By using the motif knitting and golden thread through Lucie’s golden locks and Madame Defarge’s great knitting skill, Charles Dickens creates contradictions between Lucie and Madame Defarge through their contrasting qualities and motives to show a contrast within their fates despite having almost the same upbringings.
Even though Madame Defarge and Lucie Manette grew up as orphans as a result of family losses, Madame Defarge’s fate differs from Lucie’s fate. Madame Defarge chose the path of vengeance while Lucie chooses the path of redemption. Dickens uses Lucie’s golden locks to show the purity within her fate. Whereas Dickens uses knitting to show the horrendous fate that awaits Madame Defarge. Both characters had pasts full of misery because …show more content…
In the novel, Dickens portrays Madame Defarge as a woman with a dark aura as shown when “Frightfully grand woman...darkness closed around...so much was closing in about the women who sat knitting, knitting, that they their very selves were closing in around a structure yet unbuilt, where they were to sit knitting, knitting, counting dropping heads” (168). The darkness that “closed around” Madame Defarge as a result of her knitting, shows how sinister she is while rendering her origin obscure. The darkness covers up Madame Defarge in obscurity; hiding her intentions, which in turn gives off feelings of mystique and danger. However her destructive nature shows when they sat ‘knitting, knitting, counting dropping heads” signifying the deaths that they will hold accountable for. In the novel, Madame Defarge’s uses knitting as a registry that registers the names of various people that the revolutionaries will kill. Furthermore her husband, Monsieur Defarge calls her a “frightfully grand woman” highlighting her sinister nature which has the potential to unite and destroy. At times Dickens would portray her as the devil’s wife, as shown during Miss Pross’s confrontation with Madame Defarge saying, “from your appearance, be the wife of Lucifer” (366).Her appearance had made it seem as if she was the wife of the devil; a spiritual being known to have the ability to create mass amounts of havoc and disorder. Madame Defarge is like the devil due to the destruction she has already created, the destruction being the atrocious French Revolution. However, in contrast to Madame Defarge’s sinister and destructive nature, Lucie is portrayed as a holy woman through her
Even though Madame Defarge and Lucie Manette grew up as orphans as a result of family losses, Madame Defarge’s fate differs from Lucie’s fate. Madame Defarge chose the path of vengeance while Lucie chooses the path of redemption. Dickens uses Lucie’s golden locks to show the purity within her fate. Whereas Dickens uses knitting to show the horrendous fate that awaits Madame Defarge. Both characters had pasts full of misery because …show more content…
In the novel, Dickens portrays Madame Defarge as a woman with a dark aura as shown when “Frightfully grand woman...darkness closed around...so much was closing in about the women who sat knitting, knitting, that they their very selves were closing in around a structure yet unbuilt, where they were to sit knitting, knitting, counting dropping heads” (168). The darkness that “closed around” Madame Defarge as a result of her knitting, shows how sinister she is while rendering her origin obscure. The darkness covers up Madame Defarge in obscurity; hiding her intentions, which in turn gives off feelings of mystique and danger. However her destructive nature shows when they sat ‘knitting, knitting, counting dropping heads” signifying the deaths that they will hold accountable for. In the novel, Madame Defarge’s uses knitting as a registry that registers the names of various people that the revolutionaries will kill. Furthermore her husband, Monsieur Defarge calls her a “frightfully grand woman” highlighting her sinister nature which has the potential to unite and destroy. At times Dickens would portray her as the devil’s wife, as shown during Miss Pross’s confrontation with Madame Defarge saying, “from your appearance, be the wife of Lucifer” (366).Her appearance had made it seem as if she was the wife of the devil; a spiritual being known to have the ability to create mass amounts of havoc and disorder. Madame Defarge is like the devil due to the destruction she has already created, the destruction being the atrocious French Revolution. However, in contrast to Madame Defarge’s sinister and destructive nature, Lucie is portrayed as a holy woman through her