Unit 22 A tale of two cities

1. Unit 22 A tale of two cities By Yan Yan May 14th, 2003

2. Now read the dialogue silently and find out this information • 1.What are the two revolutionaries talking about? • 2.Where did the revolutionary go? • 3.Who helped him? • 4.What did they do? • They are talking about what they have done recently • To a castle. • A servant helped him. • They set fire to the castle.

3. Read the dialogue again and then turn it into a short passage by filling the right verb forms • This is a story about what a revolutionary did in the 1789 French Revolution. One morning he got into a castle byin a farmer’s cart. As it was not yet light, it was easy for him to stay Then he by the kitchen door till a servant to some wood. The man to her and her to let him in. She a brave woman. She that the revolution for the poor and that the man wasnot an enemy of hers. She hima fire that for many miles. hiding hidden waited came fetch persuaded spoke was knew was light helped could be seen

4. Pre- reading discussion 1 Who’s the author of A tale of two cities? Do you know him or any of his fictions? 2 Who are the main characters in the story? Please discuss in groups of four and then tell your classmates about them separately. Lesson 86 A Tale of Two Cities

5. About the author---- Charles Dickens • He was one of the greatest novelist in English literature. Born of a poor clerk’s family, he had little schooling. When he was ten, his father was put into prison because of being unable to pay his debts, and Charles Dickens , being the eldest son, had to earn a salary of six shillings a week in the blacking factory. • In 1834, at sixteen, he started working for a newspaper and thus began his life work of writing . His first novel The Pickwick Papers got published, He poured out novel after novel. “Oliver Twist” The Old Curiosity Shop. David Copperfield Hard Times A Tale of Two Cities and Great Expectations These are generally regarded as his masterpiece and have been translated into many languages. They have been also translated into Chinese and become favorite books of Chinese readers.

6. His Fiction A Christmas CarolA Tale of Two CitiesAmerican NotesBarnaby RudgeBleak HouseDavid CopperfieldDombey and SonGreat ExpectationsHard TimesLittle DorritMartin ChuzzlewitNicholas NicklebyOliver TwistOur Mutual FriendThe Mystery of Edwin DroodThe Old Curiosity ShopThe Pickwick Papers Our present text is adopted from a chapter of Dickens”A Tale of Two Cities” It was a novel completed in 1859 The “two cities” refers to Paris the scene of the story and London, where the hero of the novel spent his remaining time

7. Watch and say: Who are they? • Mr Manette: • He was the father of Lucie. One day he was called to attend the young peasant and his sister. But after the death of the two , he was put in prison by the Marquis St. Evremonde and his brother so that he would keep silent over the matter. Many years later he was set free. Then he was brought to England where his mental health and strength gradually got better.

8. Lucie Manette: • She was the daughter of Dr Manette. Her mother died when she was a baby. She was brought up in England. She managed to find her father in Paris and brought him back to England where his mental health and strength gradually got better. Later she married Charles Darnay.

9. Charles Darnay: • He was the nephew of the cruel Marquis St. Evremonde. He had left France because he hated crele deeds of the French nobles and the way they treated the peasants. He preferred to give up the fortune that would one day come to him, and went to live in England. • He fell in love with Lucie Manette and married her. During the French Revolution, he was put in prison and was sentenced to death because he had been a member of the St. Evremonde family. But he was rescued by his friend Sydney and left Paris with Lucie and Dr Manette.

10. Sydney Carton • He was a single man. He looked like Charles Darnay very much and also fell in love with Lucie. He promised her that he would do anything he could for her to make sure of happiness. He managed to get into the prison to visit Charles and changed clothes with him. He had his head cut off, but Charles was saved. He carried out the promise he had made to Lucie many years before.

11. Monsieur Defarge: • He was the owner of a wine shop in Paris. During the Frech Revolution, he became one of the leaders . He found a letter in the Bastille. The letter had been written by Dr Manette and had been hidden behind a stone in the little room where he was kept a prisoner. • Madame Defarge: • She was the sister of the peasant boy and girl who had been so badly treated by the St. Evremonde brothers. She was one of those who were eager to have Charles sentenced to death.

12. The Marquis St. Everomond: • He and his brother were called French nobles they treated the peasants very badly. They killed a young peasant and his sister, put Dr Manette into the Bastille.

13. Read the text and fill in the blanks: called at alive In 1775, Lucie a wine shop in Paris because she learned the news that his father was still Defarge,once a servant of Dr.Manette,was pleased at their _______.When she saw his father ,she realized he had been ______ disturbed by a long prison for no good reason but only to a matter.After their return to England, two young men fell in love with Lucie.________, they looked as if they were twins. Though Lucie _______ Charles, Carton __________ her that he would always do anything he could for her to __________of her happiness. arrival mentally keep silent over strangely promised married make sure

14. Lesson 87 Read the second part of the story and answer the questions(fill in the blanks) • What did the peasants and the poor people in cities do in the revolution? Why? • Why did Charles Darnay return to Paris from London? • What happened to him on his arrival in Paris? • For what was Charles sentenced to death? • What did Sydney Carton do while Charles was in prison? • How did Sydney save Charles? Why did he do so?

15. revolution took up nobles addressed In 1789,____________started in France ,the poor _________ their guns and knives to kill the rich________.Later, Darney found a letter from France __________to him . On reading it , he returned to ______a servant of his family .However , he was recognized as a noble and ______into prison . Unfortunately , he was sentenced to ______because he was the nephew of the cruel Marquis who had ______________to the peasant boy and his sister many years before . Because of his love to Lucie, Carton __________ a way to rescue Darney .He had his head ______. With his arrangement, they left Paris safe . rescue thrown death done wrong thought of cut off

16. What is our text about? Read the whole text once again and try to find the main idea of it

17. In the book the author shows strong hatred for cruelty of the nobles and express deep sympathy for the lower class people, The story develops around a French doctor, named Manette, through whose eyes we can see how the French people , during the years before the revolution in 1789, were oppressed and exploited under the rule of the emperor, and how they struggled for their freedom.

18. Translation work 佳句赏析 • It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done; it is a far, far better rest that I go to, than I have ever known. • 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 epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, 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, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way--in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.

19. 我现在已做的远比我所做过的一切都美好；我将获得的休息远比我所知道的一切都甜 蜜。 那是最美好的时代，那是最糟糕的时代；那是智慧的年头，那是愚昧的年头；那是信仰 的时期，那是怀疑的时期；那是光明的季节，那是黑暗的季节；那是希望的春天，那是失望 的冬天；我们全都在直奔天堂，我们全都在直奔相反的方向--简而言之，那时跟现在非常相 象，某些最喧嚣的权威坚持要用形容词的最高级来形容它。说它好，是最高级的；说它不 好，也是最高级的。

20. The wind is rushing after us, and the clouds are flying after us, and the moon is plunging after us, and the whole wild night is in pursuit of us; but, so far we are pursued by nothing else.

21. The two stand in the fast-thinning throng of victims, but they speak as if they were alone. Eye to eye, voice tovoice, hand to hand, heart to heart, these two children of the Universal Mother, else so wide apart and differing, have come together on the dark highway, to repair home together, and to rest in her bosom. Charles Darnay seemed to stand in a company of the dead. Ghosts all! The ghost of beauty, the ghost of stateliness, the ghost of elegance, the ghost of pride, the ghost of frivolity, the ghost of wit, the ghost of youth, the ghost of age, all waiting their dismissal from the desolate shore, all turning on him eyes that were changed by the death they had died in coming there.