0.2 Book report on 'a tale of two cities'

A book report on “a tale of two cities” by charles dickens.

Around 600 A.D. Islam religion rapidly spread in the African and European continents with its birth in Saudi Arabia. Around that time the Christian kings formed a co-federation to lead a religious war called Crusade (holy war) against Islamic expansionism. During a decade long crusade the Moorish tribesman, the torch bearer of Islamic religion, were driven out of their last stronghold in Europe namely from Spain back into North Africa across Gibraltar Straits. The main hero of this last episode of crusade was EL-CID. A grand picture has been filmed on EL-CID by the same name and this film is banned in Pakistan and other Islamic fundamentalist countries.

After the crusade whole of European continent was plunged into the dark ages of the medieval era of feudalism. This dark age reigned over Europe from 600 A.D. to 1600 A.D. During this period. the whole of Europe was split up into thousands of fiefdoms which were perpetually at war with one another. Progress and development in the fields of Science, Arts and Technology came to a grinding halt.

England was an exception to this process of retrogression. In spite of absolute Monarchy, democracy and democratic processes had started taking root in England as early as thirteenth century with the signing of Magna Carta . In seventeenth century Cromwell led a popular people’s Great Revolution leading to the establishment of Constitutional Monarchy by Charles II.

In subsequent centuries the tradition of democracy and social justice was progressively strengthened in England whereas in the neighbouring France across the channel the absolute monarchy based on exploitation-repression was continuously pushing the masses of people into the abyss of unemployment, deprivation and penury.

It is in this backdrop that the book “ A Tale of Two cities “was written by Charles Dickens. The opening sentences are:

“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 season of light, It was the season of darkness.

It was the spring of hope , It was the winter of despair.

We had everything before us, We had nothing before us.”

In those days in Paris, whoever stood on the side of justice and truth was put in Bastilles prisons without trial. In such difficult times there was an English doctor , Dr.Mannette, who was a Medical Practitioner in Paris, France.

One night he was summoned on an urgent call from the palace. He was to examine and treat a young girl. She had been raped and during her treatment by Dr. Mannette she died. Dr. Mannette refused to conceal this fact. As a consequence he was locked up in solitary confinement in cell number 108 of Bastille prison. For eighteen long years he remained in solitary confinement . To spend his time he used to work as a cobbler.

Eighteen years later when he was released from the jail he was given shelter by Madame Defarge, the younger sister of the girl who had died under Doctor’s treatment eighteen years earlier.