Sydney Carton is a sacrificing hero

Who is Sydney Carton?

Sydney Carton is one of the most important characters in the novel, A Tale of Two Cities, written by Charles Dickens. He is portrayed as an alcoholic and indifferent attorney who leads a miserable life, feeling hopeless. However, he is compared to a jackal for his cleverness. He closely resembles Darnay.

What does he sacrifice?

Sydney Carton makes the most important sacrifice in this novel. His sacrifice greatly impacts the lives of Charles Darnay, Lucie Manette, and their family. He sacrifices his life to save the husband of the woman he adores. By sacrificing his life, he fulfills his promise to Lucie Manette that he will sacrifice his life for her or for someone dear to her. He was willing to die for Lucie due to his deep love for her, but his motivation goes beyond simple affection. Towards the end of the novel, Sydney realizes that he wants to do something noble with his life. That is why he does something incredibly selfless, something few people could even imagine accomplishing in their dreams.

When Darnay was imprisoned in France, Sydney went to France and rescued him from prison by switching places with him just before Darnay was scheduled for execution.

Why is it important?

The sacrifice of Sydney Carton is highly significant in this novel, arguably receiving more importance than the sacrifices of other characters. Firstly, he saves Darnay’s life by sacrificing his own, acting as a rescuer. He frees Darnay, Lucie, and Dr. Manette from prison. As he heads towards the guillotine, Darnay and his family are on their way to England, safe thanks to Carton’s sacrifice.

Another important reason is that he kept his promise that he gave to Lucie Manette. He promised her that one day he would sacrifice himself for the person whom Lucie loved. By doing so, he has chosen his destiny. It shows his selfless love for Lucie. It is also important because we know that very few people in the world are capable of doing the thing that Sydney has done.

Different Sydney from first and last:

At the beginning of the novel, Sydney Carton was portrayed as an indifferent person who lacked any prospects in life and did not seem to pursue anything or anyone. He was careless. However, he is deeply passionate about Lucie. His feelings for her transform him into a man of profound merit. He loves Lucie so much that he does not hesitate to sacrifice his life for her. Despite his many bad habits, including drugs and alcohol, he captures the readers’ attention with his selfless love for Lucie.

Sydney is hero?

Sydney Carton is not the main hero of this novel. Instead, he is considered a sacrificial hero for his selflessness. He sacrifices himself for the benefit of others, which is undoubtedly a heroic deed. We cannot label him a hero based solely on his characteristics. He closely resembles Darnay in physical appearance, but they are two distinct individuals. However, he is not a hero in the traditional sense.

Is Sydney success or failure?

Sydney fails as a traditional hero, but by the end of the novel, he achieves a form of immortality and garners more attention than the main hero. Readers sympathize with him, elevating him beyond mere heroism. Through this novel, Dickens illustrates that redemption is always possible. For much of the story, Sydney appears to be a failure: he lacks a wife, family, or friends and shows little dedication to his job or career.

Love and sacrifice in A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

Charles Darnay-Lucie Manette relation:

Charles Darnay and Lucie Manette are two important characters in this novel. They are husband and wife. In this novel, we can see that they love each other very much. Darnay belongs to an aristocratic family in France, and he knows that Lucie is an ordinary girl. Despite this fact, he loves Lucie dearly. Both Lucie and Darnay are faithful to each other. When Darnay was imprisoned in France, Lucie went to France with her young daughter to save her husband’s life. She did not even think about her safety.

Selfless Love:

Sydney Carton represents selfless love. Though he knows that Lucie loves someone else, and in the religious context, it is not ethical, he is deeply in love with her. Throughout the novel, we find him not to be a good person like Darnay. Even he has all these bad habits. However, he is so deeply in love with Lucie that he is ready to sacrifice his life for her or anyone dear to her just to keep her happy. At the end of the novel, he fulfills his promise, which is why he is called the sacrificing hero.

Sacrifice:

Sacrifice is the most important theme of this novel. From the beginning to the end, we encounter many examples of sacrifice. Most of the characters in this novel make sacrifices. Dr. Manette is first seen sacrificing his life, imprisoned for eighteen years in the Bastille without any reason. Because of his long imprisonment, he becomes mentally ill. Throughout his life, he curses the family for whom he was imprisoned. On the morning of his daughter’s marriage, he learns of Charles Darnay’s true identity and is shocked. However, he agrees to the marriage, thinking of his daughter’s happiness.

