Stylistic Use of Repetition in A Tale of Two Cities
Keisuke Koguchi
1 . I n t ro d u c t i o n
As Brook (1970: 143) states, repetition is one of the linguistic
devices “of which Charles Dickens is very fond,” and the novelist
“ ma k e s t h i n g s e a s y f o r hi s r e a de r s by his constant repetitions, and his
habitual phrases are re me mbered by re a d e r s w h o a r e n ot u s e d t o r e a d i n g
with close attention.”
According to Monod (1968: 461), Dickens’s
“s t yl i s t i c u se o f r e p et i t i o n re ac h es i t s cl i ma x i n [A Tal e o f Two C i t i es
(1859)].”
Therefore, it is fruitful to deal with the language of Di ckens,
especi all y t h at of A Tale of Two Cities , from the point of view of
repetition in order to explore his l i n g ui st i c a r t i str y w i t h w h i c h t h e
novelist, inheriting the language of the 18th c e ntur y, impr ove d upon the
style of English prose.
Leech and Short (1981: 244) describe formal repetition as
“repeated us e of an expression ( morpheme, lexi c a l i t e m, p r o p e r n a m e ,
phrase, etc.) which has already occur r e d i n t h e c o n t e xt . ”
In fact,
Dickens exploits various t y pe s o f r e pe t i t i o n, t h at i s, r e p et i t i o n o f
sounds, morpheme s, words, phrases, and sentences for various stylistic
purposes, such as associ ation, implication, irony, characteriz a t i o n , o r
verbal iconicity.
However, following Leech and Short’s defi nition, in
t h i s p a p er I focus m y attent i o n o n t he r e pe t i t i ve u se of wor ds or phr a se s.
My c h ief concern is devote d to thr ee a s pe c t s o f r e pe t i t i on : f i r st ,
re p eti ti o n for c h ar a ct er iz at i o n; s e c on d l y, repetition of words indicative
of symbolic meaning; and thirdly, distinctive use of repetition between
1
the English and the French scenes.
Thes e kinds of r e pet iti on w or k
together to convey the ma in themes of the novel to the mi nds of the
r e a de r.
2 . K e y wo r ds i n A Tale of Two Ci ties
B e fo re
I
ex a mi n e
the
r el at io n s h i p
between
repetition
and
functional relevance, I will identify key words in A Ta l e o f Two C i t i e s,
a s c o mp a r e d t o Di c k e n s ’s ot h e r n o ve l s .
F or t h e st at i s t i c a l a n a l y si s o f
repetition, I take advant a ge o f a c o mp u t e r- a s si st e d a p pr o ac h t o a
1
self-made Di ckens Corpus of his 22 novels.
I n o r de r t o ma k e Ta b l e
1 below, I use Mike Scott’s “Key Wo r d s To o l ” o f “ Wo r d S mit h To o l s ”
progra m.
2
T he k e y w or d s a r e c a l c u l a t e d b y c o mp a r i n g t h e f r e q ue n c y
o f e a c h w or d i n A Tale of Tw o Citie s w i t h t h at o f t h e s a me w o r d i n t h e
Dickens Corpus.
Any word which is found to be unusually frequent in
A Tal e of Two C i t i e s i s c o ns i d er ed a ke y w or d .
F or i ns t a n ce , t h e w o rd
“ ma d a m” o c c u r s 1 9 3 t i me s a t the f r e que nc y of 0.14 % in A Tal e of Two
Cities, while it appears 263 ti me s at a dimi nutive frequency in the
Dickens Corpus.
The word is not e x pe c t e d t o o cc u r a t s u c h hi g h
frequency on the basis of the Dickens C o r p u s , a n d t h e r e f o r e i t i s g i v e n
the highest numeric value of keyness, in other words, the highest log
likelihood (743.8).
On the other ha nd, the conjunctio n “ a n d ” i s n o t
regarded as one of key words, though it occurs at the second highest
frequency in A Tale of Two Cities (5,000 ti me s; 3.65 % ) , a n d i n t h e
Dickens Corpus (156,900 times; 3.56 %).
The reason for this is
b ec a us e t h e w o r d i s p r es e nt w i t h al mo st t h e sa me r at e i n A Tal e of Two
Cities a n d t h e Di c k e n s C o r p us a s e xp e c t e d.
2
3
Table 1 Key words in A Tale of Two Cities as compared to Dickens Corpus
No.
Key words
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
madame
prisoner
doctor
spy
mender
citizen
knit
the
wine
patriot
prison
chateau
courtyard
guillotine
fountain
gaoler
tribunal
tumbril
village
bank
husband
jackal
road
father
plane-tree
shoemaker
flop
citizeness
passenger
emigrant
jury
business
stone
hill
ladybird
A Tale of Two Cities
Dickens Corpus
Approx. 137,000 words
Approx. 4,348,000 words
F re q .
193
169
226
72
48
64
65
8,024
120
33
91
27
36
27
42
23
23
18
52
65
99
15
106
197
15
18
15
13
45
23
32
134
74
42
12
%
F re q .
%
0.14
0.12
0.16
0.05
0.03
0.05
0.05
5.85
0.09
0.02
0.07
0.02
0.03
0.02
0.03
0.02
0.02
0.01
0.04
0.05
0.07
0.01
0.08
0.14
0.01
0.01
0.01
0.00
0.03
0.02
0.02
0.10
0.05
0.03
0.00
263
306
1,199
66
4
65
98
214,911
671
11
433
3
27
6
69
2
7
1
220
387
874
0
1,009
2,720
1
9
3
1
236
40
107
1,760
689
231
2
0.00
0.00
0.03
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
4.91
0.02
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.02
0.00
0.02
0.06
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.04
0.02
0.00
0.00
Keyness
(Log likelihood)
744
581.8
407.3
316.3
307.5
272.5
241.1
239.5
206.8
181.8
178.9
169.4
167.2
157.8
150.6
146.9
128.6
118
111.6
105.9
105.8
104.8
102.7
102.4
97.4
92
88.8
83.7
81.8
80.5
80.3
77
73.8
73.4
72.5
I n Ta bl e 1 , 3 5 ke y w or d s a r e p r e se n t e d i n or d e r a c c or di n g t o t h e i r
3
log likelihood values.
Of c o ur s e , t h e pr o pe r n a me s of char acter s r a nk
among the top because most of the m appear only in A Ta le of Two Cities .
I n t h e Ta bl e , c ha r a c t e r n a me s s uc h a s “ C a r t o n ” a nd “ L u c i e ,” t he pl ac e
n a me s s u c h a s “ S o h o” a n d “ F r a n ce , ” a n d s u c h Fr e n c h w o r ds as
“Monseigneur” and “Monsieur ” a r e e xc lude d.
