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foolish mortals.

A thank you to the Title Creator!!!

Ma'ayan, Rebecca and I want to thank whoever created the title and fixed up the text colors. We don't know who you are, but you did a great job, and thank you very much!!! The blog looks really fantastic now!

A Son Of Sensibility

“‘Dear Papa and mamma, I am very sorry to leave you both, and to leave my pretty sister; but I am called, and I must go!”

In "Echoing Footsteps" Dickens introduces us to Lucie's son and daughter. As Sydeny Carton predicted, Lucie has married and has created the perfect family. Yet she is still hearing these footsteps. Some bring her joy, and others sorrow. This quote said by Lucie's son, is his dying words. And with his death, the sound of his footsteps become entwined with the flutter of Angel's wings. That's all Dickens really says about the matter. Now, Lucie is an emotional woman, whose heart can be easily damaged. Wouldn't a mother who loves her children deeply be absolutely broken by the death of her youngest child? Yet, Dickens skims over it lightly. I found this to be surprising and I have to wonder what happend to this sadness of Lucie Manette. In my mind, I predict that this is not the last we have seen of Lucie's grief. Perhaps this agony she keeps inside will turn out to be the downfall of her happiness. To me, Lucie seems repressed in her emotions, and I have to believe that this will come back to haunt her.

Peasant Parenting

Here is another example of parenting that we have not yet discussed:

“ Not before dark night did the men and women come back to the children, wailing and breadless” (p 235).

 The parents all left their children to go fight for the revolution. Is this form of parenting better or worse to the aristocrats’ form of it? Both involve neglect but one is for indulgence and the other is for a greater cause, which will improve the life of the next generation; their children. However, in the process, if these children are neglected and experience violence, will the outcome be great enough to counteract the trauma that they go through? Obviously being a parent during times like those was not ideal but could part of the failure of post revolution France be due to the neglect that the children went through who later rose to power?

This is what I was trying to post last week!

"It was an inconsistent and ubiquitous fiend too, for, while it was making the whole night behind him dreadful, he darted out into the roadway to avoid dark alleys, fearful of its coming, hopping out of them like a dropsical boy’s-kite without tail and wings.” (p 168). 

To analyze the content of this passage, one must first analyze its writing style. The word fiend (as defined in vocabulary) is an example of zeugma. Young Jerry is running away from both the haunted copse that he believes is following him from the graveyard but also his father. To most, the two meanings of the word fiend mean two different things, but to YJ they are the same thing. Here YJ has an epiphany. He realizes that his father treats his mother and him badly, and has a black-market immoral job, and no longer wants to be just like him. He is worried about becoming that very kite, with its tail and wings cut off, becoming his father (He already looks like a miniature version) if he doesn’t get away. His reaction the next morning can be analyzed through a Freudian reading. YJ exhibits a reaction formation. He is so scared about what his father will do if he finds out and how to deal with the truth that he subconsciously takes the opposite reaction to his true reaction and acts as if he is totally for becoming a resurrection man. Jerry and YJ are at the point in their relationship where YJ will start to question Jerry and think for himself. However, this is just a point along the way. YJ is not fully thinking for himself because he is resorting to reaction formation as a safety net. It will be interesting to see how this father son relationship plays out through the rest of the novel.

In Secret

“There was one among them, the appearance of a lady dressed in black, who was leaning in the embrasure of a window, and she had a light shining upon her golden hair, and she looked like * * * * Let us ride on again, for God's sake, through the illuminated villages with the people all awake! * * * * He made shoes, he made shoes, he made shoes. * * * *”

