Sacrifice In A Tale Of Two Cities

Sacrificing for a Worthy Cause
The author of A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens, sacrificed his childhood in an attempt to free his father from debtor’s prison, a worthy cause in his mind. From 1789 to the late 1790’s in St. Antoine, France, the French Revolution was being led by peasants who had been neglected by the French aristocracy. During the revolution people made sacrifices for what they each saw as a worthy cause. Throughout the novel, people sacrificed for what Dickens deemed as worthy causes: a new life, justice, and love.
Charles Darnay must sacrifice all his family has built in order to pursue a new life. His aristocratic family has done wrong to many in St. Antoine and Darnay is seen to have done so as well since he is a member

Manette sacrifices his sanity. After being locked in the Bastille for eighteen years, Dr. Manette of Beauvais is released and is in terrible mental and physical condition. Though he recovers with the love of his daughter, Lucie, he is in constant fear of a relapse. After Lucie leaves for her honeymoon, Dr. Manette’s fears come to light and he relapses for nine days. The Doctor is taken care of by Miss Pross and Jarvis Lorry, but afterwards Lorry asks him about what he remembers and other details of the relapse. While doing so, Manette admits that he had been dreading it, “I think it probable… that the relapse you have described, my dear friend, was not quite unforeseen by its subject” (155). After discussing future relapses, Manette sacrifices his workbench by giving Lorry the bench to destroy it as an attempt at prevention. Later, Darnay makes a trip to France and is arrested as an illegal emigrant. Manette tries to use his status with the revolutionaries to have him freed and eventually succeeds. He tells Lucie after saving Darnay, “Don’t tremble so. I have saved him” (223). Soon Darnay is arrested again, and in utter dismay, Dr. Manette has another relapse. Dickens describes it as if he were “a distracted child” through his actions, “He tore his hair, and beat his feet upon the ground” (266). Having lost his sanity in an attempt to preserve Darnay’s safety and justice, Manette

When Darnay had been put on trial for treason, his attorney, Mr. Stryver, had a co-council comprised of Sydney Carton. During Darnay’s treason trial, Carton saved Darnay’s life for the first time by casting a shadow of doubt in the jury’s mind: “Look well upon that gentleman, … and then look well upon the prisoner. How say you? Are they very like each other? … they were sufficiently like each other” (55-56). While at the trial, it is established that Darnay and Carton look almost exactly alike and the two men are both entranced by Lucie Manette. Though Darnay eventually marries Lucie, Carton loves her to an extent that Darnay does not. Carton lived in darkness his his entire life, and when he sees Lucie Manette, he sees the light. A change of heart occurs in Carton; instead of simply understanding that he had wasted his worthless life, he then wanted to change it and make it worth something. Although he did not think he could change it and continued to scorn himself, he now understood that it should change. One night, Carton goes to Lucie’s home to confess his feelings and explains to her that “There is a man who would give his life, to keep a life you love beside you!” (116). This is foreshadowing to his death in place of Darnay. Since Carton has lived in an unilluminated anguish his entire life, when he is given the opportunity to save Darnay’s life again with their physical likeness, he takes it on