Observation of Ta ble 1 l e a d s me t o n ot i c e t h at t h e w or d s u se d t o
r e f e r t o c h a r a c t e r s a r e a t t h e he a d o f t h e l i s t : f or e xa mp l e , t he w o r d
“ ma d a me ” f o r Ma d a me D e f a rge ; “ d o ctor,” “father,” and “shoema ker”
for Doctor Mane tte; “prisoner,” “e mi gr a nt ,” a n d “ hu s band” for Darnay;
“ l a dy b i r d ” f o r L uc i e ; “ sp y ” f or B a r sa d ; “ me n d er ” f o r o ne o f t he F r e n ch
patriots; and “jackal” for Carton.
Moreove r, t h e w o r d s r e l a t e d t o
France and the Fr ench Revolution a l s o s h o w k e yne ss , f or e x a mp l e ,
“citizen,” “citizeness,” “patriot,” “republic,” “guill otine,” “tribunal,”
“ t u mb r e l , ” a n d s o o n .
A mo n g t h e r e ma i n i n g w o r d s i n Ta b l e 1 , I f oc us my a tte ntion on
the repeated use of the key words, “ wi n e , ” “ f o u n t a i n , ” “ p l a n e - t r e e , ” a n d
“ bu s i n e ss . ”
4
T h e w o r d “ pl a n e - t r e e ” o c c urs only fifteen times, but it
is frequently repeated in a pa rti c ul ar c o nt e xt , a n d ful fi l l s a n i mp o rt a n t
rol e as a n i n di c at i o n o f t h e s u bj ec t ma t t er o f t h e no v el .
St ati s t i ca l l y,
the unusually frequent use of the four words ma y be s a i d t o b e a n
exa mple of lexical properties which distinguish A Tal e o f Two C i t i e s
from Dickens’s other novels.
3. Repe tition for characteri zation
3.1
Repetition of “business”
One of the key words, “business,” occurs 134 time s throughout
4
the novel.
Ei ghty-nine of these insta n c e s a r e s e e n i n t h e c ha r a c t er s ’
speeches, and 50 of 89 instances (56%) in Mr. Lorry’s speech.
M o r e o v e r, 1 5 o f t h e r e ma i n i n g 4 5 i ns t a n c e s ( 3 3% ) i n t h e de s c r i p t i v e
and narrative parts are found in such expressions related to hi m as “the
ma n o f b us i ne s s ” a n d “ h i s b us i ne s s e y e . ”
As a result, readers
n a t ur a l l y dr a w a c l o se a ssociation between Mr. Lor r y a n d “ b us i ne s s ,” or
hi s b u si n es sl i ke m a nner.
I n p ar t i c ul ar, t he l e ss fa mi l i a r c o l l o ca t i o n
“business eye” occur s t wi c e i n C h a p t e r 6 o f B o o k I I , a n d r e c u r s i n
Chapter 8 of Book III again.
Incidenta l l y, i n D i c k e n s ’s n o v e l s , I f i n d
n o i n st a n c e o f “ b u si n e s s e ye s” e x c e p t f o r t h e t h r e e e x a mp l e s gi v e n t o
Mr. L orr y.
I t ca n n ot be sa i d t h at t h e c o mb i n at i o n i s fr e q u en t l y us e d,
b ut i t i s cl o se l y r el at e d t o t he r e pe t i t i ve u s e o f “ bu s i n es s ” i n Mr.
L or r y’s s p ee c h a n d i n t h e d e sc ri pt i on s o f M r. L o r r y.
T h e e mp l o y me n t
o f “ b u siness eye” show s that Mr. Lorry has the ability to look at things
o bj e c t i v e l y a s se e n i n t h e pa s sa g e be l o w :
(1) (Car ton informs Mr. Lorry that Darnay, who was o n ce r e l e a se d
owing to Dr. Manette’s testimony, h a s be e n a r r e st e d a g ai n .)
Mr. Lorry’s business eye r e a d in the spe a ke r ’s [ Ca r ton’s] f a c e
that it was loss of time to dwell upon the point. Confused, but
sensible that some thing mi ght depend on his presence of mi nd, he
c o m ma n d e d h i ms e l f , a n d w a s sil e nt l y a t t en t i v e . ( Bk. III, Ch. 8)
T h e re p et i t i ve u se o f “ b us i ne s s” l i t erally shows his businesslike ma nner,
but Mr. Lorry’s ways of dealing with other char ac t e r s i s n ot a l w a ys
businesslike.
He often displays grea t affection to Lucie and her father
even though he repeatedly uses “a ma n of business” in his speech.
humanistic
aspect
of
his
charac ter
is
refl ecte d
through
The
words
c o- oc c ur r i n g w i t h “ b us i ne s s” i n t he d e s c r i pt i v e p ar t , a s se e n i n t h e
5
passage below:
(2) (Mr. Lorry t a ct full y asks Docto r Ma n e t t e w h a t c a us e d t h e r e l a ps e
and how it can be prevented.)
“Now, my dear Manette,” s ai d M r. Lor r y, at l e ngt h, i n hi s mos t
considerate and most affectiona te way , “I a m a mere man of
b us i ne s s , and unfit to cope with such i nt ri ca t e a nd di ffi c u l t ma t t er s .
I do not possess the kind of infor mation neces s a r y ; I d o n o t
possess the kind of i n t e l l i g e n c e ; I want guiding….’
(Bk. II, Ch. 19)
In t h e un d erl i ne d p hr a se o f p as s a ge (2) , t h e a dj e cti v e s “c o n si d er at e”
a nd
“ a ff e c t i o n a t e ”
i n c o mpa t i bl e
wi t h
thoughtfulness,
p r e s e nt
s o me
a s p ec t s
of
gentleness,
“a
and
se ma ntic
ma n
of
features
which
b u si n e ss , ”
tenderness.
The
ar e
such
as
repetition
of
“ bu s i n e ss ” di r e c t s o ur attention to Mr. Lorry’s busine sslike ma nner,
whil e t he use of t hese hu mani st ic a d j e c t i v e s , w h i c h a r e c o nt e xt u al l y
a n t o n y mous with “businesslike ,” off er a g l i mp s e i n t o his unobtrusive
b ut s i g ni fi c a nt t r a i t s .
We o b se r ve a c o n f l i c t o f me a n i n gs b e t w e en t h e
two adjectives and his habitual use of the phrase “a ma n of business.”
T h i s i s one of D ickens’s methods f or c ha r a c te r c r e a tion.
5
Tha t is t o
say, the author repeats a w o r d p e c u l i a r t o c haracters in his novels,
dr a ma t i zi n g a p ar t i c ul ar se ma n t i c fe at ur e t h at c o n st i t ut es t h e m, a nd
then gradually reveals new aspects o f t he c h ar ac t e r s’ pe r so n al i t y
through a se ma ntic conflict betwe e n t h e r e pe at e d w o r d a n d w o r d s
c o- oc c ur r i n g wi t h i t , a s t h e n o ve l pr o gr e ss e s .
