Political Elements in A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

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A Tale of Two Cities has many political elements in it, as the novel discusses the different monarchies in France and England. During this time period, which is set in 1775, France is under aristocratic rule and England was under a stable monarchy. France is beneath the rule of King Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette. England is led by King George III and Queen Charlotte Sophia.
In the novel, there is revolution occurring in France (1789 to late 1790s). An image of stable England is shown by using revolutionary France as a setting to point out the differences between the two countries. England is freer, while the French are under horrible poverty. "The short and the long of it is, that I am a subject of His Most Gracious Majesty King George the Third… and as such, my maxim is, Confound their politics, frustrate their knavish tricks, on him our hopes we fix, God save the King!" (pg.276). This quote shows England’s king is more liked by the people. England had a parliament, while France did not. The Revolution at first had some support between radicals in England. This caused some issues with the Conservations of England because they had just lost the American Revolution. The revolution had lost support from England.
The French people suffered because they had no voice in the government. They were under an absolute monarchy, where the king had control over everything. The Estates General was called, but even then the 3rd estate, which was made up of lower class French people, like merchants and peasants, didn’t get a huge say. The 1st and 2nd estates, made up of the clergy and nobility had most of the power, underneath the king of course.
During this time, the reign of terror was also on the rise. The king is executed and shortly af...

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...anted to change these laws that the king had the people under. The novel is also based around a love story of his own. He was in an unhappy marriage, and he found himself falling in love with another woman.
A Tale of Two Cities takes place in London, England and Paris, France. It occurs during 1775 to 1793. The major events happening at this time in Europe are the French Revolution and the Reign of Terror. In the story, the storming of Bastille also takes place. This is when the angry peasants mob the king and queens palace and kill many officials seeking the king and queen for blood. The American Revolution was a key influence in the French Revolution and was also occurring during this period. At the end of the book King Louis XVI is executed. This marks an important event in history as the monarchy has been put to an end. This event took place January 21, 1793.

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