In Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities, Lucie Manette and her father move to England, where they meet Charles Darnay, the descendant of the Marquis St Evrémonde, and Sydney Carton, an alcoholic who has given up on turning his life around. Although Carton loves Lucie, Darnay marries her. Toward the end of the novel, Darnay goes to France and is arrested. He is sentenced to death, but Carton pretends to be him, sacrificing his life so that Darnay and his family may lead better lives than his. Dickens uses the motif of sacrifice and renewal to show that sacrifice is necessary for renewal.
Carton’s sacrifice allows the Manette-Darnay family to have a somewhat joyful ending. In “‘Recalled to Life’: Sacrifice and Renewal in A Tale of Two Cities,” …show more content…
In “‘Recalled to Life’: Sacrifice and Renewal in A Tale of Two Cities, Rankin also writes, "The sacrifice that Carton makes at the novel's end demonstrates the renewal is possible even amid the hopelessness represented by the relationship between England and France at the novel's opening. Sacrifice and renewal color the novel and give it, as Hilary Schor argues, 'prophetic vision'. For instance, even though Carton faces the guillotine, he sees the possibility of his namesake leading a better life… (Rankin)" Despite the fact that Carton is facing death, he will live through Darnay and his family, and his children's lives will be better versions of his. Also, in A Tale of Two Cities, when Carton is reflecting on his life, about to be executed, he compared to Christ. Dickens writes, “I am the resurrection and the life, saith the Lord; he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live; and whosoever shall liveth and believeth in me shall never die (Dickens 292).” Dickens is alluding to the Bible. In Christian mythology, Jesus is executed by crucifixion, only to be resurrected. He is sacrificed to renew all of his followers. Carton, like Christ, is sacrificed in order to renew someone, who is Darnay, and is renewed after death. Carton believes that he will be renewed in the afterlife. In both passages, Carton is renewed by his own
Carton’s sacrifice allows the Manette-Darnay family to have a somewhat joyful ending. In “‘Recalled to Life’: Sacrifice and Renewal in A Tale of Two Cities,” …show more content…
In “‘Recalled to Life’: Sacrifice and Renewal in A Tale of Two Cities, Rankin also writes, "The sacrifice that Carton makes at the novel's end demonstrates the renewal is possible even amid the hopelessness represented by the relationship between England and France at the novel's opening. Sacrifice and renewal color the novel and give it, as Hilary Schor argues, 'prophetic vision'. For instance, even though Carton faces the guillotine, he sees the possibility of his namesake leading a better life… (Rankin)" Despite the fact that Carton is facing death, he will live through Darnay and his family, and his children's lives will be better versions of his. Also, in A Tale of Two Cities, when Carton is reflecting on his life, about to be executed, he compared to Christ. Dickens writes, “I am the resurrection and the life, saith the Lord; he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live; and whosoever shall liveth and believeth in me shall never die (Dickens 292).” Dickens is alluding to the Bible. In Christian mythology, Jesus is executed by crucifixion, only to be resurrected. He is sacrificed to renew all of his followers. Carton, like Christ, is sacrificed in order to renew someone, who is Darnay, and is renewed after death. Carton believes that he will be renewed in the afterlife. In both passages, Carton is renewed by his own