This in a way pertains to the argument of whether or not Charles Darnay is being courageous when he returns to France. While it is without a doubt noble of him to be willing to put himself at such great risk to help a servant and friend, he does not take into consideration his other affiliations, namely that to Lucie and Dr. Manette. In this case his upright personality is his greatest character flaw is his fervent yen to help others, as this is only possible to a certain degree. He cannot possibly both help Lucie and their family as well as his old family. In my opinion, his new life with the Manettes should be a far greater concern to him as they are his flesh and blood now. Whereas in the case of Gabelle, he has already renounced his family name (Evremonde) and everything else along with it, therefore Gabelle should not be his prime interest. By placing himself at great risk, it could potentially hurt his (relatively) new family, especially Lucie, since they had already experience the death of a member, and to lose another would probably degrade them into a similar situation to that of the woman at the end of Monsieur the Marquis in the Country (Book the Second), so wracked with grief that she looks forty years older than she is. By his rash decision to return to France, Darnay is in fact revealing some imperfections in his seemingly perfect character.
In this way he could also be seen as a poor father. (This again, pertains to the example handed out during class that regards the chapters Monsieur the Marquis in Town and Monsieur the Marquis in the Country, so I am cheating in a way.) Though he has renounced his aristocratic heritage, Darnay here is showing his unchangeable similarities to the aristocracy, no matter how much he detests their policies. Despite the fact that he does not necessarily view fatherhood as the former French nobility did, Darnay does not show adequate care to his children; by leaving his daughter to Lucie and going off to do his own thing, Darnay reflects the actions of the Second Estate. While he is not necessarily a “bad” person, Darnay does show some subtle carelessness to his family. The only time when he does think of them again is when he gets locked up “secretly” (meaning that he has no opportunity to make known the fact that he has been imprisoned to associates) as he can now do nothing but muse and stare at the ground.

Echoing Footsteps of Hand-Knit Slippers

“How near to her heart the echoes of her child’s tread came, and those of her own dear father’s, always active and self-possessed, and those of her dear husband’s, need not be told. Nor, how the lightest echo of their united home, directed by herself with such a wise and elegant thrift that it was more abundant than any waste, was music to her. Nor, how there were echoes all about her, sweet in her ears, of the many times her father had told her that he found her more devoted to her married (if that could be) than single...” (220-221)

In chapter twenty-one we find Lucie Darnay and her husband have welcomed a baby girl into the world. Hearing her daughter walk around their house is music to Lucie’s ears. All this time Lucie was so concerned that by marrying, she would ultimately abandon her father. As a matter of fact, he feels their connection is even stronger now that she is married. Dr. Manette has the pleasure of seeing his only daughter happy and in love. Lucie has brought her father the joy of helping to raise her child – a joy he never got to experience. The three adults in the family – the Darnays and Dr. Manette – unite in a way that only family could. On the other side, all of Sydney Carton’s predictions are coming true (from chapter thirteen). He knows the truth about how much Darnay’s name says about him. On the other side of town, Darnay’s name remains stitched into the blanket of Madame Defarge. Her and Saint Antoine’s intentions are to annihilate Darnay and anyong close to him, including his family. Although this obstacle stands in their way, I believe the relationship between Lucie and her father -- and now the relationship that binds all three -- will be strong enough to get them past it. 

One Night - Lucie and Dr Manette

'I am that child, I hope, my father. O my dear, my dear, will you bless me as fervently tomorrow?' [Lucie asked her father the night before the wedding].

'Lucie, I recal these old troubles in the reason that I have to-night for loving you better than words can tell, and thanking G-d for my great happiness that I have known with you, and that we have before us.'...

...in the stillness of the third hour of the morning, Lucie came down stairs again, and stole into his room; not free from unshaped fears, beforehand.

All things, however, were in their places; all was quiet; and he lay asleep...(198).

Just before this passage is a quote that Molly H used about Dr Manette reflecting on his time in prison and his concern of how his child, in particularly his daughter, would turn out. Molly H describes Dr Manette's longing for a child as helping strengthen his relationship with his daughter. This relationship is what has restored Dr Manette to life, which is explains why he still supports Lucie's marriage, even though she was essentially oblivious to his peril for the first seventeen years of her life. Dr Manette's former parental concern is reciprocated when Lucie goes to check on her father to make sure that he is okay and has not relapsed, just like how a mother would check on her child. THese mutual features of their relationship are what make their love so unusual and special.