Sydney Carton is the quintessential example of the theme of sacrifice. He sacrifices his life to ensure Lucie’s happiness. Through this ultimate sacrifice, he saves Lucie, Charles, and their family. By fulfilling his promise to sacrifice his life for the one Lucie loves, he demonstrates profound selflessness and devotion.

Charles Darnay also makes sacrifices, relinquishing his family, property, and various other privileges to lead a life free of guilt associated with the actions of his ancestors. He chooses to leave his homeland, France, in pursuit of a simpler existence. His decision reflects a commitment to distancing himself from the injustices perpetuated by his family’s past behavior.

The French Revolution plays a crucial role in this novel. It was a conflict between the aristocratic and peasant classes, with the lower class fighting for their rights and liberation from the oppression of the upper class. Throughout the revolution, ordinary French citizens sacrificed their lives in pursuit of freedom from tyranny and inequality. 

Analyze the trial scene in England in A Tale of Two Cities

Trial scenes play a very important role in the novel named A Tale of Two Cities. There are three trial scenes throughout this novel. The first trial scene takes place in England.

The first trial scene takes place at the Old Bailey, the well-known law court situated very close to Newdigate Prison in London. In the novel, we can see that a huge number of people gathered in the court to watch the trial. The people who gathered in the court are expecting that the prisoner will be found guilty, sentenced to death, and executed. Old Bailey court is one of the three major sites that give the reader a very good picture of the city of London. The writer says,  

“A whole crowd of drunken ruffians gathers to see the "condemned" man sentenced to death.”

Image Source

The above-mentioned quotation shows that there is not much difference between Londoners and Parisians. The court also represents the British government. It is sad to see that not too many laws are followed and not that much justice is served. To give further description of the court, we can mention the following lines,

“The court is nothing more that a hall of mirrors. In fact, it’s literally a hall of mirrors: they hang big mirrors in front of the accused so the folks in the audience can watch him squirm.”

The trial scene starts with Attorney General reading a statement concerning the charges of treason. In his statement, he has accused Charles Darnay of treasonable activities. He has also said that the accused deserves death as a punishment. Mr. Stryver is Darnay’s lawyer. He is talking in favor of his client and is trying to make the prosecutor’s main witnesses, John Barsad and Roger Cly, wrong. It is clear that Judge and Jury have already assumed Darnay as guilty.

Dickens gets a pretty clear idea about how cheap the court system is when Charles Darnay gets charged with treason. He has been mentioned guilty by everyone even before he goes to trial. As he has been assumed guilty by judge and jury, the lawyers are spending time listening to their own voices.

John Barsad is the first witness who has been examined by the prosecution. He has been described as a noble patriot by the prosecutor. He has provided evidence that showed that the accused Charles Darnay is involved in treacherous activities. Another witness is Roger Cly, who is the servant of Darnay. These two witnesses seem untrustworthy, but their testimony is believed. However, at the end of the trial scene in England, these two witnesses were shown just the opposite. Barsad was shown as one of the greatest scoundrels and traitors. He was a hired spy. The second prosecution witness Roger Cly was Barsad’s friend and partner, and that the whole evidence had been produced against the accused.

Mr. Jarvis Lorry, an employee of Tellson’s Bank in London, was another important witness of this trial. He was one of the passengers in the mail-coach while traveling from London to Dover. He was asked the question if he had seen the accused on a certain Friday night in November 1774 during his journey to Dover by the mail-coach. In answer to this question, he said that it was impossible for him to identify the accused because he and the other two passengers in the coach had been wrapped to their ears in their cloaks on account of the intense cold. He was again asked if he had seen the accused anywhere before now. He replied that he had seen him on the boat while returning from France in the same month and year.

Mr. Jarvis Lorry is not an important character in this novel. But in the first trial in England, he is considered to be one of the most important characters. He was present at the court as a representative of Tellson’s Bank of which Charles Darnay had been a client.

One of the most important characters of this trial scene is Charles Darnay. He is about twenty-five years old, good-looking, and dressed in black. He is the prisoner. He is on trial on a charge of treason against England. However, he has defended himself against the charge saying that he is not guilty.

