The historical fiction, the characters, the layers, the themes of resurrection and sacrifice, the puns, the pacing, the TWISTS, this book is an absolute masterpiece.
I’m Paige Connell for KWBU Classics Corner, and I’m here to tell you that if my students and I can learn to love this book, you can too!
Set in the shadow of the French Revolution (with the most famous of opening lines, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times”), our story spans multiple years and multiple locales as we examine the causes and the fallout of the impending war. The commoners who are dissatisfied with their lack of opportunity, the nobility who believe nothing will ever dethrone their golden era—Dickens uses characters (and there are so many characters) to represent differing points of view of Revolution and to symbolically critique and support its causes. Is there a more threatening villain than Madame Defarge, a more worthy hero than Sydney Carton, a more sympathetic case than Dr. Manette, a more comedic duo than Jerry Cruncher and Miss Pross?
The true wonder of this book is the way Dickens reveals things slowly in layers. When we first meet Mr. Lorry in Book the First Ch. 2, we have no idea the impact he will have on characters throughout the story. When we wonder why, in Book the Second Ch. 1, Jerry Cruncher comes home with clean boots and wakes up with muddy ones, we can’t begin to imagine the reason or the excitement when it’s revealed.
As I repeatedly told my students: this book is a tapestry woven backwards. All the threads are details that connect in ways that seem messy and confusing, but by the final chapters, the textile is turned around, revealing a complex and breathtaking work of art. Dickens masterfully plants hints and callbacks throughout the text, just waiting for our aha moment of connection, and when the payoff comes, it’s beautiful.
Studying this as an English teacher gave me such a deeper appreciation for the specifics in the text. It can be hard to break down the language at first, but find an online resource like Spark Notes and use it while you read along. I told my kids that online sites are terrible in place of reading, but wonderful companions to literature. A Tale of Two Cities moved me to tear s(the ending in particular gets me every time) and skyrocketed into a permanent spot in my heart. Classic literature will endure, and this is one that must be experienced.
