At the beginning of chapter 21 Dickens describes the footsteps that
Lucie hears. What is the significance of this? Pay close attention to the first
few pages we get an update on how everyone is doing. What type of life are the
characters in England living? On pages 216 and 217 there is a change in setting
and mood. How do the events and lives of the characters in London compare with
those in Paris? What is the mob compared to? How does Jacques Three behave
during the storming of the bastille? Why did Defarge visit Manette’s cell. How
does Madame Defarge behave? The last Paragraph references Lucie and her aloofness
from the horrors in Paris. What does this foreshadow? Feel free to answer any
of these or discuss something different.
In the first part of chapter 21 I love the way Dickens describes the footsteps. On page 212 Dickens writes, "Her husband's step was strong and prosperous among them; her father's firm and equal." I really like the picture that is put into my head and the words that Dickens uses to describe this. Another piece of writing I enjoyed from this chapter is also about the echos Lucie was hearing. On page 214 I really enjoyed the last paragraph. I like the way Dickens talks about how the echos represent the person. "..and those of her own dear father's, always active and self-possessed.." This is an example of how Dickens uses the echos to talk about the characters personality.
ReplyDeleteI thought the second part of this chapter was very interesting. The reader gets to see different sides of the characters. Like Madame Defarge does not have yarn in her hands at all during this chapter, but a knife. During this part of the chapter I was more engaged because of all the events that were going on. I think Defarge went to Doctor Manette's cell because there was something important there that he needed to see. I think we will find out later in the book why he went there during this chapter.
This chapter was a transition. It started off as foreshadowing, but for one, it was actually going somewhere (even though it took a few years) and led to an interesting second part. The footsteps that Lucie hears at first is the start of the foreshadowing. "Lucie sat in the still house in the tranquilly resounding corner, listening to the echoing footsteps of years." (P 211) Since this chapter is all about foreshadowing and the beginning of the action, these opening lines are a fitting beginning phrase. This first part goes on for a while, without too much happening and "updating us" as Corey said so eloquently.
ReplyDeleteThings began to pick up once we arrived in Paris. We were launched right into the middle of a riot and the march on the Bastille. This is very different from the lives of the peaceful Londoners. Jacques three finally got a taste of the blood he was so desperate for. He was like a wild, but careful, animal. We also get to see a whole different side of Madame Defarge, for she has now put down her knitting and taken up her axe. It was she who dealt the killing blow to the governor, and this foreshadows much death dealt by the axe. As for Lucie, it is only a matter of time before her family gets caught up in the events. The only question is when...
Lucie has a habit of listening to the footsteps, but in this chapter, the footsteps sound almost like a stampede. I think that this symbolizes the revolution in France. The footsteps she hears are a symbol of the uprising in France, and show the readers that the uprising is getting closer to home for Lucie.
ReplyDeleteLater in the chapter, we switch to France, and stuff gets real. A mob headed by the Defarges storms the Bastille. The mob is compared to "a vast dusky mass of scarecrows," (p. 216). I really liked this description, because it paints a picture in my mind of an aggregation of angry peasants running into a battle. Also, Madame Defarge described the aristocrats as birds and dolls, so I think the scarecrow analogy may be significant. I was very interested in the behavior of Madame Defarge this chapter. We always knew that she was scary, and capable of much more than your normal aging woman, but in this chapter, she was especially scary. She beheaded the governor at the bastille; this illustrates the brutality of Madame Defarge, and what we can expect of her in the future. Also, I am interested to see why they visited Manette's cell. We know that it says "DIG" in the cell, and maybe that will be important. Also, Lucie is now part of the Marquis' blood line, so it will be interesting to see how that plays out.
The beginning of chapter 21 explained echoes Lucie was hearing. I thought this might have been because Lucie was a little out of it, or just simply adjusting to her new lifestyle. It was definitely foreshadowing for something yet to come, which made me really enjoyed the writing because Dickens made it seem suspenseful. An interesting quote that struck me was, “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 him married (if that could be) than single…” (p. 214). I think she was getting used to having her father around, when she was single. It was also probably hard for her to be devoted to someone who missed out on most of her important years. Although she really cares about her father and is more devoted, it was difficult for her when she was single.
