FEMINISM
******Warning this does contain some plot spoiling******
Dickens and Societies View Of Women
Women during the time of "A Tale of Two Cities" had a very specific role in society. Regardless of social class, women were expected to marry, obey their husband, and rear children. Very rarely did women hold jobs and most stayed at home. However, women did play a vital role in the French Revolution participating in the brutal mob actions and often inciting riots of their own.
Dickens has two very opposing views of women. The first is modeled after Dickens' sister-in-law Mary Scott Hogarth. Mary died at the age of seventeen. This devastated Dickens because he was in love with her. After that he wore the ring that she was wearing when she died for the rest of his life. He often said that she was the guiding force behind his writing. Characters modeled after Mary tend to be around the age she died (17), virgins, and exemplify the perfect female qualities. On the opposite side of the spectrum is the characters based on Dickens' mother. Dickens had a rough relationship with his mother which was only made worse when she got older and became senile. These characters tend to be over-the-top, eccentric, or crazy. A great example would be Miss Havisham from "Great Expectations".
Lucie Manette and Madame Defarge
Lucie Manette is the daughter of Doctor Manette and Dickens representation of the perfect woman. Truly modeled after Dickens' sister-in-law, Lucie is a compassionate young woman. Dickens describes Lucie's affect on her father saying “She was the golden thread that united him to a Past beyond his misery, and to a Present beyond his misery: and the sound of her voice, the light of her face, the touch of her hand, had a strong beneficial influence with him almost always.” (page 155). Her presence alone has a positive influence on her father. Not only is she loved by her father but also by a "hundreds of men" says Miss Pross, the most significant being Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton. Lucie has such an influence on Sydney Carton that he is no longer the same person he was at the beginning of the story. His love for her leads him to sacrifice his life so that Lucie and Darnay can be together. Lucie is Dickens perfect representation of both how he believed women should be and how society believed women should be.
Madame Defarge is a totally different kind of woman. Being the wife of a leader of the rebellion, Madame Defarge is deeply entwined in the Revolution. Throughout the book she is seen knitting, and at first glance this would appear as a normal womanly duty. However, Madame Defarge is not knitting a scarf or sweater but rather knitting a list of people she believes must die for the the Revolution to be successful. By taking Madame Defarge's knitting and making it an act intended to incite violence, Dickens' shows us that she is a perversion of a normal woman. Madame Defarge is also obsessed with revenge. Her brother was killed by the Evremonde family and because of that she is consumed with hatred. She resolves to kill all the Evremondes including Darnay and his new wife Lucie. Her hatred would be her demise. When Madame Defarge goes to kill Lucie, she finds Miss Pross and after a fight between them Madame Defarge is killed by her own gun.
The actions and personality of Lucie and Madame Defarge are crucial to understanding what happens to each of them at the end of the novel. Lucie was only good to people and as a result she marries the man she loves. Madame Defarge is only vengeful and hateful. The malice she has and desire for revenge cause her to die at the hand of Miss Pross. Dickens purposely does this to illustrate how when women act the way they should, they will find happiness. Consequently, if a women behaves in a manner that is unbecoming she will only have bad fortune.
Dickens believes that women have their place in society but that does not mean he thought they were not important. Lucie and Madame Defarge heavily influence those people around them. Lucie influences Darnay, Carton, and her father. Madame Defarge influences her husband and other revolutionaries such as Jacques three. Lastly, Dickens refers to the guillotine as “the figure of the sharp female” (549). Dickens, in this instance, is acknowledging women influenced the killings just as much as the men did.
Dickens and Societies View Of Women
Women during the time of "A Tale of Two Cities" had a very specific role in society. Regardless of social class, women were expected to marry, obey their husband, and rear children. Very rarely did women hold jobs and most stayed at home. However, women did play a vital role in the French Revolution participating in the brutal mob actions and often inciting riots of their own.
Dickens has two very opposing views of women. The first is modeled after Dickens' sister-in-law Mary Scott Hogarth. Mary died at the age of seventeen. This devastated Dickens because he was in love with her. After that he wore the ring that she was wearing when she died for the rest of his life. He often said that she was the guiding force behind his writing. Characters modeled after Mary tend to be around the age she died (17), virgins, and exemplify the perfect female qualities. On the opposite side of the spectrum is the characters based on Dickens' mother. Dickens had a rough relationship with his mother which was only made worse when she got older and became senile. These characters tend to be over-the-top, eccentric, or crazy. A great example would be Miss Havisham from "Great Expectations".
Lucie Manette and Madame Defarge
Lucie Manette is the daughter of Doctor Manette and Dickens representation of the perfect woman. Truly modeled after Dickens' sister-in-law, Lucie is a compassionate young woman. Dickens describes Lucie's affect on her father saying “She was the golden thread that united him to a Past beyond his misery, and to a Present beyond his misery: and the sound of her voice, the light of her face, the touch of her hand, had a strong beneficial influence with him almost always.” (page 155). Her presence alone has a positive influence on her father. Not only is she loved by her father but also by a "hundreds of men" says Miss Pross, the most significant being Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton. Lucie has such an influence on Sydney Carton that he is no longer the same person he was at the beginning of the story. His love for her leads him to sacrifice his life so that Lucie and Darnay can be together. Lucie is Dickens perfect representation of both how he believed women should be and how society believed women should be.
Madame Defarge is a totally different kind of woman. Being the wife of a leader of the rebellion, Madame Defarge is deeply entwined in the Revolution. Throughout the book she is seen knitting, and at first glance this would appear as a normal womanly duty. However, Madame Defarge is not knitting a scarf or sweater but rather knitting a list of people she believes must die for the the Revolution to be successful. By taking Madame Defarge's knitting and making it an act intended to incite violence, Dickens' shows us that she is a perversion of a normal woman. Madame Defarge is also obsessed with revenge. Her brother was killed by the Evremonde family and because of that she is consumed with hatred. She resolves to kill all the Evremondes including Darnay and his new wife Lucie. Her hatred would be her demise. When Madame Defarge goes to kill Lucie, she finds Miss Pross and after a fight between them Madame Defarge is killed by her own gun.
The actions and personality of Lucie and Madame Defarge are crucial to understanding what happens to each of them at the end of the novel. Lucie was only good to people and as a result she marries the man she loves. Madame Defarge is only vengeful and hateful. The malice she has and desire for revenge cause her to die at the hand of Miss Pross. Dickens purposely does this to illustrate how when women act the way they should, they will find happiness. Consequently, if a women behaves in a manner that is unbecoming she will only have bad fortune.
Dickens believes that women have their place in society but that does not mean he thought they were not important. Lucie and Madame Defarge heavily influence those people around them. Lucie influences Darnay, Carton, and her father. Madame Defarge influences her husband and other revolutionaries such as Jacques three. Lastly, Dickens refers to the guillotine as “the figure of the sharp female” (549). Dickens, in this instance, is acknowledging women influenced the killings just as much as the men did.