A Tale of Two Cities (Includes CD) (Permanent Memory Edition)

Author: Charles Dickens
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2003-05-01
Features: A Tale of Two Cities was published in 1859. It is a novel with a foreign flavor and an intriguing plot. Set against the backdrop of the French Revolution, it reflects the author's attitude toward the revolution and his humanitarian worldview. Dr. Manette witnesses the Marquis brothers' brutal abuse of a peasant woman and the killing of her brother. He writes a letter to expose them. Unbeknownst to him, the letter falls into the hands of the Marquis, who then falsely accuses the doctor and imprisons him in the Bastille for eighteen years. The only heir to the Marquis brothers, Darnay, possesses noble qualities and ideals. He resolutely renounces his noble privileges. Under the ruthless rule of the Marquis, French peasants suffer massacres and abduction by the nobility. Manette is imprisoned for eighteen years. Madame Defarge, after her entire family is killed, swears to exterminate the entire Evremonde clan. However, fate plays a cruel trick, as this vengeance goes unfulfilled when it falls upon Darnay, who has long sympathized with the peasants and abandoned his noble status. Manette's beloved daughter, Lucy, marries Darnay with her father's blessing, while the drunkard lawyer Carton, who is secretly in love with Lucy and inspired by her, sacrifices himself in place of the condemned Darnay to express his ultimate love for Lucy. Carton's death marks the eternal bond of friendship and love.