Volume III, Chapter One – In Secret Summary
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In 1792, traveling through France is pretty slow going.
Okay: traveling in the 1700s was pretty slow all the time. We know that. But now it’s extra slow.
Even slower than before. Sloooooooow.
Darnay, of course, happens to be traveling in 1792.
He’s not getting too far.
Everywhere he goes, he’s stopped. People have to check his papers. Then they have to re-check
them.
Meanwhile, Darnay waits for several hours.
This happens over and over. And over.
Finally, in the middle of the night, he’s taken prisoner by a group of patriots.
They deliver him to the local authorities, who decide that he’s an emigrant and must be sent to Paris
immediately.
When Darnay tries to protest, he gets smacked around for a while. Apparently, folks have figured out
that he’s an aristocrat.
Needless to say, they’re not too happy about the news.
Bundled into a carriage, Darnay begins the halting, slow journey to the capital.
The patriots force him to pay for an armed escort into the capital. After all, anything could happen to
him on the road.
On the way, a man screams out that a decree has been passed: the property of all emigrants can be
confiscated by the Republic.
Darnay begins to realize that his trip might just be a bit more complicated than he’d planned.
The crowds aren’t all that pleased to see him pass.
Some even threaten to kill the aristocrat. Others mutter that he’ll be judged when he gets to Paris.
Friendly country, huh?
At the gates of the city, a guardsman asks for the papers of the prisoner.
Darnay isn’t too excited about the fact that he’s gone from being a traveler to an emigrant to a
prisoner.
Sure enough, he’s taken to the prison.
Defarge is there. He identifies Darnay as "Citizen Evrémonde."
The officer holding Darnay’s papers looks at him, nods, and condemns him to prison.
Aghast, Darnay wants to know why.
He’s done nothing wrong—nothing against the law.
The man smiles grimly. He informs Darnay that there are new laws now.
In fact, under these laws, emigrants have no rights at all.
As they walk away, Defarge quietly asks Darnay if he’s Dr. Manette’s son-in-law.
Darnay says he is.
Desperate, Darnay turns to Defarge and begs for help.
Defarge refuses. It’s not in his power.
Darnay asks if he’ll be imprisoned without trial or any attention to justice.
Sniffing a bit, Defarge says that many people have been unfairly imprisoned before.
Darnay responds, "But not by me."
Defarge looks darkly at him for a minute, then walks in silence.
Darnay asks for one favor: that Defarge will tell Mr. Lorry that Darnay has been imprisoned in La
Force.
Refusing, Defarge declares that he’s a patriot. He can do nothing to help aristocrats.
With that, Defarge turns Darnay over to the gaoler of La Force.
The prison isn’t that great a place to be. It’s smelly and dark and all-around disgusting.
Within the prison, Darnay is greeted by faded aristocrats who crowd against him in the small rooms.
They’re almost ghostly; their courtly manners are…just a bit creepy in this dismal location.
Darnay ends up in a small tower. He begs the gaoler to sell him a pen and paper.
The gaoler refuses. At present, the only thing Darnay can buy is food.
Left alone in his cell, Darnay begins to pace frantically.
Chapter Two – The Grindstone Summary
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Tellson’s has set up temporary offices in the abandoned palace of an aristocrat.
From this rather inauspicious location, Mr. Lorry has been making lots and lots of financial
decisions.
Riches have to be preserved (and shipped away), papers have to be saved, even more papers have to
be burned…all in all, he’s been a pretty busy guy.
Fortunately, Tellson’s seems to be in a safe space for now.
Mr. Lorry looks out into the courtyard, where a large grindstone has been set up.
The patriots use the courtyard as a space where they re-grind the edges of their weapons.
Strangely enough, that makes the building a fairly safe place to be.
As Mr. Lorry looks out the window, he receives a violent shock: Lucie and her father are coming in
the courtyard door.
Quickly, Mr. Lorry opens the door and rushes them inside.
Lucie tells him that Darnay has come to the city.
Immediately, Mr. Lorry realizes what this means. Darnay is in trouble.
He tries to shield the Manettes from the windows, but the doctor coolly ignores him.
Dr. Manette, you see, is something of a hero for the patriots. As a former prisoner of the Bastille,
he’s untouchable.
In fact, he might even have some leverage in getting Darnay out of prison.
That’s why he and Lucie had come to Paris.
Mr. Lorry actually agrees. He hurries Lucie up to his room, and then he and the doctor look out the
window.
Patriots are grinding weapons like mad.
The entire courtyard has become stained with blood.
Sparks fly off the grindstone, making the entire place look something like a hell on earth.
Mr. Lorry whispers to the doctor that the patriots have begun murdering prisoners.
Dr. Manette sighs and goes out into the crowd.
Soon Mr. Lorry hears the crowd screaming, "Long live the Bastille prisoner!"
He watches as Dr. Manette is carried out into the streets by the mob.
