‘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.
2 comments:
Hi folks ... one thing I forgot to tell period 8: Could you please go in under "settings" and grant administrative privileges to your period 9 groupmembers?
I also wrote about this passage and I don't really see it as a passage of for shadowing but more as a continuation of what we had already seen. Earlier in Book II we saw Lucie cradling Dr. Manette and rocking him like a mother does to her baby. In this passage it almost seems as if Dr. Manette has grown up a bit because a baby can't walk but a small child or todler can and Lucie is acting like him mother calming him down and staying up with him until he can sleep; like a mother does with their child. I think that this shows progression in Dr. Manette and shows Lucie's dedication to helping her father.
Post a Comment