two Cities

Charles Dickens’ own father was in debtor’s prison when Dickens was a young boy. Dickens left his family to work in a factory so that his father could be liberated. Dickens did this out of the love he had for his father; however, he sacrificed living with his family for living on his own to work. The parallels between sacrifice and love are one of many of the reoccurring themes throughout Charles Dickens’ novel A Tale of Two Cities. Dickens shows that the power of love exceeds violence and hatred in life through the sacrifices made out of love from Miss Pross, Dr. Manette, and Mr. Carton.

The most significant sacrifice in A Tale of Two Cities is by Sydney Carton when he faces the infamous guillotine for Lucie’s happiness and Charles Darnay’s long life. Lucie Manette, the woman that Carton is in love with, marries a man, Darnay, who is

In this intimate moment, Carton is revealing the best of himself to Lucie. He is sacrificing his privacy and comfort to profess his love for her. Carton goes on to say, “For you, and for any dear to you, I would do anything” (117). These are not empty words, for Carton dies honoring this promise. When Darnay is imprisoned and condemned in Paris, Sydney Carton goes to resurrect him.

Dickens uses the melodramatic technique, sensational and extravagant emotional appeal to engage the readers and drive them burst into tears. This is demonstrated in the sensationalism of A Tale of Two Cities. Sacrifice, for instance, is exemplified when Charles sacrifices his family wealth and heritage in order to live a life free of guilt for his family's awful crimes, “He knew very well, that in his horror of the deed which had culminated the bad deeds and bad reputation of the old family house, in his resentful suspicions of his uncle, and in the aversion with which his conscience regarded the crumbling fabric that he was supposed to uphold, he had acted imperfectly.” Another example is the ultimate sacrifice made by Sydney Carton to keep

Carton has a heartfelt conversation with Lucie in which he reveals his willingness to sacrifice for her family’s sake. He displays his compassion for her and her family when he says, “O Miss Manette, when the little picture of a happy father’s face looks up in yours, when you see your own bright beauty springing up anew at your feet, think now and then that there is a man who would give his life, to keep a life you love beside you,” (175). Carton urges Lucie to think of her loving father and future children and reminds her of his willingness to sacrifice for their safety. Carton’s words to Lucie show his love and respect for her and her family and how these feelings drive his actions. His decision to sacrifice himself for Darnay stems from his love for Lucie and desire to protect her.

In Christian dogmatics, the Vicarious Atonement sums up one of the central theologies, exclaimed up in a glorious hymn: “Chief of sinners though I be, / Jesus shed His blood for me; / Died that I might live on high, / Lived that I might never die” (Lutheran Service Book 611). Coinciding that doctrine, Charles Dickens’ novel, A Tale of Two Cities, explores the idea of atonement as Sydney Carton sacrifices himself for the condemned-to-death Charles Darnay. With the help of a spy, Carton, who resembles Darnay, breaches the prison and and switches places with Charles, for the sake of the Darnay family. Even in his darkest hour, Sydney Carton exhibits several parallels of Christ Jesus: he comforts others when he directly before dying, quotes Scripture for a final

France, overflowing with cruelty and misery from the French Revolution, was a broken state from 1789 to 1799; however, it is in this broken state that Dickens becomes captivated and proceeds to compose one of the most remarkable stories of all time. Not only does Dickens capture the spirit of the revolution itself through A Tale of Two Cities, but he also captures the tribulation of the French people. As portrayed in the story, being suffocated with suffering can compel people to respond in various ways. One might completely ignore the state of others, like the aristocracy; one might resort to acting in savage ways as a result of extreme misfortune, like the peasants; or one might finally realize that in order to better the situation they must make a sacrifice. Through these sacrifices made by Miss Pross, Darnay, and Carton, Dickens illustrates

(Dickens). As demonstrated, the man does not believe in himself, nonetheless have self-confidence. Lucie changes the way of this man significantly by the end of the book. She says to him, “I entreated you to believe again and again, most fervently, with all my heart, was capable of better things, Mr. Carton” (Dickens). This quote is meaningful as it provides Carton with confidence, making Lucie the first person to contribute to the well-being of the person.