Later that night, he and Lucie wait upstairs for Dr. Manette to return.
Lucie listens, startled, as the grindstone works through the night.
Chapter Three – The Shadow Summary
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It’s now noon of the next day. The doctor still hasn’t returned.
Mr. Lorry wants to be worried about the Manettes, but bank business must come first.
At the moment, bank business also involves making sure that Lucie and her child aren’t hanging out
in the bank.
If worse comes to worst, their presence could make trouble for Tellson’s.
We can’t fault the guy’s reasoning. It’s a bit strange, maybe, but it’s probably accurate.
Accordingly, Mr. Lorry moves Lucie, her child, and Miss Pross into his own rooms.
Back at Tellson’s, he waits anxiously for the end of the day.
Right as the business day is about to end, a man shows up at the door. He’s accompanied by two
women, one of whom is knitting.
He waits for Mr. Lorry to recognize him.
Mr. Lorry doesn’t.
The man prompts Mr. Lorry a bit: they last saw each other at the wine-shop he runs.
That’s right, folks, it’s Defarge.
Wait, didn’t he say that he wouldn’t help Darnay?
Well, yes. But this is different. He comes with a letter from Dr. Manette to Mr. Lorry, asking Mr.
Lorry to let Defarge see Lucie.
In Lucie’s room, Defarge hands over a letter from Darnay.
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It’s short, but it lets them all know that he’s still okay.
Overwhelmed, Lucie reaches up and kisses Madame Defarge’s hand.
The hand doesn’t stop knitting.
Madame Defarge is a real piece of work.
Lucie looks up at her, terrified. Something just doesn’t seem right...
Mr. Lorry quickly explains that Madame Defarge likes to look at those whom she may be able to
help in times of crisis.
Calling in Miss Pross and little Lucie so that Madame Defarge can see them, too, Mr. Lorry asks for
her help in the future.
Lucie pleads for mercy for her husband.
Madame Defarge ignores this cry. She says that she’s here for the daughter of Dr. Manette (and not
the wife of Evrémonde).
Frantic, Lucie asks her to protect her husband because he’s the doctor’s son-in-law.
She begs for pity as a wife and a mother.
Madame Defarge stares at her coldly and says that the wives and mothers of France have been
suffering for a very long time.
She leaves without ever promising to help.
Chapter Four – Calm in a Storm Summary
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Dr. Manette doesn’t return for four days.
When he finally makes it back to the house, he tells Lucie a condensed version of what he’s seen.
Mr. Lorry, however, gets the full story: Dr. Manette went to the Tribunal that tries all the prisoners.
He announced himself as a former prisoner of the Bastille, and was awarded special status in the
Tribunal.
From his seat, he saw Darnay brought before the court and almost released.
At the last minute, however, the President of the Tribunal got some new information.
He ordered that Darnay be held in prison. He won’t be executed, but he won’t be set free.
Dr. Manette describes the Tribunals as madness. There’s not any justice or even any attempt at
observing any laws.
Finally, however, he decides to use all the influence he has to save Darnay.
In fact, for the first time since he was released from prison, he seems like a socially powerful man.
The doctor becomes the head medical inspector of three prisons. In that position, he’s able to bring
back occasional news of Darnay.
Strangely enough, Mr. Lorry observes that the doctor begins to take pride in his ability to do things
for his family.
For a long time, Lucie took care of him. Now he’s able to return the favor.
Nonetheless, despite all the doctor’s efforts, Darnay remains in prison.
Time passes without any real markers.
And now, friends, we’re introduced to the real star of this novel: the guillotine.
Our narrator takes a good, long time to describe the ways that it influences and symbolizes the new
Republic.
It’s actually a really good bit of the novel—we recommend that you check it out for yourselves.
The doctor moves through all the madness of this time. The guillotine chops off heads right and left,
Darnay remains in prison, and Lucie…waits.
Chapter Five – The Wood-Sawyer Summary
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A year passes. Then another three months pass. Nothing’s changed.
Lucie, in particular, seems to have weathered the calamity pretty well.
She’s not wearing bright, fancy clothes, sure, but otherwise she’s cheerful.
Only occasionally does her grief break through. Then she cries on her father’s shoulder all night.
He remains confident that he can save Darnay and tries to reassure his daughter as much as he can.
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One day, the doctor comes home with some news: every now and then, Darnay can make his way to
a little window that looks out onto the street.
He usually manages to be there at three in the afternoon. It’s not every day…in fact, it’s only about
once a week.
Nonetheless, he asked if Lucie would be willing to come stand in front of the window at three
o'clock so he could see her.
From that time on, Lucie goes to the street next to the window every afternoon.
Whatever the weather’s like, she stands outside for two hours.
Talk about devotion, huh?
We’re not the only ones who notice how devoted Lucie is.
A woodcutter happens to realize that she’s standing on his street every day.
