A Tale of Two Cities: a Summary of Characters, Symbols, and Themes

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1. A Tale of Two Cities is a book written by Charles Dickens during the French Revolution. Charles Dickens uses many aspects of symbolism in his books. One aspect is the name of the second book, The Golden Thread. The title is a reference to the damsel Lucie Manette. The golden thread is symbolic of the golden hair Dr. Manette keeps with him, which is Lucie's mom's hair. Lucie and her mom have the same hair color. Lucie will be the golden thread that holds everyone together. This will be important because this means if Lucie unhinges, everyone unhinges. A second aspect of symbolism is a snuffbox. Dickens used a snuffbox to symbolize Monseigneur Marquis, Darnay's uncle. A snuffbox was used to put drugs in, usually for the upper class with intricate designs implanted on it. Marquis is dead, but the snuffbox may be used to highlight important objects or people in relation to the Monseigneur. A third aspect of symbolism is the red sunset showering Monseigneur Marquis in red while he's making his way downhill, followed by the furies. The red symbolizes blood, and him going downhill is a premonition of his death. The furies are mythical creatures in Greek mythology which mean that Marquis has done some injustice and they will follow the guilty man, resulting in his death. Furies are closely related to a dagger, which is how the Monseigneur meets his end. This is of importance because now Darnay gets the family fortune and the title, as the last living member of his family. This could mean if he goes back to France during the revolution era, he could be discovered and killed. A fourth aspect of symbolism is the mirror image of Carton and Darnay. They look just alike, however act different. Darnay is polite and has freed himself of an undesired life while Carton seems very unmotivated. This could be of importance later since they look just alike

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