Whether it was a son, Whether it was a Daughter

"I have looked at her, speculating thousands of times upon the unborn child whom I had rent. Whether it was alive. Whether it had been born alive, or the poor mother’s shock had killed it. Whether it was a son who would some day avenge his father (there was a time in my imprisonment when my desire for vengeance was unbearable.) Whether it was a son who would never know his father’s story: who might even live to weigh the possibility of his father’s having disappeared of his own will and act. Whether it was a daughter, who would grow to be a woman.”(196).

        This is during of the first discussion where Dr. Manette discusses his time in prison, and it is the first time we realize how much he wanted and cared about his child, without even knowing if he or she was alive. He wanted a child to do the things he couldn’t do because he was in prison. He wanted a child to come a rescue him, avenge him, because he so badly needed it.   He wanted a child so he or she could be happy, because he wasn’t. He wanted a child so he could be proud of him or her. He also wanted a child so he could be a parent. He wanted to care for somebody, help him or her to be happy, so he could have the satisfaction of helping someone instead of being locked in a cell. I mean that in an unselfish way, I believe he wanted to be useful to the outside world instead of being locked up in a cell. This passage also shows how powerful the relationship between Lucie and Dr. Manette is, because she definitely helped him to achieve all of these things, and become as close as possible to the person he was before he entered prison. 

Still Knitting

“"It is a long time,” repeated his wife; “and when is it not a long time? Vengeance and retribution require a long time; it is the rule...How long,” demanded madame, composedly, “does it take to make and store the lightning? Tell me...It does not take a long time,” said madame, “for an earthquake to swallow a town. Eh well! Tell me how long it takes to prepare the earthquake?...But when it is ready, it takes place, and grinds to pieces everything before it. In the meantime, it is always preparing, though it is not seen or heard. That is your consolation. Keep it...We shall have helped it,” returned madame, with her extended hand in strong action. “Nothing that we do, is done in vain. I believe, with all my soul, that we shall see the triumph. But even if not, even if I knew certainly not, show me the neck of an aristocrat and tyrant, and still I would—”"

-Madame Defarge (Tale of Two Cities p.185-186)

"“You have a husband, madame?"

“I have.”

“Children?”

“No children.”"(p.188)

(First and foremost, I apologize for my confusing citation) That being said, in these two excerpts (especially the second) I am reminded that the Defarges are a barren couple with no (real) children to speak of. Because of this, they are in a way, parenting their figurative child which is the French Revolution. They gave birth to the design of the movement, they raised it by spreading word among the Jaques's, essentially they have done all for the Revolution as parents would for their children.

Madame Defarge is portrayed as the classical devoted, caring, and nurturing mother (the only difference being that her child is the intangible concept of revolution). As seen in my first citation, she is ready and willing to give her all to see her child excel regardless of time and energy spent on the task (kind of reminds me of my mom...).

Another tidbit I found interesting is the hit-list Madame Defarge is knitting. For a actual mother with a living child, knitting is one way she provides for her youngster. By knitting the "registered ones" onto her work, she is in a way "feeding" her baby by providing it with the nourishment (the lives of the nobles and all that are affiliated with them) that it will need to grow and flourish, which has a double meaning since while the Child thrives, the world around it crumbles.

What I find very ironic of this metaphorical mother-"child" relationship however is that, in most situations, the parent strives to give every last ounce of his/her vitality to see the child lead a prosperous life (Ideally, parents give life to their children, both by giving birth and also by raising them). Though Madame Defarge is wholly committed to giving life to her "child", the life of her infant revolution will bring about much death, chaos, and adversity in France.

One Night

"'My child, you did see him, and it is Charles.  If it had not been Charles, it would have been another.  Or, if it had been no other, I should have been the cause, and then the dark part of my life would have cast its shadow beyond myself, and would have fallen on you.'" (195-196)

In this passage I think we see Dr. Manette as a real father.  He is taking true concern in his daughters happiness by saying that he would have felt so guilty if he was the reason that she never married.  He doesn't want his loneliness due to lack of spouse to happen to her.  He is also trying very hard not to impose on her life, now that she has brought him back to himself, because he knows he was a large burden before that she enjoyed having.  Also this is the most compassionate we have see Dr. Manette throughout the whole book, towards any one, even Lucie.  I think that this shows a pretty complete transformation in Dr. Manette, and the hope is that after the wedding when she goes off, that he won't relapse back to his old ways of show making, because she isn't around as much any more.