At first, he greets her and she returns the greeting.
After a bit, though, he begins to make jokes about the guillotine. Unsurprisingly, Lucie doesn’t find
them very funny.
He thinks it’s a riot, though. He even makes a miniature version of the guillotine and hangs it outside
his window.
Honestly, we think the guy needs some hobbies of his own.
One day, he’s not in his shop.
Lucie’s relieved—until she sees him dancing with The Vengeance and a mob of hundreds of other
people.
They’re dancing a wild, bloody, violent dance. Apparently, it involves lots of teeth-gnashing. It’s
called the Carmagnole.
Lucie stares at them, frightened. Her father comes up to lead her away, and she asks him about the
horrible dance.
He tries to calm her, although he’s seen it several times before.
Suddenly, Madame Defarge appears right beside them.
She disappears as quickly as she came.
As they walk home, Dr. Manette tells Lucie that Darnay has been summoned to the Tribunal. He’s
supposed to have a trial tomorrow.
In the distance, they hear the guillotine chopping off three heads.
We sure hope that this isn’t foreshadowing.
The doctor leaves Lucie at home and heads off to see Mr. Lorry to make plans for the next day.
Chapter Six – Triumph Summary
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It’s the morning of Darnay’s trial.
Five judges sit at the Tribunal bench. The audience hall is packed with people here to see a show.
One woman sits in the front row, knitting. Beside her, Darnay sees Defarge.
Dr. Manette sits right beneath the president of the Tribunal, ready to testify.
Darnay’s charges are read: he’s an emigrant, and all emigrants are subject to death.
It doesn’t matter, of course, that this law was instituted after Darnay came to France.
The crowd seems to agree. They immediately call for his death.
Darnay testifies that he’s been living in England and earning his own money there. He even married
a woman in England.
When asked, Darnay announces that his wife is Lucie, the daughter of Dr. Manette.
The crowd gasps in astonishment. This is an even better show than they’d anticipated.
The president asks why Darnay chose to return to France.
Darnay explains that he felt a moral obligation to return, even though he’d given up any claim to his
own lands long ago.
He’d come back to save a citizen’s life. How could this be criminal?
The audience now agrees with Darnay. They shout pretty loudly to save him.
Audiences are pretty fickle, in case you haven’t noticed.
The president reads Gabelle’s letter to Darnay aloud.
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Now Dr. Manette takes the stand. When he testifies that Darnay had actually been on trial in England
for being a foe to England and a friend of the United States, the crowd goes crazy.
The French helped the U.S. in the American Revolution, remember?
Therefore, Darnay must be a good guy!
The jury adds its voices to the choir: Darnay is set free!
Crying "Long Live the Republic!" the crowd hoists Darnay on people’s shoulders and carries him
out of the courtroom.
He’s like a football hero: no one can get enough of him.
Soon, though, the Manettes manage to get him home.
Lucie and Darnay fall onto the floor, praying in thanks for Darnay’s release.
Dr. Manette enters and Lucie runs to him, trembling.
Smiling, the doctor tells her to be strong. He’s saved Darnay.
.
Chapter Seven – A Knock at the Door Summary
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The Manettes have been living pretty frugally, as they’ve had to pay for all of Darnay’s food and
lodging in prison. It hasn’t been cheap.
Nonetheless, they decide to have a little feast to celebrate Darnay’s return.
Miss Pross and Jerry Cruncher have been taking care of the shopping for the past few months.
It’s actually a harder job than it might seem.
See, since everyone is now suspicious of anyone who has money, Miss Pross and Jerry have to go
around buying things in really small quantities.
They buy one thing at one store, then go across town to buy another thing at another store.
As they set out that night, Miss Pross expresses her opinion of the patriots of the new Republic.
She doesn’t like them all that much. In fact, she thinks that they’re a bunch of hooligans.
Before they leave, though, Miss Pross has one question for the Manettes: when will they be able to
leave?
Dr. Manette thinks that they should stay in Paris for a few days, just so that no one gets suspicious.
With that, Miss Pross and Jerry set out on their errands.
Lucie and her father stay downstairs for a minute.
Suddenly, Lucie starts. She thinks she hears footsteps on the stairs.
The doctor assures her that nothing can be wrong now. He’s saved Darnay.
Sure enough, though, soldiers appear at the door.
They ask for Darnay. He’s been denounced by Saint Antoine.
The doctor demands to know why.
The soldiers reply that the doctor shouldn’t ask questions.
If the Republic needs him to sacrifice his son-in-law, then he should do it happily. After all, it’s for
the good of the Republic.
Sound a little creepy? We think so, too.
Finally, though, the soldier relents. Darnay has been denounced by Monsieur and Madame
Defarge…and one other.
When the doctor asks who the other person is, the soldier stares at him for a minute.
He doesn’t know?
