Rohan Munagekar’s Reviews > Charles Dickens: Four Novels > Status Update

Chapters 7-8: all about Monsigneur and Monsieur the Marquis (snobby rich French ppl who gaze at the poor people with laughter). I hate these two, especially the latter one. Such a terrible person

Sydney Carton (Jackal) presents as a conflicted character. Drinks to get rid of problems. His friend Mr Stryver (lion) always did better in school and thus has a higher judicial status. Does carton have feelings for Lucie Manette??!!

Finished Book 2 Chapter 4 “Congratulatory” which narrates the scene after Darnay has been acquitted from trial, thanks are passed around to the attorneys and witnesses, and then Sydney Carton and Darnay end up in a tavern. Carton gets very drunk and repeatedly articulated that he doesn’t care for the world and that the world doesn’t care for him. Definitely the most dynamic character yet.

“As Darnay looks to a young lady and her distinguished father, a whisper rushes through the courtroom, speculating on the identity of the two. Eventually, Cruncher discovers that they will serve as witnesses against the prisoner.” -Sparknotes

“The bank clerk instructs Cruncher to go to the Old Bailey Courthouse and await orders from Lorry. Cruncher arrives at the court, where Charles Darnay, a handsome, stands trial for treason. Cruncher understands little of the legal but he gleans that Darnay has been charged with divulging secret information to the king of France (Louis XVI): namely, that England plans to send armed forces to fight in the colonies”

“Book the Second: The Golden Thread” has an amazing start. We end up at Tellson’s bank, which the narrator describes as the dingiest and darkest institution in all of the universe. Bankers are killed for their mistakes, yet, Jerry Cruncher and his son work outside the bank to find any jobs they can get. Cruncher’s son is also named Jerry, and has a wife named Agerrywayter(interesting). Goes to trial.

I have now finished the first part, and it was very good. At the beginning we get familiar w/ carriages and the Dover Mail, then Mr. Jarvis Lorry meets Miss Mannette in a fancy hotel, telling her that her thought -to-be-dead father, Monsieur Manette, is actually alive (a business transaction). They travel to Saint Antoine in a wine shop (desolate) and meet him at the top. After a reconnection, old man is taken with.

Chapter 5 (The Wine-Shop): setting has changed to Saint Antoine, France. The mood is dire. People drinking wine off the muddy stone streets just for some sustenance. Famine outbreak, poverty-ridden town, relatively close to Notre Dame. The wine shop is owned by the Defarge couple (married). There are patrons in the shop, and Manette and Jarvis come to see Monsieur Manette. He is found upstairs making shoes in silence

Chapter 1, The Period. Dickens praises 1775 England, hates on France 1775, and denotes LOTS of civil violence while the royalty are just chillin. Strong jaws and fair faces.

Starting A Tale of Two Cities, the final novel in this collection that I have yet to read. 4th Dickens novel.