A Tale of Two Cities
Book One Essay Assignment
In the novel, A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens: he conveys and captures the growing anger, depression and desperation of the peasantry. Many repetitions, symbols and contrasts of imagery, bring surprise and wonder to the book and grab hold of the reader. These details are expressed in chapter five, throughout the wine casket scene.
For instance when the wine casket fell over and the joker “…scrawled upon a wall with his finger dipped in muddy wine lees – BLOOD.” This word spelled with the red wine foreshadows the revolution that is to come. The mark of hunger is everywhere; all around this scene you see the hunger, death, tragedies with no triumph, deep pain. All the signs of a hidden hate, a sacred revenge. A deadly war. A revolution.
Dickens Conveys the secretive uprising in several ways, such as when Dickens uses the visual imagery of Defarge's wife picking her teeth. How even the street signs reflect this secret and hunger, with the butcher's sign painted with only a scrap of meat, the baker's with a tiny loaf. The only thing with the appearance of strength, stamina and determination are signs of weapons: axes, knives, guns.
He also uses strong visuals of the areas greatly needy in the way the people act such as when the casket of red wine had been spilled in the street and starved peasants use various means to sop and drink the mixture of wine and mud before it soaked away. The narrator describes these people as desperate and worn-down from long years of deprivation and hunger. Also in the sickening condition of Defarge's apartment, a "foul nest" with refuse lying around, and a place where the atmosphere is generally dark and poisonous.
This section in chapter five describes the miserable condition of the peasants in Paris, France during this 1800 period and the Jokers graffiti foreshadows the war that is soon to come. All this is just a glimpse of how Destitute deprived and starving the people are in Paris at this time. This (how the nobles kept them down) is what brings the people together in unity to win what they want which is bubbling inside there hearts. Which are hidden behind the signs concealed hate, a sacred revenge. A deadly war. A revolution
2006-11-25
14:10:19
·
4 answers
·
asked by
momentsofjoi
2
in
Education & Reference
➔ Other - Education