Chapter Eight – A Hand at Cards Summary
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While Darnay is being arrested at home, Miss Pross and Jerry are still out shopping for his feast.
All of a sudden, Miss Pross sees a man and starts to scream.
The man jumps in awkward embarrassment.
Miss Pross runs up to him, calling out his name.
Soloman, the man, drags her into an alley and tells her to shut up.
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Jerry follows them into the alley. He’s a bit confused.
Angry, Soloman wants to know what Miss Pross wants.
Miss Pross, teary-eyed, introduces Soloman to Jerry as her beloved brother.
Of course, our narrator is quick to tell us that Soloman stole Miss Pross’ money and then pretended
to be dead...but she doesn’t know that yet.
Suddenly, Jerry takes an interest in Soloman.
As he remembers it, however, Soloman wasn’t his name back in England.
In fact, he thinks that Soloman used to be a spy. He was supposed to have died.
What was the name Soloman used to use?
While Jerry thinks, a new voice breaks into the conversation.
It’s Sydney Carton. He informs Jerry that Solomon’s old name was Barsad.
Carton reassures Miss Pross that everything is all right. He showed up a day ago; he’s been to see
Mr. Lorry and he’s now trying to be of some help to the Manettes.
Now, though, he’s here to see Barsad.
Apparently Soloman/Barsad has become a spy in the French prisons.
Carton explains that he’d like to have a conversation with Barsad at Mr. Lorry’s.
When Barsad seems inclined to say no, Carton gently tells him that he has information that could
make life pretty sticky for Barsad.
That changes Barsad’s mind!
Miss Pross, however, is worried. She begs Carton to protect her brother.
Carton promises.
At Mr. Lorry’s, Carton introduces Barsad.
Next, he breaks the bad news to Mr. Lorry: Darnay has been arrested again.
Not to worry, though: Carton has a plan.
To make the plan work, though, he needs Barsad’s help.
As we may have mentioned, Barsad isn’t exactly the helping sort.
In fact, he needs quite a bit of convincing.
Luckily, however, Carton has some dirt on Barsad.
Barsad has been spying on the prisoners for the French revolutionaries, but he’s also been spying on
the French for the English.
No one likes a double-crossing spy.
Moreover, Carton knows that Barsad’s friend is passing as a Frenchman—but he’s really an
Englishman, Roger Cly.
Jerry suddenly pays close attention. He wants to know why Roger Cly never got properly buried.
In fact, he asks Barsad.
Barsad can’t figure out how Jerry would know this…until Jerry informs them that he tried to dig
Roger up. In Roger’s place, however, he found an empty coffin.
Barsad knows that Carton’s managed to beat him in this particular game.
Now that he gets the point, Barsad wants to know what Carton wants from him.
As it turns out, Carton doesn’t want much. Barsad is a keyholder of the prison. He can pass in and
out at will, right?
Barsad agrees. He’s able to go into the prison whenever he likes.
Carton nods, then asks Barsad to step into the next room so they can have a word together in private.
...and, unfortunately, we don’t get to read about that particular conversation.
Chapter Nine – The Game Made Summary
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While Carton and Barsad are talking in the next room, Mr. Lorry sits in silence.
He’s staring at Jerry Cruncher. Hard.
Finally, he asks what Jerry does besides working at Tellson’s.
Jerry says that his work is "agricultural" in nature.
We’re guessing that’s because it involves dirt. Oh, and bodies. Lots of dead bodies.
Mr. Lorry isn’t fooled.
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In fact, he’s angry. If Jerry’s been using the respectable name of Tellson’s as a front for illegal
activities, then Mr. Lorry will terminate his position as soon as they all get back to London.
Jerry takes deep offense to this.
He has an amazing speech about moral relativism that he gives here. It’s so good that we suggest you
read it yourselves.
Basically, he says that what he does isn’t so bad…if only because everyone else does bad things, too.
Carton and Barsad come into the room, and Jerry and Barsad leave.
Left alone with Carton, Mr. Lorry asks what sort of deal Barsad made.
Carton says that he’s managed to make sure that someone can get in to see Darnay, just once, if
things go very poorly at the trial.
He didn’t want to ask for anything more: it’s a bit perilous in the prison these days.
Mr. Lorry starts to tear up a bit at the thought of the danger ahead.
Carton says that Mr. Lorry is a good man and a true friend.
Abruptly, he asks if Mr. Lorry is heading over to see Lucie.
Carton doesn’t want her to know that he’s here. Mr. Lorry agrees to keep it a secret.
Staring into the fire, Carton asks Mr. Lorry if he has led a good life.
Mr. Lorry says that he’s an old bachelor—no one would weep if he died.
Carton scoffs at that. She would weep for him!
As they get up to go, Mr. Lorry says that he’s an old man…but Carton is still very young.
Carton smiles sadly. He’s young, sure, but he’s not made for the age that he lives in.