ReplyDeleteThe other half of the chapter completely switched setting and the action finally began. Both Defarge’s are controlling the mob marching on the Bastille. The scenery and setting of Paris described by Dickens, made it seem hostile and aggressive. In this chapter Madame Defarge is engaged in something other than knitting. Her hobby of knitting, I thought, was just a disguise for how she really feels, and her change in character exposed her true colors. I was definitely not surprised when she killed the Bastille’s governor. I had a feeling at one point she would be involved with killing someone, and in this chapter we finally got to see it come into action.
Dickens uses the metaphor of Lucie, "listening to the echoing footsteps of years." He uses this to show the passing of time from where we were in the previous chapter through the births of her children and their childhoods. This light metaphor sets the tone of the events in that chapter that take place in England. Times are good for the Darnays. Charles is successful, the family maintains a relationship with Carton, and Lucie has two children. It isn't until Mr. Lorry arrives that we get a glimpse of the feeling across the channel. All of the French customers of Tellson's are sending their money from France to England.
ReplyDeleteIn the second section of this chapter, the first true action of the book occurs with the storming of the Bastille. There is finally enough outrage against the French authority for the Defarges to use. I found this the most interesting reading we have had so far because of the character development of the apparent antagonists of the book. Madame Defarge no longer sits knitting, but joins the action, "suddenly animated, she put her foot upon his neck and with her cruel knife-long and ready-hewed off his head."
I think that the footsteps that Lucie hears are very important and is a strong sense of foreshadowing. She even says that it sounds like a great storm is rising. Dickens use of the footsteps is very interesting and a great way to foreshadow the future, its his way of saying that there is shifting amongst the citizens and a rebellion is only days away. Now we shift to the Bastille.
ReplyDeleteThe second part of this chapter was interesting to say the least. We all get to see very different sides of characters. The character that surprised me the most was Madame Defarge. I knew she had steel in her and she had something deep down in her, but I never would have realized that it manifested into cutting off the head of a governor. It will be interesting to see how the others characters true personalities start to show and how much of a role Madame Defarge will play.
This chapter contained a great amount of foreshadowing and action than any other chapter in the book. First, Dickens describes the echoing of the footsteps very eloquently. It is way for Dickens to tell the reader that action is coming our way and is trying to prepare ourselves with as much detail as possible without giving most of it away. He uses persuasive language to foreshadow the future and pass time. It tells us that conflict and action is coming Lucie's way.
ReplyDeleteThe second part of the chapter encompasses a ton of hefty description of the battle scene, along with the new environment that the characters are put in. Characters, such as Madame Defarge, are now in a different environment, which ultimately enables them to change their past personalities and actions. Instead of her constantly knitting every time we meet her in the book, she is now firmly grasping an axe to show that she is in a new setting. We now get to see a different side of Madame Defarge. This other side of her came out of the shadows when she beheaded the governor. While reading the last parts of this chapter, I hope that we will start to see the different sides and roles of characters as they are identified in new settings and environments.
In England after many years, Charles and Lucie's lives have changed very much. They have settled down, had children, and life has moved into a comfortable pattern. Dickens represents the passage of years and changes in their life by the sound of footsteps Lucie hears. "Lucie sat in the still house in the tranquilly resounding corner, listening to the echoing footsteps of years,” (p 211). The sound of footsteps not only represents the change in Charles and Lucie’s life but also a change in French Society, specifically, the Revolution. The reader sees the beginning of this later on, in the chapter.
ReplyDeleteAfter learning about the changes in the Darnay’s life, the book cuts too the Defarges, Jacques, and others storming the Bastille. There, the mob overruns the place and lets the prisoners escape. At this part, the plot really heats up and this scene marks the beginning of the revolution. What I noticed in this chapter was the way Jacques Three was acting. “Jacques Three, with his usual craving on him, and evidently disappointed by the dialogue taking a turn that did not seem to promise bloodshed” (p 219). This, as the reader has seen in previous chapters, shows how eager Jacques Three is. But he also has a crazy, bloodthirsty side to him, which could be troublesome in the future. In all, this chapter is a turning point in the book. The revolution has finally started and from here on out, the story and the plot will be much more interesting.