I n t hi s w a y, Di c k e ns
often builds up ma nifold aspe c t s o f hi s c ha r a c t er s .
3.2
Repetition of “business” in the description of Sydney Carton
6
T h e r e c ur r e nt u se o f t he k e y w o r d “ b us i n e ss ” n ot o nl y s e rves t o
c ha r a c t e r i z e M r. L or r y a s d i s c usse d a bove , but a lso de note s othe r
c ha r a c t e r s ’ “ b u si n e ss , ” or t h e i r work, concerns, and roles.
For
instance, Carton’s “busin e s s ” i mp l i e s hi s h e r oi c a ct o f s el f- sa cr i fi ce ,
Cruncher ’s is indicative of his work of body-snatching, and Madame
Defarge’s is suggestive of her cruel revenge on the aristocracy.
As a
t y p i c a l e x a mp l e , l e t us e xa mi n e C a r t o n ’s “ bu s i n e ss ”:
(3)
Carton’s negligent r e c kl e s s ne s s of ma nner ca me powerfully i n
aid of his quickness a n d s ki l l , i n s u c h a business as he had in his
secret mi nd, and with such a ma n a s h e h a d t o d o wi t h .
(Bk. III, Ch. 8)
I n t he c o n t e xt o f t h e p assage, Carton threatens Bars a d a n d f o r c e s h i m t o
c o - o p e r a t e i n h i s p l a n t o r e s c u e Darnay from prison.
The phrase “a
business”
action.
contextually
alludes
to
Ca rton’s
future
The
underlined words, “recklessness,” “ q ui c k ne s s , ” a n d “ s k i l l ” r e pr e se n t
t h e q u a l i t i e s a nd a bi l i ti e s n e e de d f o r C ar t o n t o p e r f o r m h i s r i s k y a n d
se lf-sacrificing act in the near future.
My int e r pr et at i o n o f C ar t o n ’s
“ b u si n e ss” is based on the re pe titive use of “business” i n hi s s pe e c h , a s
se e n i n pa ss a g e ( 4) b el o w :
(4)
“And indeed, sir,” pursued Mr. Lorry, not mi nding him, “I
really don’t know what you have to d o w i t h t h e ma t t er. If you’ll
excuse me, as very much your el de r, f or sa ying so, I r e a lly don’t
know that it is your business.”
“ Business! Bless you, I 6 have no business ,” said Mr. Carton.
“ I t i s a p i t y y o u h a v e not, sir. ” (Bk. II, Ch. 4)
T h e w or d “ b us i ne s s” o c c ur s s ev e r a l t i me s i n C a r t o n ’s s p e e c h .
7
When
he refers to his own “business,” Car ton r e pe a ts the e xpression “I have
no business.”
7
O n e s u c h i n st a nc e i s s ho w n i n t h e pa s sa g e a b o ve .
Here, Carton ma kes fun of Mr. Lorry by pointing out his job
re st ra i nt s as a b a n k er a ft e r D ar n ay’s t r i a l i n t he O l d B a i l y.
M r. L o rr y
refutes Carton’s argument and says, “I r e a l l y d o n ’t k n o w t h a t i t i s y o u r
b us i ne s s .”
I n M r. L or r y’s ut t e r a n c e , “ b us i ne s s” me a n s “ a ma t t e r w i t h
which one has the right to me ddle.”
8
On the other hand, in Carton’s
reply “I have no business,” “business” is defined as “work to be done or
ma t t er s t o b e a t t e nde d t o i n hi s s e rvice or on his behalf” or “a particular
ma tter dema nding attention.”
9
The wor d “ busi n e s s ” c o n ve y s t w o
di fferent meanings in the two speeches in pa ssage (4).
Carton states a
seemingly unrelated thing i n s pi t e o f t h e re p et i t i o n o f t h e s a me w o rd,
but his reply “I have no business” hi n t s at a n e xi st e n ce of his future
“business,” that is to say, what is i mplied by “a busines s ” i n p a s s a g e ( 3)
in ter ms of foreshadowing.
Through t h e r e p e t i t i v e u se of “business,”
D i c k e ns d i r e c t s t he r e a de r ’s a t t e ntion to the word, a n d s u g ge st s t h e
di fferent or contrastive roles be twee n the c har a c te r s.
I n ot he r wor ds,
Mr. Lorry and Carton independently carry on their own “business” t o
rescue Darnay.
Th e repeated use of “business” is not directly but
i n t i ma t e l y r el at e d t o t h e t h e mes of fate and resurrection.
In short , Di ckens r e peat s a par ti c ul ar wor d inst ead of usi ng
different words or phrases of similar meaning, exploiting polyse my of
the repeated word, and invites the reader ’s attent i o n t o t he w ord and its
connotation.
This technique shows one aspect of Dickens’s use of
repetition.
8
4 . R e pe t i t i o n o f wo r ds i n di c ative of symbolic meaning
4.1
Repetitive use of “wine,” “red,” and “blood”
As Monod (1968: 462) notes, “Dicken s ma k e s a b r o a d e r u s e o f t h e
symbols and allegories that had long been dear to hi m.”
In real it y, A
Tal e o f Two Ci t i e s i s f u l l o f r e pe a t e d i ma g e r y a n d s y mbo l i c p at t e r n s.
We hear again and again the footsteps a nd t he ri si ng st or m; we se e t he
drinking of wine and the stai ning blood.
This novel achieves
linguistic and stylistic c o n t i g u i t y t h r o u g h t h e r e p eated use of symbol ic
words like “footstep,” “echo ,” a nd “ wine ,” “ blood,” whic h a r e c lose ly
related to the subject ma tter of the novel.
repetition
of
sy mbolic
w o rds
ful fi l l s
10
an
To put it another way,
i mportant
function
of
promoting the thematic cohesion, by which the themes of this novel are
brought to light.
Here, I concentrate my attention on the repetition of the key word
“wine,” and its related words “red ” and “blood.”
These words often
c o- oc c ur wi t h o n e a n ot he r, a n d c o n ve y a d d i t i o n a l a n d d i ffe r e nt
me a n i n gs a s w e l l a s t h e i r o w n s pe ci f i c me a ni n g s, i n a c c or d a nc e w i t h
the scenes or contexts, especially between the Englis h a n d t he Fr e n ch
sc e ne s .
Figure 1 below represents the di s t r i b u t i o n o f t h es e t hr e e w o r d s
throughout A Ta le of Two Ci ties .
T he w o r d “ wi n e ” o c c ur s 1 2 0 t i m e s ,
“ r e d ” 56 times, and “blood” 35 ti me s in total.
11
T he c ha pt e r s o f t h e
novel are divided into three groups: English chapters, French chapters,
a nd E n glish- F rench chapters, de pe nding on the location of the incidents
in each chapter.
