Freshman Literature
A Tale of Two Cities: INKED!
Did you know that the earliest known tattoo dates back 5,200 years to a recently
uncovered Iceman? Most (though not all) tattoos have some sort of personal or
cultural significance to the bearer. Though there are different types, many people
choose to depict symbolic representations of their thoughts, desires, and
experiences, rather than literal ones. For example, a person may chose to put a dove
on their arm to symbolize peace, rather than have the word “PEACE” inscribed on
their skin.
Your job is to pick a character from A Tale of Two Cities off the following list and
create a tattoo that is appropriate for the character.
Characters:
 Lucie Manette
 Dr. Manette
 Jarvis Lorry
 Charles Darnay
 Miss Pross
 Monsieur Defarge
 Madame Defarge
 Sydney Carton
 Mr. Stryver
 Gaspard
Requirements:
 Pick a character and think about their personality, character traits, etc.
 Then, pick something about them (a personality trait, a hope/ambition,
personal value, past event, etc.) and decide how you will represent it
abstractly or symbolically.
 Depict this on a white piece of paper. You must make the object large (even if
it would be small on the character) so we can see it. You must also use color.
 Then, you must write (neatly by hand or, preferably, typed) a paragraph
explaining:
o What your image represents and
o Why this tattoo is appropriate for the chosen character
 Please use 1-2 direct quotes, properly cited, to back your
explanation and analysis.
Due: Start of class on Tuesday, May 27th
Grading: 30 points. See rubric on back.
Freshman Literature
Tattoo is symbolic (rather than literal),
large, and makes use of color
Write-up fully explains why the tattoo is
appropriate for the character, uses 1-2
direct quotes, and meets all conventions of
writing and grammar
15 points
Tattoo meets 2 out of the 3 criteria above
15 points
Write-up somewhat explains why the
tattoo is appropriate for the character,
uses 1-2 direct quotes, but has 3 or fewer
grammatical errors
8 points
Tattoo meets 1 of the 3 criteria above
5 points
8 points
Write-up does not adequately explain why
the tattoo is appropriate for the character,
may or may not include quotes, and/or has
several grammar errors.
0-5 points