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SAT阅读素材:双城记分析A Tale of Two Cities Theme Analysis The novels opening statement It was the best of times, it was the worst of times sets the tone for a story in which a given curcumstance is perceived as good or bad depending upon the point of view. Jerry Cruncher, for instance, considers his nocturnal occupation a viable source of income to provide for his hungry family but Mr. Lorry views it as an abhorrent practice worthy of censure. Under scrutiny Cruncher admits that the sights of the bloody revolution in Paris have convinced him that such an occupation is immoral and he resolves to give up the practice. The revolution itself is believed to be an abomination by the exiled aristocrats that meet at Tellsons whereas the peasantry, personified by the mender of roads and the woodsawyer, see it as an opportunity for empowerment and revenge. Most significantly, Doctor Manettes Bastille manuscript reveals that during his years in prison the doctor believed that the whole Evrmonde clan should be destroyed but when his daughter has wedded an Evrmonde he is resolute in his determination to save him. The litany of wrongs suffered by the French peasants including the horrible execution of Gaspard serves to create sympathy for events such as the storming of the Bastille. After the revolution turns bloody, however, the readers sympathies are transferred to the doomed aristocrats awaiting execution. Class Struggle | 