9
Figure 1
Distribution of “wine,” “red,” and “blood”
[English]
Bk. I, Ch. 2
1
Bk. I, Ch. 3
1
Bk. I, Ch. 4
1
Bk. II, Ch. 1
1
Bk. II, Ch. 2
1
Bk. II, Ch. 3
1
4
1 1
5
Bk. II, Ch. 4
2
Bk. II, Ch. 5
2
3
Bk. II, Ch. 6
Bk. II, Ch. 10
1
Bk. II, Ch. 11
1
Bk. II, Ch. 12
1
Bk. II, Ch. 13
1
Bk. II, Ch. 14
1
Bk. II, Ch. 17
1
Bk. II, Ch. 18
1
Bk. II, Ch. 19
wine (120)
Bk. II, Ch. 20
red (56)
1 1
Bk. II, Ch. 24
[E & F]
blood (35)
Bk.I, Ch. 1
3
10
Bk.II, Ch. 21
3
[French]
3
37
Bk. I, Ch. 5
1
1
Bk. I, Ch. 6
1
3
Bk. II, Ch. 7
Bk. II, Ch. 8
1
Bk. II, Ch. 9
1
1
18
Bk. II, Ch.15
1
8
Bk .II, Ch.16
1
3
Bk. II, Ch. 23
Bk. III, Ch. 1
2
Bk. III, Ch. 2
2
Bk. III, Ch. 3
2
Bk. III, Ch. 4
1 1
Bk. III, Ch. 5
1
2
2
4
1
Bk. III, Ch. 7
1
6
5
1
4
Bk. III, Ch. 6
3
1
4
Bk. II, Ch. 22
3
8
Bk. III, Ch. 8
3
1 1 1
Bk. III, Ch. 9
5
1
Bk. III, Ch. 10
Bk. III, Ch. 11
6
Bk. III, Ch. 12
Bk. III, Ch. 13
1
3
Bk. III, Ch. 14
1
3
Bk. III, Ch. 15
1
0
2
1
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
18
20
10
22
24
26
28
30
32
34
36
38
40
42
44
Scrutiny of Figure 1 reveals, a mo n g o t h e r t h i n g s , t h e f o l l o wi n g
t wo poi nt s:
(i)
Although the three words, “wine,” “red,” and “blood,” occur
t h r o u g h o u t t h e n o v e l , t hey occur more frequen t l y i n t h e F r e n c h
c ha pt e r s r a t h e r t h a n t he E n gl i s h o n e s . F ur t h e r mo r e , t h e se
w ords often co-occur with one a not he r in the Fr e nc h sc e ne s.
They al so co- occur in the English scenes, but not as often.
(ii)
Th e w or d “ w i n e ” i s r e ma r ka bl y o b vi o us i n t he fir s t F re n c h
chapter, in Chapter 5 of Bo ok I [ 37 of 120 (30.8%)]. This
emphasizes a strong connection be tween what ma y be meant by
the word and Fr ance, and pr e f i g u r e s t h e c o mi n g b l o o d y
R e v ol ut i o n a t t h e v er y beginning of the Frenc h sc e ne s . I n t h e
English chapters, on the other h a n d , t h e w o r d “ wi n e ” o c c u r s
only 14 time s, and most instance s [10 of 14, (71%) ] o c c u r i n a
l i mi t e d c o n t e x t : C h a p t e r s 4, 5, and 6 of Book II.
It i s o ft e n poi nt e d o ut t h at t h e w or d “ wi n e” a n d i t s re l at e d w o r ds
“red” and “blood” frequen t l y c o - o c c u r a s a n i ndication of the Fr ench
Revolution’s slaughter and bloodshed.
In fact, Figure 1 supports this
i d e a i n q u a nti t a t i v e t e r ms, but does not reveal how the words create the
s y mb o l i c a l i ma g e r y o f t h e b l e e d i n g R e v ol ut i o n .
N ee d l e s s t o s a y, t h e
Revolution’s slaughter and bloodshed are not si mply hinted at and
represented through the repetition a n d c o- o c c u r r e n c e o f t h e se t hr e e
w o r ds , b ut t h e r e l a t e d w o r d s co- oc c ur r i n g w i t h t h e m i n t h e sa m e
contexts contribute to creating the bloody imagery.
Therefore, I will
n o w i n ve st i g a t e ho w t h e t hr ee w o rd s a n d t h ei r re l a t e d w o r ds w o r k
together.
Wh at is mo re, as it see ms t h a t D i c k e ns a t t a c h es di ffe r e nt
me a n i n gs t o t he w o r d “ w i ne ” a nd i t s r el at e d w o rd s i n e ac h co n t e x t , I
will exa mine how the words carry va r i e ga t e d me a ni n gs f o r t he Fr e n c h
11
a nd t he E n gl i s h sc e n e s .
4.2
Use of “wine” in French scenes
T h e f ol l o w i ng p a ss a ge d es c r i b e s t he breaking of a wine cask i n
the street, inspiring the people of the ne ighbor hood to scoop and sop up
the wi ne to drink it in the first French scene, Chapter 5 of Book I.
The
passage, long as it is, must be quoted nearly in full to preserve its
peculiar effect:
(5)
(i ) A large cask of w i n e had been dropped and broken, in the
street. (ii) The accident had happened in getting it out of a cart;
t h e c a s k h a d t u mbl e d out w i t h a r u n, the hoops had burst, and it la y
o n the stones just out si d e t h e d o or o f t h e wi n e - s h o p, shattered like
a wa l nut - s he ll .
( i i i ) A l l t he p e o pl e wi t hi n r e a c h ha d suspe nde d their business,
or t h ei r i dl e ne s s , t o r u n t o t h e s po t a n d d ri n k t h e w i ne . . . ( i v)
Some me n kneeled down, made sco o p s o f t h e i r t wo hands joined,
and sipped, or tried to help women, who bent over their shoulders,
to sip, before t he w i n e had all run out between their fingers. (v)
Others, men and wome n, di p p e d i n t h e p u d d l e s w it h l i t t l e mu g s o f
mu t i l a t e d e a r t he n w a r e , or ev e n w i t h handkerchiefs from wome n’s
heads, which were squeezed dry int o i n fa nt s ’ mo ut h s; o t he rs ma d e
s ma l l mu d e mb a n k me n t s , t o s t e m t h e w i n e as it ran; others,
directed by lookers-on up at high windows, dart e d he r e a n d t h e r e ,
to c ut o ff l i t t l e stre a m s of w i n e t h at s t a r t e d a w a y i n ne w
directions; others devoted themselves to the sodden and lee-dyed
p i e c e s o f t h e c a s k , l i c king, and even cha mping the moiste r
wine-rotted fragments with eager relish. . .
