A study of the novel by itself, without reference to its historical
context, would naturally be devoted primarily to consideration of
its literary elements, discussed in Chapter 1. But to understand
what Dickens accomplished, and what he did not attempt, it is
necessary to broaden our scope. The special case of this novel
provides the opportunity to consider carefully the book that in-
spired it: Thomas Carlyle The French Revolution ( 1837).

Chapters 3 and 4 report on the contents of the Carlyle work.
Their length need not intimidate the reader: they can be regarded
as reference guides--not to be read straight through, though
teachers not recently exposed to the historical aspects may find
them valuable refreshers. Chapter 3 gives the sequence of events,
first presented in a schematic Chronology, including the incidents
of the novel italicized to distinguish them as fictional, and then as
told in Carlyle. Chapter 3 also identifies the principal figures of
the Revolution; many are referred to elsewhere in quoted texts.

Chapter 5 is designed to permit comparative analysis of Carlyle
and Dickens and exploration of some aspects of the fiction-making
process. By looking at a number of major and minor elements in
The French Revolution and noticing those Dickens chose to use
and those he did not, those he transformed and those he empha-
sized (or de-emphasized), we can learn a good deal about how
fiction is created--at least, when Dickens is doing it.

Besides its literary importance, and its significance as an influ-
ence on Dickens, Carlyle's work is useful to us because, once writ-
ten, it became the principal, authoritative lens through which
Englishmen viewed the Revolution. One of the things to bear in
mind in studying A Tale of Two Cities is that at the time of the
Revolution and for decades afterward the English were mightily
concerned about the possibility of its "happening here." After the
Napoleonic Wars ended in 1815, the movement for economic and
political reform in England grew and grew, but there was a great
deal of resistance to it from elements in the upper classes.

Would this slow, inexorable upheaval be contained and permit-
ted to work itself out peacefully? Or might catastrophe strike in
London as it had in Paris? Dickens himself, with his strong social
concerns for the poor, for their education, sanitation, recreation,
and general happiness, often warned his public that if steps to
improve conditions were not quickly taken, there could be a rising
(see Chapter 8). In thinking about A Tale of Two Cities it is as well

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