Summary The man making shoes works steadily at his bench. Aged and weakened by his long years in prison, he seems to be aware only of the task at hand — shoemaking — and does not even know that he has been released from prison. When asked his name, he […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Book 1: Chapter 6 – The ShoemakerSummary and Analysis Book 1: Chapter 5 – The Wine-shop
Summary A street in the Parisian suburb of Saint Antoine is the scene of chaos as a crowd gathers in front of a wine-shop to scoop up pools of wine spilled from a broken cask. When the wine is gone, the people resume their everyday activities. Left behind, however, are […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Book 1: Chapter 5 – The Wine-shopSummary and Analysis Book 1: Chapter 4 – The Preparation
Summary Mr. Lorry arrives at the Royal George Hotel in Dover in the late morning. After freshening up, he spends the day relaxing and meditating on his mission while he waits for the young woman, Lucie Manette, to arrive. When Lucie arrives, Mr. Lorry introduces himself and proceeds to divulge […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Book 1: Chapter 4 – The PreparationSummary and Analysis Book 1: Chapter 3 – The Night Shadows
Summary As the coach rattles its way toward Dover, Mr. Lorry dozes restlessly, reflecting upon his mission, “to dig some one out of a grave”who has been “buried alive for eighteen years.”He envisions what the face of the man must look like and contemplates how severely the years may have […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Book 1: Chapter 3 – The Night ShadowsSummary and Analysis Book 1: Chapter 2 – The Mail
Summary In England, the Dover mail coach makes its way up a hill one late November night. The foreboding atmosphere of night and mist makes everyone uneasy — the passengers, the coachman, and the guard. Highway robberies are common, and the travelers are as wary of each other as they […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Book 1: Chapter 2 – The MailSummary and Analysis Book 1: Chapter 1 – The Period
Summary The year is 1775, and life in England and France seems paradoxically the best and the worst that it can be. The rulers and ruling classes of both countries may have the best of life, but they are out of touch with the common people and believe that the […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Book 1: Chapter 1 – The PeriodCharacter List
Doctor Alexandre Manette A doctor from Beauvais, France, who was secretly imprisoned in the Bastille for 18 years and suffers some mental trauma from the experience. After being released, he is nursed back to health by his daughter, Lucie, in England. During the Revolution, he tries to save his son-in-law, […]
Read more Character ListAbout A Tale of Two Cities
Scholars describe A Tale of Two Cities as the least Dickensian of Dickens’ novels, yet it remains one of Dickens’ most widely read books. It was originally published in weekly installments in All the Year Round, from April 30 to November 29, 1859. From the book’s inception, it received mixed […]
Read more About A Tale of Two CitiesBook Summary
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” Charles Dickens writes in the opening lines of A Tale of Two Cities as he paints a picture of life in England and France. The year is late 1775, and Jarvis Lorry travels from London to Paris on […]
Read more Book SummaryA Tale of Two Cities at a Glance
A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens, deals with the major themes of duality, revolution, and resurrection. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times in London and Paris, as economic and political unrest lead to the American and French Revolutions. The main characters in […]
Read more A Tale of Two Cities at a Glance