( vi ) The wine w as re d wi ne, and had st ai ne d the ground of the
n arr o w st r ee t i n t h e s ub u r b o f S ai nt A n t oi n e , i n P ar i s , w he r e i t w as
spilled . (vii ) It had st ai ne d ma ny hands, too, and ma ny faces,
and ma ny naked feet, and many wo o d e n s h o e s . ( v i i i ) T h e h a n d s
of the ma n who sawed the wood, le f t red marks on the billets; and
t h e f o r e h e a d o f t he w o ma n who nur se d he r ba by, wa s st ai ne d w i t h
t h e st ai n of the old rag she wound a bout her head again. (ix)
Those who had been greedy with t h e s t a v e s o f t he c a s k, h a d
12
acqui r ed a t i g e r i sh s me a r about the mouth; and one tall joker so
be s mi r c h e d , his head mo re out of a long squalid bag of a night-cap
than in it, scrawled upon a wall with his finger dipped in muddy
wine-lees — B L O O D .
( x) T h e t i me w a s t o c o me , when that wine too would be spilled
o n t he st r e e t - stones, and when t he st ai n of it would be r e d u p o n
ma ny there. (Bk. I, Ch. 5)
T h e r e pe tition of the w ord “wine ” a nd w o r ds re l at e d t o t h e s p i l l e d w i n e
in each se nt ence of the pa ssage above are shown as follows:
Table 2
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)
(v)
(vi)
Words including “wine” and words related to the spilled wine
Words indicating “wine”
A large cask of wine
the wine-shop
the wine
the wine
the wine
little streams of wine
the moister wine-rotted fragments
The wine
red wine
Words related to the spilled wine
mutilated
cut off
stained
spilled
stained
red marks
stained
the stain
a tigerish smear
besmirched
B LOOD
spilled
the stain
red
(vii)
(viii)
wine-lees
(ix)
that wine
(x)
The words repr esentative of “wine” and its sedime nt recurrently occur
in the passage (in sentences (v), (vi), a n d ( v i i ) t h e p r o n o u n “ i t ” i s u s e d ) ,
which builds up close connections among t h e sent ences.
Obser vi n g
t h e w or d s r el at e d t o t he s pi l l e d wi n e , I notice the novelist’s deliberate
order of them: in sentence (v), the words denoting the beheading on the
13
guillotine, “mutilated” and “cut off,” first appear, and then in the
following sentences, such words as “stained” and “spilled” denotative of
the spilling of blood by the killer machine are repeatedly used, thereby
showing a cause-and-effect relationship.
M or e ove r, i n s e nt enc e ( vi ) ,
w e ar e fi r st t ol d t ha t t h e s pi l l e d w i ne i s “ r e d , ” a n d t he n t he w or d “ r e d ”
i s r e p e a t e d i n s e nt e nc e ( v i i i ) .
I n s e nt e nc e ( i x ) , t he juxtaposition of
“wine-lees” and “Blood,” which gains special emphasis by comi ng a t
t h e e n d o f t h e s e nt e nc e , sh o w s a c l o s e r e l a t i o n b et w e e n “ wi n e ” a n d
“ bl o o d. ”
F i na l l y, i n s e nt e nc e ( x ) , t he w o r d s “ w i n e , ” “ s pi l l e d ,”
“ s t a i n ,” a n d “ r e d” o c c ur t o g e t h e r, a nd t h e c o m bi n a t i on s “ wi n e —r e d ”
and “wine—blood” allude to the slaughter and blo o d s h e d o f t h e
R e v ol ut i o n w i t h t h e h el p o f t h e c l ause “The ti me was to come .”
D i c k e ns n ot o nl y repeats the sa me word, but also deliberately arranges
its related or associated w o r d s a r o u n d i t , f o r e mp ha sis of its symbolic
me a n i n g .
The word “wine” and its related words “red” and “blood”
f r e q u e ntly occur in the various revolutionary scenes t hat depi ct the
violence and horror of the Revolution, ma king new combi nations with
the words indicative of the Revolution’s inhumanity.
In parlicular, as
t h e n o ve l pr o g r e s se s , t h e w or d “ wi n e ” f i g ur a t i v e l y c o me s t o r ep r e s e nt
t h e d e humanized condemne d peo p l e e xe c ut e d o n t h e g ui l l ot i ne .
12
T h e f o r eshadow ing in the “wine - c a sk b r e a ki n g ” sc e ne i s r e a l i z e d a nd
embodied in various scenes through the word comb inations, for
exa mple, the “grindstone” scene in Bk. III, Ch. 2.
It should also be added that the very high fr equency of the wor d
14
“ wi n e - s h o p ” ( 5 3 o f 1 2 0 i ns t a n c e s o f “ wi ne”, 44%) attracts attention.
We u s u a l l y b u y w i n e a t a w i n e - s h o p , w h e r e w e s o me t i m e s a l s o e n j o y
drinking it.
associ ati on
In the novel, howeve r, D i c k e ns c o nj u r e s u p a di ffe r e nt
wit h
t he
wor d
“wi ne- shop.”
That
is
to
say,
the
“ wi n e - shop” of D efarge an d Ma da me Defarge is located in Saint
A n t o i ne , w h er e t h e re v ol u t i o n ar y agi t at i o n ar i s es a n d i s ca rr i e d i nt o
action.
The wine dri nking of the revolutionist s at the wi ne - s hop
creates a sense of soli darity a mong them.
Di ckens evokes a strong
a s s o c i a t i o n o f “ wi n e ” w i t h t h e Re v o lu t i o n t h r o u g h t h e r e p e t i t i v e u s e o f
“wine-shop.”
4.3
Use of “wine” in English scenes
N o w my at t e nt i o n t u r ns t o t h e u s e o f t h e w or d “ wi n e” i n t h e
English scenes.
In the r e v ol u t i o na r y s c e n e s i n F r anc e , t he w o r d
repeatedly co-occurs with words suggestive of the bleeding Re volution,
while in the English scenes it co- o c c ur s w i t h w o r d s o f d i ffe re nt
connotation.
In fact, the word seems to be closely related to the
development of the p l o t a n d t he c h a r a c t e r ’s f at e .
T h a t i s t o s a y,
“wine” recurrently occurs in the scene where the characters of the novel
f i r s t me e t e a c h ot h e r, a n d t h e y ar e d esti n ed t o s h a re t he i r fa t e .
Le t m e
e xa mi n e s o me t y pi c al i n st a n c es .
A s t he f i r st e x a mp l e , se e t he p a ss a g e b e l o w, i n w h i c h M r. Lo r r y
meets Lucie for the first ti me at a hotel in Dover:
(6)
(i) When it was dark, and he sa t be f or e the c offe e - r oom f ir e ,
awaiting his dinner as he had awaited his breakfast, his mind was
busily digging, digging, digging , i n t he l i ve re d c o a l s .
