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A Tale of Two Cities
Charles Dickens's novel A Tale of Two Cities
is set in eighteenth-century England, at the time of the French Revolution.
As the novel opens in 1775, England and France are both in turmoil. Both
countries are controlled by the rich upper class, while those with less
means must struggle for food and survival. As the story moves along, one
of the novel's main characters, Miss Lucie Manette, finds out that her father,
Dr. Manette, whom she thought died in a French prison, is in fact alive.
She goes to France to bring him home. He is a broken man, and, as the novel
moves along, we find he has a story to tell.
As the Manettes find out more about each other, and as Lucie falls in love
with a young man who has a secret identity, much is happening back in France.
The angry peasants, downtrodden by the aristocracy for so long, are looking
for revenge and social change. Dickens weaves the two stories into one,
and we find that the Manettes have a sad and potentially deadly connection
to the struggles of the French peasantry. Ultimately, this becomes a tale
of profound love and sacrifice. This retelling
- presents key historical and cultural information about the period
- documents the era in print and illustrations
- offers biographical information on the author