Examples Of Duality In A Tale Of Two Cities

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A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens is a novel which fully encompasses the motif of duality or a situation or nature that has two states or parts that are complementary or opposed to each other. These similarities and differences which coincide in the novel so seamlessly create a work which is brimming with the aspects that are relatable to all ages as well as all generations. Through theme, character and setting, Dickens creates a world which mimics the reality of the time period while also creating this motif of dual forces. Throughout the novel this technique of compare and contrast is effectively used to define important aspects of characters and themes. There are several instances when duality is present and perhaps the vast use of…show more content…
The entire paragraph gives phrase after phrase of the instances which appear in the novel, in doing so, Dickens purposefully creates an almost melodious rhythm. “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”. Yet, in the same breath, because the entire first paragraph is a single sentence, the rhythm is disrupted when Dickens discontinues the pattern of listing the comparing and contrasting items. “--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.” This first passage demonstrates that Dickens often uses duality within duality; the list of dual examples and the shift from a rhythmic tone to a critical tone are in the same paragraph, let alone the same sentence. This example of duality is anything but minute because, apart from the title, it the reader’s first experience of Dickens several creative ways the motif is revealed in the
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