15
(ii) A bottle of good cl aret after dinner does a digger i n t he re d
coals no har m, otherwise t h a n as i t h a s a t e ndency to throw him out
of work. (iii) Mr. Lorry had been i d l e a l o n g t i me , a n d h a d j u s t
poured out his last glassful of w i n e with a s c omp le te a n a ppe a r a nc e
o f satisfaction as is ever to be found in an elderly gentlema n of a
fresh complexion who has got to t h e e n d o f a b o t t l e , w he n a
rattling of wheels came up the na rrow street, and rumbled into the
inn-yard. (Bk. I, Ch. 4)
T h e w o r d “ wi n e , ” a l o n g w i t h i t s s y n o n y m “claret,” first a p p e a r s i n t h e
passage above in this novel.
I find no words significant of blood or
death like those we have seen in the revolutio nary scenes, even though
t h e w o r d “ r e d ” i n t h e p h r a s e “ i n t he ( l i v e ) r e d c o a l s ” i s f o u n d i n
sentences (i) and (ii).
T h e “ w i ne — r e d ” c o mb i n a t i o n d o es n ot i n di c a t e
the outbreak of the Revolution he re in this scene, but it ma y be
e xp l oi t e d t o s u g ge st t h e f a t e f u l e n c ounter between Mr. Lor r y a nd L u c i e .
T h at i s t o s a y, t he r e pe t i t i ve u se o f “digging” in sentence (i), which is
r e p e a t ed as ma ny as eight time s in t h e pr e vi o u s c ha pt e r, a t t r a ct s o u r
at te nt i on, a n d bec ome s re miniscent of Mr. Lorry’s mi ssion: “to dig
some one out of a grave” (Bk. I, Ch. 3), na me ly ‘to bri n g D r. M a n e t t e t o
the safety of England.’
The second sentence, which describes a good
effect of the drinking of wine on “a digger in the red coals (i.e. Mr.
Lorry),” remi nds us of the proverbi a l s t a t e me n t o n w i n e : “ s o me p e o p l e
o nl y s p ea k t he t r ut h a fter having drunk wine.”
13
T hi r d l y, s e nt e nc e
( i i i ) de s cr i b e s Mr. L or r y’s drinking “his last glassful of wine.”
This
pr o c e s s a n d t he u se o f “ wi n e ” i n t hi s s ce n e ma y i n d i c at e t h e d i s cl o s ur e
of the truth about D r. M an et t e .
I n r e al i t y, i n hi s i n t e r vi e w w i t h L uc i e ,
which follows the passage above, Mr. L or r y e x pl ai n s t o h er t h at t h ey
are going to rescue her father, Dr. Manette, whom s h e b e l i e v es t o b e
16
dead, in Paris.
F ur t he r mo r e , l et me ob s er v e t he passage in which Sydney Carton
a nd C h a r l e s D a r n a y f i r st me e t a nd din e t og e t h e r i n a t a ve rn a ft e r t h e
t ri al i n t h e Ol d B ai l y:
(7)
Drawing his arm t hrough his own, he took hi m down
Ludgate-hill to Fleet-st reet, and so, up a covere d w a y, i n t o a t a v er n .
H er e , t he y w e re s h o w n i nt o a l i t tle r oom, whe r e Cha r le s Da r na y
was soon recruiting his strength with a good plain dinner and good
wine : while Ca rton sat opposite to him at the same ta ble, with his
se p ar at e b ot t l e o f port before hi m, and his f ul l y h al f- i n s ol e nt
ma nner upon him. (Bk. II, Ch. 4)
Here, in the fateful encounter bet w e e n C a r t on a nd D a r n a y, D i c ke n s
pr o p e r l y e xp l oi t s t h e “ w i ne ” a nd i ts synonym “port” to individualize
t h e t w o c h a r a c t e r s.
T ha t i s t o s ay, t h e w or d “ wi n e ” i s as s i g n e d t o
Darnay, “port” to Carton.
The novelist does not repeat the same word
“wine,” in spite of the fact that C a r t o n h i ms e l f us e s “ w i n e” w h e n he
or d er s a n ot h er gl as s i n t h e l at er scene: “bring me another pint of t hi s
sa m e wi ne .”
Through the reiterated use of “ wine” (4 time s) in the
sc e ne o f t h e e n c ou n t e r b e t w e e n Ca r t on and Darnay and the deliberate
u se o f “ w i n e ” a n d “ po r t ” b e t w e en t h e m, D i c ke n s r e pr e s e nt s n ot o nl y
t h ei r fat e ful me e t i n g b ut al s o t h ei r c h a r a c t e r i s t i c d i ffe r e nc e s d e s pi t e
their physical resemb lance.
It mi ght be said that Di ckens creates a
kind of symbolic meaning of “wine ” i n a d d i t i o n t o its conventional
s y mb o l i c me a n i n g .
5. Distinctive use of repetition between the English and the French scenes
5.1
Repetition of “plane-tree” and “fountain”
17
A c l os e e x a mi n a t i o n o f t h e di stribution of the repeated words
re v ea l s t h at s o me w or d s o nl y or mo s t l y a pp e ar i n ei t h e r t h e E ng l i s h or
the
French
sc e ne s .
N e e dl e ss
to
s a y,
su c h
A n gl i c i ze d
Fr e nc h
expressions as “Good day,” “I salute you, citizenne ss,” a nd “ the sun
going to bed” (cf. Sanders 1988: 9-10, 45-47 & Monod 1968: 459-60)
o cc ur o n l y i n t he F re n ch s c e n es .
I n t h e s a me w a y, w or d s s p ec i fi c t o
the French Revolution like “Tribunal” a nd “ guillotine ” a r e r e pe a te d
o nl y i n the F rench scenes.
I n particular, a mong othe rs, I noti ce t he
frequent use of the key word, “plane- t r e e , ” i n t h e E ng l i s h sc e ne s .
word, which is symbolic of “ f r i e n dl i n e ss ” o r “ c h ari t y,”
14
The
o cc ur s 1 5
time s in total in the novel, and 14 of them are f ound in the English
chapters.
The only instance in the French chapter, Bk. III, Ch. 13, is
used in a retrospective descr i pt i on o f t h e English scene.
15
Moreover,
the word repeatedly co-occurs with t h e a d j e ct i v e “ p l e a sa nt , ” w h i c h i s
f o u n d 1 5 t i me s o n l y i n t h e En g l i sh chapters, notably 10 ti me s in
Chapter 6 of Book II.
On the other hand, another key word “fountain ” ( a l l 4 2 t i me s ) a n d
i t s r el at e d w o rd “ f at e” ( 1 0 o f 1 2 t i m es ) oc c ur ma i n l y i n t h e Fr e n ch
sc e ne s .
T h e w or d “ f o u nt a i n ” f r e q u e nt l y oc c u r s i n t h e e a r l i e r F r e nc h
chapters, and is observ ed pa r tic ula r ly in the sc e n e s d e p i c t i n g t h e
characters’ death and the misery of the French commoners.