The French revolution is one of the darkest points in French history as those who had been wronged rise up against their oppressors. Although this did not change much of french society as people had hoped for as it is believed that almost 10,000 died in prison or without trial.This was the same crimes of injustice that the revolutionaries had been criticizing they where now committing . It is even proven that those imprisoned did not commit the crimes that they were accused of. While being of royal blood holding the same punishment as the most heinous of criminals. Through the character of Sydney Carton in the novel A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens illustrates the power of redemption through sacrifice to reach contentment. Citing how Sydney Carton an alcoholic lawyer redeems himself by sacrificing himself for Charles Darnay a nobel who has fallen victim to societies injustice. As the novel progresses we see

“For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” (Romans: 5: 9-10; “United Church”). Characters like Sydney Carton are people that will give up their own life. Such is the case when Sydney Carton promises Lucie Manette to give his own life for her. He pretends to be Charles Darnay, and he perishes when he gets executed by the guillotine. By sacrificing himself, Sydney allows Charles and Lucie the opportunity of escaping the terror during the French Revolution. The story in which these events take place is called A Tale of Two Cities, written by Charles Dickens. The central idea of A Tale Of Two Cities is that sacrifice is exemplified by the

Driven by the plot, Sydney Carton helps to develop the theme through his sacrificial actions. Carton was introduced to the story as one of the lawyers that helped portray Charles Darnay as innocent in his hearing. Fading in and out after the trial, I thought he’d be a minor character. I couldn’t have been more wrong. Following the plot to the end of the book, Carton swaps places with Darnay right before his sentence to the guillotine, sacrificing his life to save Charles. Sydney’s selfless actions of sacrifice were made so the progression of well being could continue for the Manette family. No well being can come from the phase of depression Darnay's family would have suffered through if Carton hadn’t switched places with him.

The idea of sacrifice has been depicted in many works of art and literature throughout history, and has been both romanticized and criticized in its different contexts. The word “sacrifice” refers to the act of exchanging a valued object or potential outcome for something that is perceived to be better. Sacrifices may be seen as noble acts of virtue if they are made conscientiously and have largely beneficial results; a prominent biblical example alluded to in many literary works is Jesus’s sacrifice of his own life for the forgiveness of mankind’s sins. However, acts of sacrifice may be considered disgraceful if their results are seen as immoral or unjust in proportion to whatever is being sacrificed; human sacrifice is a particular example that is largely condemned by society. In any case, sacrifices are made with considerable deliberation by the person or group making them, and whether or not a sacrifice is justified is determined by the outcome of the exchange. In A Tale of Two Cities, sacrifice comes in many forms: Miss Pross sacrificing her own safety out of motherly love, Sydney Carton giving up his life to save his unrequited love, and French peasants sacrificing the lives of others for their ideal future society; with the outcomes of such examples, Dickens shows how sacrifices made out of love are honorable and create great potential for the future, while sacrifices made out of vengeance or self-interest are depraved and unpromising.

He embodies the themes of sacrifice, redemption, and resurrection. Sydney Carton sacrificed his life for Charles Darnay. He did this so that the woman he loved could be with the one she loved. Sydney Carton has also redeemed himself in his final act of sacrifice. He is a drunk and has made bad decisions throughout his life and his sacrifice redeems him. In his final thoughts he envisions, not only himself, but, all of France being resurrected from their depressing

He selflessly admits his love for Lucie and says that he will die for her(II.13), but he is also a drunk who would rather help someone cheat to get ahead than to further his own career(II.5). Because he is not plainly good or bad, Carton seems to be one of the most real characters in this book. These traits even out so that Carton is neither completely good or bad, but rather normal and human. In Dickens’ world this is a bad thing. Dickens makes most of his characters either plainly good or plainly bad. Because Carton’s nature is a mixture of these, he has no main driving force when it comes to his decisions. He believes himself to be worthless and terrible, but it is only able to put these things into perspective because he has knowledge of what good is—part of his nature is good. This combination leads to his flaw: self-loathing. Sydney Carton is an intelligent character. The reader knows this because the only reason Mr. Stryver is a lawyer is because Carton works on all his cases. Carton is also reasonably attractive. Dickens assents that Darnay is attractive and Carton looks very much like him. Due to these traits, Sydney Carton does not have any reason to hate himself as much as he does. However, he believes so strongly that he is worthless that when he speaks to Lucie about his love for her he begs her to not be afraid of what he might say for he “is like one who died young. All [his] life

The French Revolution brought an abundance of death, anger, and fright to the country of France and its inhabitants. Charles Dickens wrote A Tale of Two Cities about fifty years after the French Revolution. During the French Revolution, there was excessive bloodshed and death since most of the French inhabitants were crazed and bloodthirsty. This carnage caused several sacrifices for various reasons, which A Tale of Two Cities greatly focuses upon. Dickens develops the theme of sacrifice throughout the novel numerous times with both large and small sacrifices for reasons such as maintaining well-being, performing acts for the greater good, and Sydney Carton’s numerous sacrifices for Lucie.