Some helpful bits of explanation and background information
The historical backdrop for A Tale of Two Cities is the months leading up to and just after the beginning of the French Revolution. During the late 1700's, France was awash in simmering conflict between two groups. On one side were French royalty and the wealthy who lived extravagantly. On the other side were the lower classes who struggled to survive and were often mistreated by those above them. It was, quite literally, “the best of times and the worst of times.”
Dickens crafted characters through which he could tell the story of these two groups. The upper classes are personified in the Marquise St. Evremonde and her family including her husband and brother in law (both deceased) who were especially cruel and self-serving. The lower classes are represented by the Defarges and Gaspards. Madame Therese Defarge emerges as being particularly resentful of the Evremonde family for reasons that are made clear near the end of the play. In Act I, the divide between these two groups grows ever wider as the story unfolds. Whispers of revolt among a network of Jacques (a code name used to protect their identities) grow louder until they culminate in the outbreak of violence in dramatic fashion at the end of the first act.
But the brilliance of Dickens’ tale shines in the stories of a separate group of characters who stand out in stark opposition to the hatred and cruelty of the rich and poor. Dr. Manette and his daughter Lucie, separated for years by an unjust imprisonment, represent goodness and hope even as the world around them seems to be tearing apart. Those in their circle are equally as admirable in their pursuits despite their own foibles and shortcomings. (Jerry Cruncher embodies this memorably.)
And, of course, the most powerful examples of those seeking to find the light in the midst of such darkness are Charles and Sydney who, though they look strikingly similar, move through the story in vastly different ways. Charles Darnay, born as an Evremonde, finds his family’s behavior repulsive, renounces his wealth, and starts his life anew in England. His aunt, the Marquise, tries to undermine his good intentions with the help of two hired criminals—Barsad and Cly. At first, Charles is able to find the new life he is seeking, but difficulty and danger are waiting in the wings.
Sydney Carton, in contrast to this, is a disheveled English lawyer whose initial self-assessment is that “I will never be better than I am.” Trapped in a destructive cycle of regret and wasted potential, Sydney becomes unexpectedly and uniquely positioned to look beyond himself for a change and dramatically alter the course of events for everyone else in the story.
Dickens' way of weaving all these lines together in the end is powerful, heartbreaking, but ultimately filled with hope and beauty. A Tale of Two Cities is a wonderful reminder for each of us that no matter what you've done or what has been done to you, history does not have to define your life nor does it necessarily have to repeat itself. After all, your past is only the beginning.