The words
“fountain” and “fate” appear at some intervals as a running leitmotif.
Figure 2 on the next page shows the distribution of the se f our wor ds.
18
16
Figure 2
Distribution of “plane-tree,” “pleasant,” “fate,” “fountain”
[English]
Bk. I, Ch. 2
Bk. I, Ch. 3
1
Bk. I, Ch. 4
Bk. II, Ch. 1
Bk. II, Ch. 2
Bk. II, Ch. 3
Bk. II, Ch. 4
1
Bk. II, Ch. 5
9
Bk. II, Ch. 6
Bk. II, Ch. 10
1
Bk. II, Ch. 11
1
10
Bk. II, Ch. 12
Bk. II, Ch. 13
Bk. II, Ch. 14
3
Bk. II, Ch. 17
1
Bk. II, Ch. 18
1
1
Bk. II, Ch. 19
Bk. II, Ch. 20
Bk. II, Ch. 24
[E & F]
Bk.I, Ch. 1
1
Bk.II, Ch. 21
1
plane-tree (15)
pleasant (15)
[French]
fountain (42)
Bk. I, Ch. 5
fate (12)
Bk. I, Ch. 6
6
Bk. II, Ch. 7
1
5
Bk. II, Ch. 8
10
Bk. II, Ch. 9
9
Bk. II, Ch.15
2
Bk .II, Ch.16
2
Bk. II, Ch. 22
9
Bk. II, Ch. 23
Bk. III, Ch. 1
Bk. III, Ch. 2
1
Bk. III, Ch. 3
Bk. III, Ch. 4
1
Bk. III, Ch. 5
Bk. III, Ch. 6
Bk. III, Ch. 7
Bk. III, Ch. 8
Bk. III, Ch. 9
1
Bk. III, Ch. 10
1
Bk. III, Ch. 11
Bk. III, Ch. 12
Bk. III, Ch. 13
1
Bk. III, Ch. 14
1
Bk. III, Ch. 15
1
0
2
2
4
6
8
10
19
12
14
16
18
20
T h e di ffe r e nt or c o n t r a s t i v e u se o f r e p e at e d w or d s i n t he E n gl i s h
a nd t he F r e n c h s c e n e s i n A Tale of Two Citie s e na b l e s t h e r ea d e r t o
real ize t he aut hor ’s del iberate exploitation of w o r ds i n t e r ms o f t h e
s ub j ec t m at t e r, t h at i s t o sa y, c ont r a st b e t w e e n t h e t w o c i t i e s .
The
repetition of “plane-tree” t o g e t he r w i t h t ha t o f “ pl e a s a n t ” s er v e s t o
c r e a t e a favorable family atmosphe r e i n t h e E ng l i sh s c e n e s .
In sharp
contrast to this, in th e French scenes, the word s “fountain” and “fate”
directly convey some of the dominant t h e me s o f t h e book: death, future
life, fate, and resurrection.
17
It see ms that Dickens suggests the
inevitable outbreak of the French Re volution and the char acters’ sealed
destinies through the verbal associ ations of such repetitive words
a r r a n g e d ma i n l y i n t h e Fr e n c h s c e ne s .
It is worth exami ning the repetitive use of “plane-tree” and
“fountain” more closely and concretely.
their
own
meanings
but
additional
The words convey n o t o n l y
o ne s
as
well,
f or
instance,
foreshadowing.
5.2
Repetition of “plane-tree” in the English scenes
One exam pl e of the rep e a te d use of “ pl a n e - t r e e ” a n d “ p l e as a nt ” i n
t h e E n gli s h s c e ne s c a n b e observed in passage (8):
(8)
On this occasion, Miss Pr oss, responding to Ladybird's
pl ea s a nt face and p l e a s a nt efforts to please her, unbent
e xc e e d i ng l y ; s o t he dinner was very pl e as a nt , too.
It was an oppressive day, and, after dinner, Lucie proposed that
the wine should be carried out under t h e p l a n e - t re e, a nd the y
should sit there in the air. As everything turned upon her, and
revolved about her, they went out under the plane-tre e, and she
20
carried the wi ne down for the special benefit of Mr. Lorry. She
had installed herself, some time be fore, as Mr. Lorry’s cup-bearer;
a nd w h i l e t h e y s a t u n de r the plane-tree, talking, she kept his glass
replenished. Mysterious backs and ends of houses pe e pe d a t t h e m
as t h ey t al k ed , a n d t h e pl a ne - t re e w hi s p er e d t o t h e m i n i t s o w n w a y
a bo v e t h e i r he a ds . (Bk. II, Ch. 6)
I n t he c o n t e xt o f t h e pa s sa g e a bo v e , Dr. Manette, Lucie, Mr. Lorry, and
Mi s s Pr o ss a r e i n t he c o ur t y a r d a f t e r di n ne r.
The repeated use of
“ pl a n e - t r e e ” a n d “ pl e a s a nt ” i n c los e p r o x i mi t y se r ve s t o c r e a t e a
c o mfo r t a b l e a n d c o z y a t mo s p h e r e o f d o me s t i c pe ac e .
At t h e s a me t i m e ,
however, I find the repetition of t h e w o r d “ wi n e .”
A s al r e a d y
me n t i o ne d , “ w i ne ” i n t h e E n gl i s h sc e n e s i s a ss o c i a t e d w i t h a s e r i o u s
development in the plot .
Through the co-occurrence of “plane-tree”
with “wine” we can sense an impending mi sf or tune to t hr e a t e n L u c i e ’s
h a p p y f a mi l y l i f e , e ve n t h o u g h t h e “ pl a ne - t r e e ” i t s e l f c ar r i e s a g o o d
connotation.
In fa ct, in the scene which follow s the passage above, all
the characters who gather u n de r t h e “ pl a ne - t r e e ” he a r t he f o o t s t e p s o f
t h e p eo p l e i n t he s t re et c a ug ht i n t he sudden stor m, which seems t o be
indicative of the outbreak of the French Revolution.
Additionally, the
personification of t h e “plane-tree” a n d “ h ous e s ” i n t he l a s t se n t e n c e
also serves as an ominous harbinger.
A s a n ot h e r e x a mp l e o f t h e r e p e a te d u s e o f t he “ pl a ne - t r e e , ” l e t
me e x a mi n e t h e fol l o w i n g t w o p as s a ges .
P a ss a g e ( 9 ) i s o bs e r v e d a t
the very beginning, and passage (10) at the very end of Chapter 17 of
Book II:
(9)
Never di d t he s un go down with a br i ghte r glory on the quiet
21
c o rner in S oho, than one me morable evening when the Doctor and
his daughter sat under the plane-tree together. Never did the
mo on r i se wit h a mi lder r ad i a n ce over great London, than on that
n i g h t w h e n i t f o u n d t h e m still seated under t h e t re e , and shone
upon their faces through its leaves.