They each go their separate ways. Mr. Lorry heads to the Manettes’ place. Carton goes to a small
woodworking shop in Saint Antoine.
He stands outside it, and the wood sawyer comes out to see him.
The wood sawyer seems astonished at the resemblance between Carton and the prisoner.
He also comments on Carton’s perfect French.
Next, Carton heads to a chemist. He buys two different drugs.
The pharmacist warns him that combining the two would be fatal.
We’re beginning to suspect that Carton has some sort of plan here…
It’s already midnight. Carton walks through the streets of Paris all night, thinking of his childhood.
He was orphaned at an early age. He’s never felt at home anywhere.
By morning, he’s back at Mr. Lorry’s door.
Together, they head to the Tribunal.
Today, one of the judges is Jacques Three, the most bloodthirsty of all the Jacques.
There’s a huge audience in the court as the judges call Charles Evrémonde to the stand.
He’s been denounced by three people: M. and Mme. Defarge, and Dr. Manette.
Wait…what? Dr. Manette?
The doctor seems as shocked as the rest of the court.
He cries out that the accusation is a mistake.
The judges, however, rebuke him. Nothing could be dearer to him than the fate of the Republic,
right?
He doesn’t seem to agree. Then again, they don’t seem to care what he thinks.
The court calls Defarge to the stand. They ask him if he was one of the patriots who stormed the
Bastille.
The Vengeance, who’s sitting in the front row, shrieks that he’s a French hero.
Honestly, the woman is beginning to irritate us a little bit.
Defarge, however, agrees. He says that he found a letter hidden in the walls of the Bastille…a letter
written by Alexandre Manette during his imprisonment.
The courtroom gasps.
The judges order that the letter be read aloud.
Chapter Ten – The Substance of the Shadow
Summary
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It’s 1767. Dr. Manette writes in his prison cell.
He’s decided to recount the reason that he’s been unjustly imprisoned for so long.
To do so, he starts his history ten years earlier, in 1757.
It’s late at night. The doctor is out walking near his residence by the medical college.
Suddenly, a carriage races by. The driver calls Dr. Manette’s name and the carriage screeches to a
halt.
Inside the carriage, two men sit in the dark.
We’re sensing that this will lead to no good. No good at all.
The men ask if he’s Dr. Manette. He says that he is.
They inform him that he needs to come with them to see to some patients.
Dr. Manette has misgivings, but he gets in the carriage.
Soon the carriage arrives at a country house. As they go in the gate, one of the men strikes the gatekeeper with his glove.
That’s a big hint: he’s not a very nice guy.
Dr. Manette notices the same thing.
Inside the house, he finds a patient who appears to be suffering from brain fever.
She’s a beautiful young woman who seems to be about twenty years old.
Her hands are bound to the bed.
Oh, and she appears to be delirious.
As the doctor approaches her, she moans, "My husband, my father, and my brother!" and then counts
to twelve and whispers, "Hush!"
Puzzled, Dr. Manette listens as she repeats the same phrases over and over.
When he asks the brothers how long this has lasted, they say she’s been screaming since last night.
They bring out a case of medicines for the doctor to use.
After taking one look at the medicines, the doctor realizes that they’re all narcotics and poisons.
The younger brother (the two men, apparently, are brothers) asks if he doubts their worth.
Calmly, Dr. Manette gives the young woman a small amount of a narcotic.
She continues to scream for her husband, father, and brother. Eventually she starts shaking so
violently that he has to restrain her.
After a few hours, the elder brother says that there’s actually another patient in the house as well.
Surprised, the doctor follows the brothers out into the barn.
A young man lies in the hay. He’s been stabbed.
Hmm…and no one thought that the doctor should see him until now?
Astonished, Dr. Manette asks to see the wound.
The young man refuses. He’s dying. He doesn’t want to be treated.
As Dr. Manette looks at the man, he realizes that he’s been stabbed with a sword.
Only nobles carry swords.
The boy says that he may be poor, but he has pride.
Suddenly they can all hear the young girl screaming again. The boy asks if Dr. Manette has seen her.
He tells the doctor that the girl is his sister. She married a young man she loved.
The nobles (that would be our two brothers) wanted the girl. They harnessed her husband to a dog
cart and drove him all day, but he wouldn’t give his wife to them.
Needless to say, they killed him.
The young nobleman rode away with the young boy’s sister. When he ran in to tell his father, the old
man’s heart broke. He died.
Desperate to save his family, the young boy took his other (little) sister away from the country where
they lived.
He returned to seek revenge for the rape and kidnapping of his sister.
The nobleman met him and tried to whip him, but the young boy forced him to fight. The noble
struck the boy through with his sword.
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Even though the young boy is clearly dying now, he asks Dr. Manette to raise him so that he can
look at the two noble brothers who’ve wrecked his family.
The younger brother has run away. The elder, however, stands watching.
Gasping for breath, the young boy curses the nobles and all of their family. Then he dies.
