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Examples Of Rebirth In A Tale Of Two Cities

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Ariana Panizzi December 21, 2015 Mrs. Ross A Tale of Two Cities Throughout the novel, A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens creates several important themes to interpret the meaning behind the novel. One of the major themes that was reoccurring was the concept that rebirth is possible through sacrifice. The rebirth, or the reliving of an existing life, was mainly due to the sacrificial choices of the characters. Dickens demonstrates that this is possible because of Sydney Carton’s sacrificial decision to give up his life for Darnay and his family, Charles Darnay’s sacrifice to give up his wealth and family name for a better life in England, and Dr. Manette’s decision to sacrifice his unfortunate past and allow Lucie to marry Charles …show more content…

As Darnay’s execution was drawing close, Carton took matters into his own hands and saved Darnay for his sake and the sake of Lucie. In order to do this successfully, he impersonated Darnay: “Carton dressed himself in the clothes the prisoner had laid aside, combed back his hair, and tied it with the ribbon the prisoner had worn (Dickens 296). By doing this, Carton chooses to die for Darnay, which allows him to be “reborn” and return back to England to live a content life with his loving family again. Not only is he doing this for Darnay, Carton is mainly doing it because of his unconditional love for Lucie, as well as his need for her to live happily with her family. In addition to the rebirth of Darnay caused by Sydney’s sacrifice, Sydney seeks and discovers his own rebirth. During this time, Sydney continually states, “I am the Resurrection and the Life, saith the Lord: he that believeth in me though he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die” (Dickens 314). Even after his death, Carton believes that through God he will find a loving place in heaven where there is hope and comfort to begin a new life as a better person. Furthermore, Sydney symbolizes a Jesus-like figure, giving up his life to protect and save the people he loves the

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