He has been suspected of giving information about the British troops in the American War of Independence to the French who were the American’s allies.

This charge of treason has clearly shown the bitter relation between England and France. These two countries are arch enemies and till now they do not have a very good relation. Another important thing that we can find in this trial scene is that France was helping America in its independence war against England. For this reason, England suspected Darnay as a French spy. 

There is a big reason behind this charge. Charles Darnay was a Frenchman and his frequent traveling from London to Paris may raise the question of his activity. Because of his frequent journey from London to Paris, the prosecutor might have suspected him of providing secret information to the French authorities.

Another two important characters who were present in the courtroom were Dr. Manette and his daughter, Miss Lucie Manette. They had been summoned by the court as witnesses against the accused. It should be mentioned here that both father and daughter were accompanied by Darnay when they were returning from France to England on the same ship. When Lucie was called to be examined, she told the court that she had seen the prisoner on the boat. She also told the court how she and her sick father were helped by him during their voyage. She also showed sympathy towards the prisoner.

The trial scene in England is also important for comic elements. Lucie told the court about the conversation between her and Darnay. Comic elements can be found in their conversation. When they were talking to each other during their voyage, Darnay jokingly made a remark that George Washington would someday be as famous as George III. No doubt, it made the readers laugh. However, this unintentional statement given by Lucie turned the court against Darnay. This statement also made the crowd angry. The crowd shouted with anger. However, Dr. Manette could not give any information about the accused as because of his illness he could not remember anything.

Sydney Carton, the assistant of the lawyer, has played a very important role in the trial scene. Due to his right decision at the right moment, the accused was acquitted from the charge of treason. Darnay is saved because of the intelligence of Sidney Carton. He is also an interesting character. Most of the time in the court, he was seen spending time looking at the ceiling of the court. He is the sacrificing hero of this novel.

When Mr. Stryver was in the middle of cross-examining another witness, Sydney Carton passed him a note. After reading the note, Stryver dramatically called attention to the resemblance between the accused and his assistant. This similarity caused great confusion for the witnesses. This confusion implied that the witness could have been mistaken about the identity of the man whom he had seen in the coffee-room of a hotel. The defense attorney, Mr. Stryver, stated that Darnay is an innocent victim whose confidential family affairs caused him to travel between Paris and London. The jury returns a verdict of Innocence to the judge. As the guilt against the accused had not been proved, he was acquitted.

The acquittal disappointed the crowd gathered in the court, but it came as a great relief not only to the accused and his counsel but also to Dr. Manette and his daughter, Lucie Manette. Charles Darnay’s well-wishers now gathered around him to congratulate him on his escape from death.

Surely, Charles Darnay got a new life. If he was proved guilty then he would have been sentenced to death. So, in the trial scene, we see him coming back to new life.

The readers were excited until they came to know what had happened to the fate of Darnay. When they saw that Darnay was acquitted from the charge of treason, they felt happy and relieved. People who gathered in the court were yelling for his blood. Dickens narrates the scene as ‘a cloud of great blue flies that you would find hovering over a dead body’.

Trial scene in England is important in many ways. In this scene, we can find most of the important characters of the novel. We can find the feelings of Lucie for Darnay. This young lady feels sympathetic for him. It can be said that the relationship between Lucie and Darnay started from there. We also can find the feelings of Sidney Carton for Lucie. Sidney felt love for Lucie though she got married to another man.

Two important male characters of this novel are Charles Darnay and Sidney Carton. They have very close resemblance in their looking, and due to their close resemblance, the witness has become somewhat confused and he got released from the charge. However, despite their similar appearance, they were different in their attitudes. Their opposite attitudes made them two different persons.

Charles Dickens writes about duality using the characters of Sidney Carton and Charles Darnay. Apart from their physical similarities, they have contrasting manners and habits. Carton is bad-mannered, unkempt and a heavy drinker, whereas Darnay is well-mannered, calm and a gentleman. Carton realizes that he could lead a decent life like Darnay, but because of his bad habits, he has lost the chance. Now, he has no hope of having a happy life with someone like Lucie. For this reason, Carton dislikes Darnay because Darnay reminds him of the life he has lost. Though Charles Darnay is the male protagonist of this novel, Sidney Carton catches the attention of the readers for his interesting character. He is just the opposite of Darnay who is almost boring.