Madame Defarge's Secrets
A Tale of Two Cities, a novel by Charles Dickens, is written about an era where danger surrounded every conversation and the only way to remain safe was to keep secrets. The characters throughout this novel often hold secrets within them, but when they are discovered, they greatly affect the novel as a whole. When Madame Defarge, Sydney Carton, and Dr Manette each share their profound secret, the information that they share changes the lives of those who learn the secrets.
Madame Defarge has a big secret in which she wants revenge for which is a cause of much of the action that thus takes place. The reason that Madame Defarge’s secret has such a great effect on the actions set forth in the novel is because her husband, Defarge, is so loyal …show more content…
Dr Manette can many times throughout the novel be perceived as mysterious as he is not always quite stable and sometimes relapses in his shoemaking. His mystery is due to holding such large secrets that affect others. An example of such is when his letter that was hidden in his jail cell is read aloud: “And them and their descendants, to the last of their race, I, Alexandre Manette, unhappy prisoner, do this last night of the year 1767, in my unbearable agony, denounce to the times when all these things shall be answered for” (344). It is revealed that Dr Manette denounced Darnay’s family a long time ago, which later affects Darnay. Even though Darnay is sentenced to death for this secret being revealed, he reacts to the letter by saying to Dr Manette: “No, no! What have you done, what have you done, that you should kneel to us!” (347). Darnay is affected by Dr Manette’s secret not only because it is the main cause of Darnay’s sentence, but also because now that Darnay knows what happened, he feels guilty. He does not accept Dr Manette’s apologies, but declines them and says that he is sorry. When Dr Manette’s secret is revealed, not only is Darnay’s life changed but his emotions around his family and sentence are changed too.
The profound secrets shared with different characters throughout the novel change the lives of those who
Madame Defarge has a big secret in which she wants revenge for which is a cause of much of the action that thus takes place. The reason that Madame Defarge’s secret has such a great effect on the actions set forth in the novel is because her husband, Defarge, is so loyal …show more content…
Dr Manette can many times throughout the novel be perceived as mysterious as he is not always quite stable and sometimes relapses in his shoemaking. His mystery is due to holding such large secrets that affect others. An example of such is when his letter that was hidden in his jail cell is read aloud: “And them and their descendants, to the last of their race, I, Alexandre Manette, unhappy prisoner, do this last night of the year 1767, in my unbearable agony, denounce to the times when all these things shall be answered for” (344). It is revealed that Dr Manette denounced Darnay’s family a long time ago, which later affects Darnay. Even though Darnay is sentenced to death for this secret being revealed, he reacts to the letter by saying to Dr Manette: “No, no! What have you done, what have you done, that you should kneel to us!” (347). Darnay is affected by Dr Manette’s secret not only because it is the main cause of Darnay’s sentence, but also because now that Darnay knows what happened, he feels guilty. He does not accept Dr Manette’s apologies, but declines them and says that he is sorry. When Dr Manette’s secret is revealed, not only is Darnay’s life changed but his emotions around his family and sentence are changed too.
The profound secrets shared with different characters throughout the novel change the lives of those who