The Honest Tradesman

"'Oh, father, I should so like to be a Resurrection-Man when I'm quite growed up!' [said Young Jerry].

Mr Cruncher was soothed....Mr Cruncher added to himself: 'Jerry, you honest tradesman, there's hopes wot that boy will be a blessing to you, and a recompense to you for his mother!'" (170).

Just as Molly H describes in her post, Young Jerry gives the perception of wanting to be exactly like his father and thinking that he can do no wrong. Young Jerry wants to follow into the same "profession," so it may be called, of digging up graves. Also, when he was first introduced, he was described as nearly an exact replica of jerry, both of them looking like monkeys, on top of the fact that they both did odd jobs at Tellson's Bank. Now, Jerry, who is only capable of seeing the most external level of others, is sure that his son will follow directly in his footsteps. He could not be more thrilled because he wants - and needs - his elitist mindset to be replicated in others, especially his own son. Jerry thinks that he knows everything and nothing could possibly be his fault, and he wants his son to agree with him. This is why Jerry is "soothed" and felt that Young Jerry could make up for his mother's "shortcomings."

The Fellow of No Delicacy

"O Miss Manette, when the little picture of a happy father's face looks up in yours, when you see your own bright beauty spring up anew at your feet, think now and then that there is a man who would give his life, to keep a life you love beside you!"

(158).

As Sydney Carton professes his love and devotion to Miss Manette, he makes this promise to do anything to not only protect her but to protect the ones she loves. In this quote, Carton predicts that the ones she love might soon be her children. The reference to "little picture of a happy father's face" refers to a son, most likely by Darnay, and the "your bright beauty" is Lucie's daughter. Dickens' with this quote also shows how Sydney has a knack for predicting the future. We see this first in the Hundreds of People chapter, but it seems more prominent here. What I found most interesting about this entire chapter, was the lengths at which Sydney was willing to go to express this fondness. He needed to tell Lucie all this so badly that he was reduced to tears. Yet for all Sydney says to the woman, he asks nothing in return except a few moments of her time to think about him. He would give his life to make sure all the people she holds dear to remain safe and happy. This includes the double of Sydney, Charles Darnay. Now I don't know about this time period, but now a days, acts of jealousy and envy are many and often. To watch as the woman you love lives a life of happiness with a man that looks like you seems like torture. Though Sydney mentions weakness, and how in telling Miss Manette all this is petty, I would argue that Sydney is actually a stronger man than he thinks. To endure just watching as Lucie marries and has children would break weak men, yet Sydney commits a life to just that; watching. The only thing he asks is that when Lucie sees the resemblance in her son, that Sydney be thought of.

A Fiend for a Father

Fishing Trip- The Honest Tradesman

" ' Father,' said Young Jerry, as they walked along: taking care to keep at arm's length and to have the stool well between them: 'what's a Resurrection-Man?' 

Mr. Cruncher came to a stop on the pavement before he answered, 'How should I know'?

'I thought you knowed everything, father,' said the artless boy.

'Hem! Well,' returned Mr. Cruncher, going on again, and lifting off his hat to give his spikes free play, 'he's a tradesman.'

'What's his goods, father?' asked the brisk Young Jerry.

'His goods,' said Mr. Cruncher, after turning it over in his mind, 'is a branch of scientific goods.' 

'Person's bodies, ain't it father?' asked the lively boy.

'I believe it is somethink of that sort,' said Mr. Cruncher.

'Oh, Father, I should so like to be a Resurrection-Man when I'm quite growed up!' (170).

