Summary:
In A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens foreshadows several key events, keeping the readers interested and wondering if their conclusions are the right ones.
There is a reason why people enjoy mysteries. Mysteries in novel or movie form allow the reader to enjoy a story while having the excitement of guessing what will happen. Everyone loves to see if the murderer really is, like they thought, the Colonel in the kitchen with a wrench. However, a good mystery will give an ample number of clues to allow the insightful reader to figure out the ending long before it occurs. In A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens foreshadows several key events, keeping the readers interested and wondering if their conclusions are the right ones.
One event that Dickens foreshadows is the appearance of the note that Dr. Manette wrote while in the Bastille, denouncing Charles Darnay and cementing his fate.
The first clue that this note will be found occurs when Charles discusses a note that was buried by a prisoner in the Tower of London. Upon hearing this, Dr. Manette starts and looks uneasy, hinting that Dr. Manette may have his own secret relating to a note. The storming of the Bastille also hints at the appearance of the note. When Defarge enters Dr. Manette's old cell, he searches around for anything Manette may have left behind. While it is never said if anything is found, Dickens states that "some discovered letters and other memorials of prisoners of old time, long dead of broken hearts" (170, ch. 22) had left the Bastille. This implies that Defarge may have found a letter or something else of importance in Manette's old cell. Another person that foreshadows this note is the Republican citizen who comes to take Darnay to prison for the second time. When Dr. Manette asks who has denounced Darnay besides the Defarges, the citizen gives him a "strange look" (227, ch. 7) and evades the question. The citizen's behavior could indicate that Dr. Manette might have been involved in the denouncement indirectly.
The danger that nearly awaited the Darnay family is also foreshadowed several times. The Defarges come to see Lucie and her daughter after Darnay is imprisoned presumably to "recognize the faces and know the persons" (205, ch. 3) of the family for safety's sake. However, Mr. Lorry is struck by Mr. Defarge's odd manner, hinting that the Defarges may not have good intentions for seeing the family. Madame Defarge then sees little Lucie and asks, "Is the child?" (207, ch. 3) while pointing her finger "as if it were the finger of Fate" (207, ch. 3), foreshadowing that Madame Defarge may hold the fate and even death of little Lucie in her hands. After witnessing this behavior, Mr. Lorry feels that "the shadow of the manner of these Defarges was dark upon himself, and in his secret mind it troubled him greatly" (208, ch. 3). He is obviously uneasy about the Defarges' cold behavior. Even to Mr. Lorry, an imaginary character, their actions and words foreshadow the danger that could await the Darnay family because of Darnay's past.
Throughout A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens also gives us many hints that Sydney Carton will sacrifice himself to save Charles Darnay from the guillotine. This suggestion is first made when Darnay is found innocent in his first trial because of Carton's uncanny resemblance to him. This plants the idea in the reader's mind that Carton's resemblance to Darnay might become more important later in the novel. His selfless act is also foreshadowed in his following monologue to Lucy about his unrequited love for her.
For you, and for any dear to you, I would do anything. If my career were of that better kind that there was any opportunity or capacity of sacrifice in it, I would embrace any sacrifice for you and for those dear to you. (117; ch. 13)
From this quotation, it can be inferred that when Darnay is sentenced, Carton might make the ultimate "sacrifice"-- giving up his life to save Darnay. Carton himself foreshadows his sacrifice when he arrives in Paris and speaks with Mr. Lorry. He hints many times at his plan and what he will give up to achieve it, such as when he speaks to Lorry about his life so far and what he has done with it. He also says that he is the "resurrection and the life" (243, ch. 9), implying that he will sacrifice his life to "resurrect," or give back, Darnay's life.
The use of foreshadow by Charles Dickens in A Tale of Two Cities hints at the key events that will occur. By giving us clues as to what will happen in the novel, Dickens allows us to interact with the story. As we note his uses of foreshadowing, we use them to guess what will happen in the story. Foreshadow allows us to take an active role in our reading, keeping us interested and pondering our conclusions until the very last page.
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