A tale of two cities

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"A wonderful fact to reflect upon, that every human creature is constituted to be that profound secret and mystery to every other" best summarizes A Tale of Two Cities (1859), a historical novel by Charles Dickens set in London and Paris, in the years leading up to French Revolution and culminating in the Jacobin Reign of Terror. It tells the tale of two men, Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton, who look very similar, although being completely different in their characters. Darnay, a former French aristocrat, falls victim to the indiscriminate wrath of the revolutionaries, despite being virtuous by nature. On the other hand, Carton, a dissipated English barrister tries to redeem his ill-spent life from his unrequited love for Lucie Manette who happens to be Darnays wife. A Tale of Two Cities is a depiction of the plight of the French peasantry, who were demoralized by the French aristocracy in the years leading up to the revolution. It also shows the corresponding brutality demonstrated by the revolutionaries toward the former aristocrats in the early years of the revolution, as well as numerous unflattering social parallels with life in London during the same time period. The characters in this moral novel are powerful, the tale is genuinely tragic, and the atmosphere is lurid as it weaves around themes of shame, guilt, patriotism and redemption. With the great labor that Dickens expended in constructing the novels stylistic ornament, its no wonder that to date, A Tale of Two Cities has sold well over 200 million copies, making it one of the most famous works of fiction. Dt. Ausg. u.d.T.: Dickens, Charles: Eine Geschichte aus zwei Städten