Light and Darkness

In A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens uses light and darkness to express the tone of hopelessness and love in Lucie and Dr. Manette’s relationship. For instance, Dickens writes, “Eagerness to lay the spectral face upon her warm young breast, and love it back to life and hope –so exactly was the expression repeated on her fair young face, that it looked as though it had passed like a moving light from him to her” (Dickens 32). The light represents the love that Dr. Manette wants to pass on to his daughter.  Lucie wants to love him and his pining to love her is passed on. Lucie wants to be near him and give him life. She shares the same desires as her father and Dr. Manette’s expression of eagerness moves on to Lucie. Next, Dickens talks about darkness. For example Dickens speaks, “Darkness has fallen in its place…and his eyes in gloomy abstraction sought the ground” (Dickens 32). Hopelessness is what the darkness is in this situation. He realizes as Lucie shares the same expression of longing, that it is hopeless. He doesn’t even know who this woman is, yet he wants to love her. His eyes turn to the ground because he doesn’t want to look at Lucie after realizing this. Lastly, the author talks about light and darkness together and how they can affect someone. For instance Dickens says, “Then the darkness closed in, the daughter laid her head…close to her father’s side…the darkness deepened and deepened until a light gleamed through the chinks in the wall” (Dickens 36). The darkness which in this case is misery is threatening to suffocate them. Dr. Manette knows he is living a terrible life and he hasn’t been present in his daughter’s life. Lucie knows she has just met him but she lies close to him. The misery seemed to consume them but then a light, which is love, shines through. Even though this is their first meeting and times seem dark, love still breaks through that barrier of misery. In A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens explains that while there is hopelessness in Lucie and Dr. Manette’s relationship there is also love.