Set in two European cities torn by war, in A Tale of Two Cities Charles Dickens paradoxically introduces his story, “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…” In fact, the author negatively introduces specific characters, giving them an obscured identity. First portrayed as a shy, young man, Sydney Carton seems unable to overcome his pre-determined life of unhappiness. A prodigal young attorney, Carton is one of Dickens’s most tragic and dynamic characters: a brilliant but dissolute and self-pitying alcoholic for whom, in the beginning, it is hard to feel a slither of empathy. “I am a disappointed drudge, sir,” he says. “I care for no man on earth, and no man on earth cares for me.”
Sydney Carton is introduced into the novel as a young, sloppy but brilliant lawyer who bears an uncanny likeness to Charles Darnay, the prisoner he is defending. He uses his great skill to save Darnay from death, passing his case to his colleague Stryver, who takes all the glory for saving Darnay. It is then revealed that Carton both likes and hates Darnay, as he sees him as everything he should be but is not. Carton is called a “jackal” because it appears that, while Mr. Stryver very deftly presents each case, it is Carton’s legal acumen that helps win them, though Stryver gets all the credit. This is how the jackals help the lions with the kill, while the lions take all the glory. It is also seen that Carton is an alcoholic who faces a great lack of self-confidence. He develops an unrequited love for Lucie Manette, which he tells her about. He says that he would do anything for her or for anybody that she loves.
In spite of Sydney Carton’s negative outlook, he acts courageously upon his meeting with Miss Manette, the “golden doll.” He is confident that he could never receive the same affection from her that he feels toward her. Yet, Carton reaches a point where he can admit his feelings to Lucie herself. “If it is possible, Miss Manette, that you could have returned the love of the man than you see before you-self-flung away, wasted, drunken, poor creature…” Carton professes his love sincere to her, though he still persists in seeing himself as essentially worthless. However, this intense love becomes the sole factor of Lucy Manette’s happiness. Clearly, Sydney Carton is capable of feeling deep, immense, and tragic love that others cannot see. This scene marks a vital transition for Carton and lays the foundation for the supreme sacrifice that he makes at the novel’s end.
Carton, Darnay’s double and alter-ego, has wasted his life on alcohol and apathy. Besides some vague references to his student days and the disclosure that his parents died when he was young, Carton’s past remains a mystery to the reader. Consequently, the reader can only guess what caused him to become so dissolute. The only noble part of his life is his love for Lucie and his affection for the rest of her family. His love for her is strong enough to induce him to give his life for that of her husband. Carton takes on a mythical aspect in sacrificing himself to save his friends. He represents the sacrificial hero who is ritually slaughtered of his own free will so that society might renew itself, a prospect he envisions before he dies. Through his death, he redeems his sins and is reborn in the afterlife and through the life of his namesake. His final words are among the most famous in English literature:
“It is a far, far better thing that I do than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to than I have ever known.”
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Volume II, Chapter Five – The Jackal
- Folks drank a lot in those days.
- Unsurprisingly, Mr. Stryver drinks a lot. So does Carton.
- Here’s the difference, though: when Stryver gets drunk, he becomes worthless.
- Come to think of it, Stryver’s often worthless.
- Carton, on the other hand, can down a few and still be on top of his game.
- For reasons that no one can figure out, Carton and Stryver are thick as thieves. They’re BFFs.
- Okay, they’re not exactly friends: Carton can’t stand the fact that Stryver’s a big jerk.
- Nonetheless, he spends most of his nights solving Stryver’s cases for him.
- Stryver, in the meanwhile, gets very, very drunk and mumbles to himself.
- There’s a good reason why Stryver calls Carton "Memory": he’s the brains behind all of Stryver’s operations.
- Dickens starts to have some fun with the relationship between Carton and Stryver.
- Stryver’s sort of like a lion…he’s at the top of the food chain. King of the hill.
- And if Stryver’s a lion, then Carton is…a jackal.
- Lions are hunters; jackals are scavengers, scooping up the leftovers after animals like lions bring home the prey.
- Hmm…does something seem off here?
- For one thing, Stryver’s the guy who’s getting spoon-fed legal insight from Carton.
- For another…well, the first one was all we had, actually.
- But you get the picture. The metaphor doesn’t quite fit. Could Dickens be using a little bit of irony here?
- Stryver gets pretty happy on his punch and, after a while, he begins to reminisce about his past.
- And Carton’s past, come to think of it.
- They’ve been together since school.
- Back in the old days, Carton used to write Stryver’s term papers. Now he’s writing Stryver’s legal briefs.
- Some things never change.
- As Stryver pours himself another drink, he wants Carton to drink to the "pretty witness" who came to court today.
- Carton gulps for a second, and then he mutters some unpleasant things about Lucie.
- Okay, they’re not that bad. But he does call her a "golden doll."
- Stryver’s taken aback. He was sure he caught Carton staring at Lucie for most of the day.
- Carton insists that Lucie means nothing to him. Nothing. Seriously.
- Falling back into a drunken stupor, Stryver heads to bed.
- Left by himself, Carton ponders why his life is so unhappy.
- He imagines love and happiness for a brief moment, but then his masochism sets back in.
- He could never win Lucie.
- Depressed, he settles back in for another drink.
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