Dr. Manette returns to the young woman. After sitting with her for days, he slowly realizes that she’s
pregnant.
At that point, he realizes that she’s given up any desire to live at all.
When the Marquis asks Dr. Manette how his patient is doing, he says that she’s almost dead.
The Marquis says something slighting about the amazing strength of the poor.
Dr. Manette replies that there’s often great strength in despair.
That’s when the nobles realize that they can’t trust Manette.
Once the girl dies, the Marquis offers Dr. Manette gold. He turns it down.
Back at home, Dr. Manette gets a letter saying that a lady is waiting to meet him.
It’s the wife of the Marquis. Somehow, she’s learned about the fate of the young woman and her
family.
She’s devastated at the ruin caused by her husband. She wants her son to have a different life than his
father.
Asking for a way to help the family, the woman begs Dr. Manette to tell her where the other sister of
the family was taken.
He doesn’t know. The woman rides away. She’s decided to leave her husband and take her child
with her.
Troubled by all of this, Dr. Manette writes a letter to the Minister of State explaining the situation.
That night, Dr. Manette’s servant, Ernest Defarge, comes into the house to say that a man is standing
at the gate.
Shocked, Dr. Manette realizes that the man isn’t at the gate. He’s right behind Ernest!
The man, of course, is from the Marquis.
He takes Dr. Manette to an "urgent" medical case. On the road, the carriage stops.
Two brothers emerge from the shadows and identify Dr. Manette. The elder holds Dr. Manette’s
letter.
He burns the letter in front of Dr. Manette’s eyes, and then the carriage drives to the prison.
Since then, he’s been locked in a living grave.
When the court finishes reading Dr. Manette’s letter, they immediately vote to hang Charles
Evrémonde. The crowd roars in approval.
Chapter Eleven – Dusk Summary
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We have to warn you now: this is a stressful chapter.
No fun and games, folks. Lots of bad stuff is on the horizon.
Like this: when she hears Darnay’s sentence, Lucie falls to the ground in shock.
Quickly, however, she realizes that this won’t help her husband; she pulls herself back up to her feet.
The court clears out as if by magic; the patriots have other revolutionary work to do.
Darnay and his guards are alone in the front of the courtroom. One of the guards is Barsad.
Barsad looks at Lucie and tells the guards that she should have an opportunity to say goodbye to her
husband.
Sheepishly, they agree.
Lucie rushes up to Darnay; they embrace.
Her father follows behind her, still in shock that his influence couldn’t save Darnay.
Dr. Manette begins to fall on his knees before Darnay, but his son-in-law quickly pulls him back up.
After all, there was nothing that anyone could have done to save him this time. It’s just the way that
the revolution works.
The guards lead Darnay away.
As she watches Darnay go, Lucie faints again.
Once she’s unconscious, Carton rushes to her side and gently carries her out to her carriage.
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Little Lucie cries out to Carton for help. She knows how much he loves her mother—why, then,
can’t he do something to stop this?
Before he leaves, Carton asks if he can kiss Lucie.
Little Lucie later remembers that, as he bends over Lucie, he whispers, "A life you love."
Dr. Manette stands by the carriage, stricken.
As Carton approaches him, Dr. Manette decides that he’ll visit and write letters to all the people he
thinks could save Darnay.
Carton encourages him; Dr. Manette runs off.
Left alone with Mr. Lorry, Carton says he fears that Dr. Manette won’t have any luck.
Mr. Lorry agrees.
Carton says that he’ll come by Tellson’s office at nine to hear if Dr. Manette was able to work
anything out.
He doesn’t have much hope for that—but at least it will give Dr. Manette the satisfaction of knowing
he did all that he could do.
In later days, he reflects, Lucie will want to know that they did all they could to save Darnay’s life.
The two men depart.
Chapter Twelve – Darkness Summary
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Carton wanders through the streets of Paris, contemplating life.
He’s trying to work out his plan in his mind. Finally, he decides it will be best if the Defarges know
what he looks like.
Accordingly, he scouts out the wine-shop in Saint Antoine.
Once he finds it, he has dinner and takes a nap. At seven, he heads over to the wine-shop.
Madame Defarge, of course, is sitting at the till.
Carton heads over to the bar and asks for some wine.
His French is suddenly really bad.
Wait…didn’t he speak almost perfect French a few chapters ago? What’s going on here?
Madame Defarge stares at him curiously and asks if he’s English.
He says that he is.
As she pours out the wine, he overhears her muttering to herself that he looks just like Evrémonde.
Defarge enters the shop; he apparently thinks the same thing.
He starts when he sees Carton at the counter, then walks over to confer with his wife.
She and Jacques Three are discussing when the revolution will be over.
Defarge notes that the violence will have to stop somewhere. The question, of course, is where.
Madame Defarge has an answer to that: they’ll stop when all of the aristocrats are exterminated.
