Free Sample Essays > European Literature
Tale Of Two Cities
Charles Dickens uses a number of techniques to evoke different feelings from the reader. He uses pathos to stir up feelings up pity, sorrow, and compassion within us, as he does during the scene in which Lucie Manette meets her father for the first time. He uses anaphora, which is defined as '"'the deliberate repetition of a word or phrase at the beginning of several successive verses, clauses, or paragraphs (www.dictionary.com).'"' This can be seen when Dickens describes '"'hunger'"' as being the controlling force behind the peasants"'" lives. Another method Dickens uses is how he gets the reader to feel a certain way about certain characters, and he does that through those characters"'" words and actions. Sidney Carton is one such character. Through his '"'three-dimensionality,'"' Dickens makes the reader '"'like'"' Sidney Carton.
Sydney Carton is given much more dimension than any other character in this story with the possible exception of Madame Defarge. The reason Dickens does this is to give us the strongest feelings towards these characters. Charles Darnay and Lucie Manette, both one dimensional characters, have no depth to them. They are always good. While they are important to the story, one can wonder whether or not Dickens"'" main reason for incorporating characters such as these is for the sole purpose of giving Carton something to strive towards and to be compared to. Without Lucie, would Sidney have been able to confess his true feelings for her, revealing his honesty and his good side? Without Lucie or Darnay, would Carton have been able to sacrifice himself making him live on in the memories of others?
Carton, unlike Darnay and Lucie, has multiple sides to him. On the one hand, he is portrayed to the readers as a sad, sorry man who will never be remembered for anything. He is constantly drinking and moping and feeling sorry for himself. He is described by his successful boss Mr. Stryver as being an '"'insensible dog'"' as well as a '"'de-vilish, ill-conditioned, disagreeable fellow.'"' He is even described as being '"'the man of good abilities and emotions, incapable of their directed exercise'"' by Dickens. All hope seems lost for Sidney if one looks at how he is described by other characters, the author, and even himself. One can see how low Carton"'"s self-esteem is when he confronts Lucie Manette, '"'the last dream of his soul'"', the one who inspired his '"'unformed ideas'"' of starting over his live and trying to become something. When talking to Lucie he describes himself as being a '"'self-flung away, wasted, drunken, poor creature of misuse'"' confessing that it is too late for him to change and that he can '"'never be better than he is'"' and will only '"'sink lower and be worse.'"' He goes on to confess his feelings for Lucie Manette even though he knows he could never have her. This spilling out of all of Carton"'"s feelings gives the readers the first true glimpse of a side of Sidney that they have never see before. This seems [next page]