This passage is the culmination of a series of events in this chapter. Mr. Cruncher goes to dig out bodies in a graveyard, and Young Jerry, thinking his dad is going on a fishing trip, follows without his father knowing. Young Jerry reveres his father, and dickens refers to Mr. Cruncher as the honoured parent for the entire fishing trip passage. He sees his father digging up land with a spade, and when he sees the coffin come out of the dirt, he sprints home, frightened.

  I believe that Young Jerry found some new respect for his father, and is in awe that he is a Resurrection-Man. He wants to be like his father and I believe he appreciates the fact that this father is a rule-breaker, and is proud of him for being a rebel. However, I think that Jerry is beginning to question the morals of what his father does in the night. I think the purpose of him asking his father what a Resurrection man was was not to figure out what it is, but to see how his father feels about it. Young Jerry cleverly disguises his intent in the questions, but I think he is still unsure about how he feels and whether it is right or wrong. This is the first time in the book that a child has questioned a parent as a role model. I bet Jerry throughly enjoyed freaking his father out by asking the question, and I think both Jerrys will be watching each other closely for a while to see what they do. 

 

Two Promises (from Darnay's point of view)

“...between you and Miss Manette there is an affection so unusual, so touching, so belonging to the circumstances in which it has been nurtured, that it can have few parallels, even in the tenderness between a father and child...I know that, as in her childhood she had no parent, so she is now devoted to you with all the constancy and fervor of her present years and character, united to the trustfulness and attachment of the early days in which you were lost to her.” (138)

Dr. Manette fears that if Charles Darnay and Lucie fall in love, his connection with his daughter will be strained. In this passage, Darnay reassures the doctor that even though he might be in Lucie’s life, he will in no way replace the connection between father and daughter. Throughout the past few chapters, Lucie and Dr. Manette have been reinforcing their connection in every way they can, foreshadowing that someone would put a strain on it as the novel continued. Now, with a love interest for Lucie, Dr. Manette fears that all their work for their strong connection will be put to waste. Darnay understands their relationship and how long they have worked to be like father and daughter. 

Two Promises

"...I believe your object to be, purely and truthfully, as you stated it.  I believe you intention is to perpetuate, and not to weaken, the ties between me and my other and far dearer self.  If she should ever tell me that you are essential to her happiness, I will give her to you. (141)"

Here we see the progression of Dr. Manette, in passages past we have seen him as a child and slowly "growing up", now we see the roles switched and him acting as a parent.  Also we see how close him and Lucie have become and how deep their relationship has grown because he refers her as his other half.  Also we see it through how concerned he is for her happiness because he will only allow Darnay to marry her if he is "essential to her happiness."  I think it shows a lot of progression in Dr. Manette, and his relationship to Lucie.

FIRST POST!!! (group)

‘Can’t be helped,’ said Miss Pross, shaking her head. ‘Touch that string [why Dr Manette was jailed], and he instantly changes for the worse. Better leave it alone. In short, must leave it alone, like or no like. Sometimes, he gets up in the dead of the night, and will be heard, by us overhead there, walking up and down, walking up and down, in his room. Ladybird has learnt to know then, that his mind is walking up and down, walking up and down, in his old prison. She hurries to him, and they go on together, walking up and down, walking up and down, until he is composed. But he never says a word of the true reason of his restlessness, to her, and she finds it best not to hint at it to him. In silence they go walking up and down together, walking up and down, together, till her love and company have brought him to himself.’ (102)

This passage stresses and reinforces the connection between Dr. Manette and his daughter Lucie so much that it foreshadows the break between the two. Dr. Manette has the natural instinct of a father to protect his daughter. Lucie, fearing losing her father like she has in the past, is motherly in return. Both protect one another as though their lives depended on it. Later in the novel, it is possible that the father and daughter's relationship will break. Lucie's life will most likely put a strain on their relationship, possibly due to a love interest (or two). Dr. Manette has the natural instinct to hold on to what he values most. He's had a troubled past and had nothing. Now that he has had something for five years, he doesn't want to let it go. This is Dickens' way of moving the plot forward. By creating such a strong bond between the two, he can create an even greater climax once it is broken.