Defarge doesn’t quite agree. After all, they all saw how Dr. Manette suffered when his son-in-law’s
verdict was read.
Come to think of it, Madame Defarge is not so sure that Dr. Manette is a true patriot.
Defarge says Dr. Manette’s daughter, that sweet, innocent girl, was devastated by the trial today.
Madame Defarge snaps at her husband. She’s been watching Lucie.
In fact, all she has to do is lift her finger...and Lucie’s life would be over.
Jacques Three thinks that Madame Defarge is magnificent.
Apparently power (of any sort) always attracts followers.
Madame Defarge goes on an angry tirade. As she says, she was with Defarge when he found Dr.
Manette’s letter.
Moreover, she is the younger sister of the woman who was raped and kidnapped.
She’ll never stop pursuing her revenge against the Evrémondes.
Her listeners are fascinated by the deadly heat of her wrath. Even Defarge stops trying to talk her
into being merciful.
Sydney Carton listens to all of the conversation, then leaves.
It’s almost nine. He meets Mr. Lorry at his office.
They wait until midnight, but Dr. Manette still doesn’t return.
Finally, he walks into the office.
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He’s a broken man. He asks immediately where his workbench is: he’s been looking for it all
afternoon.
Dismayed, Mr. Lorry rushes to help him.
Carton agrees that Dr. Manette should be taken to Lucie. Before he lets them go, though, he tells Mr.
Lorry about the conversation he overheard.
Lucie and Dr. Manette are no longer safe in Paris.
Quickly, Carton lays out his plans: Mr. Lorry will gather money and traveling papers for the
Manettes.
He should also arrange for a coach to take them to the border.
Carton hands Mr. Lorry his own traveling papers. He says that Mr. Lorry should only wait until
Carton’s place in the coach is filled.
As soon as that happens, the entire family must leave at once.
He makes Mr. Lorry promise that they won’t stop for any reason.
Once Mr. Lorry promises, Carton goes out into the night.
Chapter Thirteen – Fifty-Two Summary
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In his room in the prison, Darnay counts off the hours until his death.
He thinks constantly of Lucie. Finally, he writes letters to Lucie, her father, and Mr. Lorry.
Then he paces the room, counting off the last hours of his life.
He knows that at three he’ll be summoned to the carriage that will take him to the guillotine.
At one, however, Darnay hears footsteps approaching.
Carton walks into the room.
He’s got a pressing request for Darnay: he doesn’t have time to explain why he’s asking for the
things he needs.
Startled, Darnay does what Carton asks. They exchange boots, hair-ties, and shirts.
Darnay begins to understand Carton’s plan, but he’s certain that it won’t work.
Speaking rapidly, Carton asks Darnay to sit down and write a letter that he’ll dictate.
Darnay complies.
Carton tells him to write an unaddressed letter saying that the time has come for him to make good
on the promise he once gave.
He knows that the reader won’t forget the promise. He wants her to be assured that he’s glad that his
time has come.
Puzzled, Darnay stops writing. He thinks he smells a strange vapor.
He starts to rip the bottle out of Carton’s hand, but Carton’s too quick for him.
Darnay slumps to the ground, drugged.
Carton calls Barsad, who drags Darnay out of the jail.
They place Darnay on a stretcher, and Barsad carries him away.
At two, a jailer comes into the room and calls for Evrémonde. Carton follows him.
He gets into a line with fifty-one other prisoners, all of whom are scheduled to die.
They board carts that will carry them to the guillotine.
Carton stands next to a young seamstress who stares at him passionately.
She knows Darnay; she was with him in La Force.
She says that she wouldn’t be afraid to die for the Republic…but she can’t understand how the death
of an insignificant, innocent woman can matter at all.
All of a sudden, she realizes that Carton isn’t Darnay.
Startled, she asks if Carton is dying for Darnay.
He says he’s dying for Darnay’s wife and child.
The seamstress asks to hold the hand of the "brave stranger" as they ride to the guillotine.
Meanwhile, the Manettes and Mr. Lorry are going through the checkpoints out of town.
Anxiously, they watch as guards check and re-check all their papers.
Soon, however, the carriage is flying out of Paris.
When they get out to a village, they’re stopped again.
Nervous, Mr. Lorry asks what the holdup is.
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It turns out that the guards just want to know how many people are being fed to La Guillotine today.
The answer is fifty-two.
Satisfied, the guards let the carriage roll off into the night.
Chapter Fourteen – The Knitting Done Summary
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Back at the wine-shop, Madame Defarge is holding a council—without her husband.
She’s decided that he’s too soft.
He doesn’t understand what it takes for a revolution to succeed.
The Vengeance and Jacques Three, bloodthirsty as ever, agree.
Madame Defarge admits that she cares nothing about Dr. Manette. He can live or die…she doesn’t
mind either way.
