A Tale Of Two Cities: Reversal Of Characters :: essays research papers

A Tale of Two Cities flip-flop of Characters     When writing a book, most authors are writing ab aside an numeral they have.However, other themes become apparent through the course of the piece, eitherconsciously or subconsciously. One such theme is a reversal of personalitys in ATale of Two Cities. Individuals and groups of people change dramatically fromthe number 1 of the book all the way up to its conclusion. Three of the most diaphanous changes in character are Sydney Carton, Madame DeFarge, and the Frenchpeople as a whole.Sydney Carton is first described at Darnays trial as not paying attentionto whats going on, sort of an oaf. He is portrayed as a drunk, and raze admitsthis to Darnay on their "date." However, love, they say, is strong Cartonslove for Lucy changed him greatly though the course of the novel. He stoppeddrinking when he visited, and even pledged his life to her, and every single sheloved. Carton changed even more dramatically wh en death on the guillotine wasapproaching. He waxed philosophical about the future, and even quoted a fewscriptures. This is most certainly not the man first seen at the Old Baileywith the sideways wig.     Another interesting change took place in the character of Madame Defarge.She is first portrayed as a cleaning woman of belief who is helping her husband withthe revolution. However, Madame Defarge makes a startling metamorphosis fromsupporting character to antagonist when she is revealed to be the shadow. Sheis shown to be cruel and petty, not the compassionate woman one would assume ofa leader of a revolution against tyranny. This better of the novel casts ashadow of doubt over the rest of the characters, and one begins to question thevalidity of all the characters.     Finally, the French people themselves start out as downtrodden andmiserable victims of a corrupt system. But it is illustrated that they could be dependable as heartless as their rich counterparts, the aristocrats, when it came downto it. For example, anyone who was an aristocrat, or even associated witharistocrats, was sentenced to death. As the novel went on, the French peoplegrew more heartless, for the executions continued without end. This breakreversal in character is the most disturbing, because it holds true in the echtworld.     These examples are but a few of the many in A Tale of Two Cities, andthis theme of character reversal one of a myriad of possible interpretations.