Then you shall likewise know why I am a disappointed drudge sir.’” (Dickens 91) Sydney feels that there is no hope for him, and that his life will never improve. Carton has much more potential, and could be so much more in life, yet he remains in the shadow of others happy to do the work of others. “ Sydney had been working double tides that night, and the night before, and the night before that, and a good many nights in succession, making a grand clearance among Stryvers papers before the setting in of the long vacation. (Dickens 140) Carton has many repressed feelings and memories, which he keeps hidden deep down within himself. He is a lonely man because of these repressed emotions and memories, which make Sydney turn toward drink.
Pip is constantly feeling guilty and suffering because he is led to believe that his life causes nothing but grief and evil to those around him. Mrs. Joe uses threats of punishment and accusations of ingratitude to keep Pip silent and well-behaved: " 'I tell you what, young fellow,' said she, 'I didn't bring you ... ... middle of paper ... ...London: Macmillan, 1966. Dickens, Charles. Great Expectations. New York: Signet Classic, 1961.
Carton is so disillusioned with his own life, that he can’t even like his client [who looks like him], "Do you particularly like the man?’ He muttered, at his own image; ‘why should you particularly like a man who resembles you? There is nothing in you to like…" (Dickens 103). Romeo Montague is no less desultory, but youth is his excuse, while alcohol and lifelong disappointment are Carton’s. Shakespeare has Friar Lawrence state [about Romeo’s multiple infatuations], "Young men’s love then lies not truly in their hearts, but in their eyes" (1.3.67-68). Having not experienced life yet, Romeo does not yet understand the nature of love.
At the darkest hours in France, it is lighter for the Manettes and Darnay in England, since it suits their life style better. A Tale of Two Cities is a literary work that can be viewed as a commercial novel which is written to be entertaining. From the storyline, Dickens describes two dissimilar countries to portray a struggle among the characters during the French Revolution. Solving for the struggle, the characters faced injustice government, revenge from their enemy and violence of the revolutionaries. Moving between England and France, the main characters realize that their native home is more dangerous than any other places.
He may kindle empathy for the revolutionary peasants one moment and inspire feeling for the imprisoned aristocrats the next, making the book a more multi-sided work. Dickens uses imagery throughout the novel to manipulate the reader’s compassion in the peasants’ favor, in the nobles defense, and even for the book’s main villainess, Madame Defarge. With imagery revealing the poor straits and desperation of the peasant class of France, Dickens influences the reader to pity them. He writes, “The cloud settled on Saint Antoine, which a momentary gleam had driven from his sacred countenance, the darkness of it was heavy—cold, dirt, sickness, ignorance, want were the lords waiting on the saintly presence—nobles of great power all of them; but most especially the last” (Dickens 22). Through hunger, want, etc.
The Ghost of Christmas Past shows Scrooge the kindness of his former employer Fezziwig. Scrooge realizes how he has been a terrible employer to his own clerk Bob Cratchit. Scrooge denied Cratchit even simple pleasures and showed him no kindness or generosity. Scrooge is later visited by the Ghost of Christmas Present and is shown the effect of his greed on the Cratchits. Scrooge learns that Bob Cratchit has an ill child called Tiny Tim.
Not until he takes the “journey” into realization, where he learns through others that his life has fallen apart. Neddy’s character is very similar to Charlie from “Babylon Revisited”. Charlie was very splendid in fortune until, he lost both his wife and his daughter due to his uncontrollable alcoholism. However, after “controlling” his drinking problem, he decides that he wants nothing to d... ... middle of paper ... ...ies of personal disasters. Neddy and Charlie caused their own failure because of the choices they made.
The factor that separates their paths is their surroundings: Madame DeFarge lives in France, while Sydney Carton resides in England. Although their stories both begin with love, Madame DeFarge and Sydney Carton develop in opposite ways due to differences in their surroundings ;ultimately suggesting that Dickens argues for England’s superiority over France because of how Carton’s surroundings improve him, while Mme. Defarge’s surroundings encourage her brutality. Love is initially a big motivator for both Madame Defarge and Mr. Carton’s actions because of its impact on their lives, however, their surroundings and the revolution are prominent in defining them. Around the end of the book, Madame Defarge reveals that her family had been mistreated by the Evrémonde brothers because they killed her sister and her little brother (3.12.351-352).
This is quite true because he lost his childhood helping out in factories, another 'innovation' of the Revolution. He was a life-long supporter of the poor. Each of his novels involves some characters who belong to the lower branches of society so that when people read his novels, they realize what exactly society was li... ... middle of paper ... ... he moves along with the story and has also been quite effective at certain times because of its ability to draw sympathy. It tells us how the characters react to various circumstances and how they are influenced by society. Perhaps this is one of the reasons that the novel continues to remain an enduring classic.
Dickens highlights these problems extremely effectively throughout his novel using various literary techniques such as irony, satire and humour and also uses his characters to represent such corrupt institutions. By exploring the problems of the past, perhaps we will be more capable of identifying the downfalls that may arise in the institutions of our time. Bibliography Dickens, Charles, Oliver Twist, (wordsworth edition limited 2000) Smiley, Jane, Charles Dickens: A Life, (Penguin Group US 2002)