A Tale of Two Cities Notes | Book 1, Chapter 1

"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way--in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only." Book 1, Chapter 1, pg. 1

It is the year 1775, social events have wreaked havoc on London and Paris.

A revolution of British colonists in America has ripped the colony from British hands, and in Paris, the masses of peasants are starving under the brutal oppression and tyranny of aristocratic rule. In both cities, unjust and cruel executions and police tortures are the order of the day. England is rife with crime, and France with poverty. On the thrones of the respective countries sit kings and queens who rule the lands with what they believe are their divine rights as rulers.

Topic Tracking: Oppression/Class Struggle 1