Lucie and her child, however, must be exterminated.
All of the Evrémonde race must die.
Jacques Three thinks gleefully about how pretty Lucie’s golden hair will look at the base of La
Guillotine.
Madame Defarge swears her two companions to secrecy. Her husband can’t know about their plans.
Now Madame Defarge calls over the wood-sawyer and makes him promise that he’ll testify that
Lucie was exchanging traitorous signals with the prisoner Evrémonde.
Happy to help the revolution, the guy agrees.
We’re sensing that this isn’t exactly the best display of justice in action.
Perhaps that’s what Dickens intended us to think.
At any rate, Madame Defarge is pretty happy with the way things are shaping up.
Confident that Lucie will be pretty angry at the Republic right now (after all, her husband’s being
executed), Madame Defarge decides to pay her a visit.
Perhaps she can get Lucie to say something that will damn her whole family to death.
The Vengeance can’t get enough of how marvelous Madame Defarge’s plans and revolutionary
fervor are.
Madame Defarge stalks through the streets.
She’s a cold, cold woman.
She cares nothing about love—only about vengeance. Sort of like her friend, The Vengeance.
As she walks toward the Manette household, Miss Pross and Jerry Cruncher are well on their way to
leaving it forever.
They’ve been left behind to pack all the Manettes’ things.
They’re almost ready to leave. Miss Pross sends Jerry out to get the carriage.
She plans to meet him by the cathedral door.
That way, they won’t excite any suspicions about the family leaving.
Frantic to keep her darlings safe, Miss Pross sends Jerry on his way.
Once she’s left alone, Miss Pross washes her face. She hasn’t slept all night.
Opening her eyes, she sees a figure standing in the doorway.
It’s Madame Defarge.
She demands to know where the wife of Evrémonde is at the moment.
Miss Pross, of course, doesn’t speak any French.
She has a pretty good hunch that Madame Defarge is asking for her darlings, however.
And she’s determined not to give that evil Frenchwoman any hints about where her darlings have
gone.
Quickly, Miss Pross slams all the doors in the room shut.
If Madame Defarge looked through them, she’d see the havoc of a family that left its house quickly.
Miss Pross and Madame Defarge say some nasty things to each other. Neither can understand the
other, but they seem to communicate pretty well just the same.
At the very least, they each hate the other.
Madame Defarge throws open all the doors in the house but one: Miss Pross guards the last door
herself.
Realizing that Miss Pross isn’t planning to move anytime soon, Madame Defarge lunges at the door.
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Miss Pross grabs Madame Defarge around the waist and hangs on for dear life.
They claw at each other; Madame Defarge lunges for the keys at Miss Pross’ waist.
All of a sudden, Miss Pross sees Madame Defarge draw something out of her dress.
She grasps Madame Defarge’s hand.
A loud blast goes off.
As the smoke clears, she sees Madame Defarge lying on the ground.
She’s dead.
Miss Pross collects her things, puts on her bonnet, and rushes to the cathedral.
Jerry’s waiting for her.
He calls out to her, but she can’t hear him.
In fact, she never hears anything again.
Chapter Fifteen – The Footsteps Die Out for Ever
Summary
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Six carts carry fifty-two people to the guillotine.
Crowds of people gather to see the faces of the soon-to-be-dead.
Out narrator pauses to explore the different looks on the various faces.
Some seem bewildered, some angry, some absolutely hopeless.
One in particular stares out into the crowd without any apparent interest in his surroundings. He
shakes his hair to cover his face a bit more.
Anxiously, the crowd cries out to discern which of the prisoners is Evrémonde.
Meanwhile, The Vengeance pushes through the crowd, crying out for Madame Defarge.
She’s saved her a seat right by La Guillotine, but she can’t find her friend anywhere.
As the guillotine begins to crash, the audience counts the number of heads that roll to the ground.
Scared, the little seamstress clings to Carton.
She thinks that he’s an angel sent to be with her in her time of trouble.
He comforts her, telling her that she’s going to a place with no suffering. She’ll be able to be with
her family there.
They kiss, and she steps up onto the guillotine before Carton.
The audience counts to twenty-two.
Carton murmurs the words of Christ, "I am the Resurrection and the Life…" as he steps onto the
platform.
The audience counts to twenty-three.
It's revealed that, afterwards, witnesses said his face was the most peaceful face they saw on the
guillotine.
The narrator reflects that, if Carton had a chance to write down his thoughts before his death, they
would have been something like this:
He foresees a time when vengeance in France will end.
He sees a nation rising out of the blood and ashes of this time, a nation stronger and better for the
struggles it has had to endure.
He sees the Manettes in the future, with a child that bears his name.
He imagines the stories that they’ll tell of the man who gave his life for their happiness.
He sees his own name cleared of all the stains he’s placed on it, living again through Lucie’s son.
He reflects that this action is perhaps the best one that he’s ever taken.