L u ci e w a s t o b e ma r r i ed t o - m or r o w. S h e h ad r e s er v ed t h i s l as t
e ve ni n g f or h er f a ther, and they sat alone under the pl ane-tree .
“You are happy, my dear father?”
“Quite, my child.” (Bk. II, Ch. 17)
(10) (Lucie sits by her fa ther ’s bedside for a while.)
She[Lucie] ti mi dl y laid her hand on his[Dr. Manette’s] dear
b r east, and put up a pray e r tha t she mi g ht e v er b e a s t r ue t o h i m a s
her love aspired to be, and as his sorrows deserved. Then, she
withdrew her hand, and kissed his l i p s o n c e mo r e , a n d w e n t a w a y.
So, t he s u nr i s e c a me , a n d the shadows of the leaves of t h e
plane-tree mo v e d u p o n h i s f a c e , a s s o ft l y a s h e r l i p s h a d m o v e d i n
praying for him. (Bk. II, Ch. 17)
The first passage appe ars in the context wher e Luci e and her fat her sit
o ut si d e u n de r t he “ pl an e -tr e e” t h e night before her wedding, and she
r e as s ur e s h er f a t h e r t h at h e r l o ve f o r D ar n ay w i l l n ot al t er h er l o v e f or
hi m.
The r epetit i v e use of t h e “pl a n e- t r ee ” ( a n d a l s o t h e w o r d s “ t h e
t r e e ” t wi c e ) a l o n g w i t h t he words indicative of li ght, “sun,” “brighter,”
“moon,” “radiance,” or “shone” is closely relate d wi t h t h e d o me s t i c
happiness and hope that Lucie and he r father feel.
F ur t he r mo r e , i n pa s sa g e ( 1 0 ) , t he word denoting light, “sunrise,”
i s a l so u s e d.
A t t h e s a me t i me , h o w e ve r, t h e “ pl a n e - t r e e ” co - oc c ur s
with the word “shadow,” which seems to carry a n ominous implic a tion
for Dr. Manett e’s fut ure.
In realit y, in the following chapter, Chapter
18 of Book II, Dr. Manette h a s t e mp o r a r i l y r e v er t e d t o s h o e ma k i n g
because of the shock of Charles Darnay’s reve la tion, on the mor ning of
22
his wedding to Lucie, of his identity as a me mb er of the St Evrémonde
fa mil y.
It can be said that the repeated us e of the “ pla ne - tr e e ” itse l f
symbolically suggests the Manettes’ domestic peace, co-occurring with
t h e w or d s s i gni fi c a nt o f l i gh t .
with
the
“pl an e -t re e ,”
t ha t
Yet , the c ha nge of wor ds c o- oc c ur r ing
is to
sa y,
the
ne w
c o mb i n a t i o n
of
“ pl an e -tr e e” a nd “s h ad o w, ” i mp l i e s t h e c h ar ac t e rs ’ fut u re fa t e i n t e r m s
of foreshadowing.
5.3
Repetition of “fountain” in the French scenes
In t he fi nal par t of thi s pa per, I now e x pl or e what a d di ti ona l
meanings the repetitive us e o f t h e k e y w o r d “ fo u nt ai n ” c ar ri es .
The
f o l l o w i n g p a ss a ge a p pe a r s i n t he scene wher e the Ma rqui s St .
Evrémonde is killed:
(11)
(i) He [St. Ev rémonde ] moved from end to end of his
voluptuous bedroom, looking again at the scraps of the day’s
journey that ca me unbidden into hi s mi n d; t h e sl o w t o i l u p t h e hil l
a t s un s e t , t h e se t t i n g su n , t h e de s c e n t , t h e mi l l , t h e p r i s o n o n t h e
cr ag, t he lit tl e vil lage i n t he hollow, the peasants at t h e f o u nt ai n ,
a nd t he m e nd er o f r o a d s w i t h his blue cap pointing out the chain
under the carriage.
( i i ) That fountain suggested t he P a ri s
f o u nt a i n, the little bundle lying on the step, the wome n be nding
over it, and the tall ma n with hi s a r ms u p , c r y i n g , “ De a d! ” . . .
( i i i ) T h e f o un t a i n i n t he vi l l a ge fl owed unseen and unheard ,
a nd t h e f o u nt ai n a t t h e c h ât e a u dropped unseen and unheard - - b o t h
me lting away, like the min u t es t h at w e re fal l i ng from the spring of
Ti me ― through three dark hours. (i v) Then, the grey water of
both b e g a n t o be g h os t l y i n t he l i ght, and the eyes of the st one
faces of t he chât eau wer e opened.
(v) L ighter and light er, u nt i l at l as t t he s u n t o uc h e d t h e t o p s o f
t h e still trees, and pour e d i t s r a d i a n c e o ve r t h e hi l l . ( v i ) I n t he
23
glow, the water of t h e c h ât e a u f o u nt a i n se e me d t o t ur n t o blood ,
a nd t he st o ne f a c e s c r i msoned. (Bk. II, Ch. 9)
The word “fountain” appear s in three places: on a Pa r is str e e t, in the
vi l l a ge , a n d a t t he c o unt r y e s t a t e o f t he M ar q ui s .
A t t he “ P a r i s
fountain,” an innocent child is accidentally run over by the Marquis’s
ca rr i a g e .
A t t he “ vi l l a ge fo u nt ai n , ” the poor peasants gather together
fo r a l i vi n g; t h e c hi l d’s fat h er, Gaspard, is seen r i d i n g u n d e r t h e
carriage.
The “château fountain” i s a d e c or a t i o n a t t h e M ar q u i s’s
ma n s i o n .
T h e t h r e e f o u n t a i n s r e f e r t o d i ffe r e n t t h i n g s , b u t i n t h e
passage above, the repetitive use of “fountain” denote s t he i r c l o se
association.
Fi gure 3
The association is illustrated as follows:
Verbal chart of “fountain”
the little bundle
the Paris fountain
blood
the peasants at the fountain
the fountain at the château
unseen and unheard
suggested
That fountain
the fountain at the château
both melting away / the grey water of both
The fountain in the village
the château fountain
T h e l i n k a g e b e t w e e n t h e fountain in the village an d t h e Pa r i s f o u n t a i n i s
c l e a r l y show n in the clause “ That fountain suggested the Paris
fountain” in sentence (ii).
The villag e f o u n t a i n i s c o n n e c t e d wi t h t h e
châ teau fountain through the repetition of “ unseen and unheard” in
24
sentence (iii) and “both” with the ellipsis of “fountain” in sentences
(iii) and (iv).
Moreover, the château fountain is connected with the
Paris fountain through the assistan ce of the village fountain and the
“blood” association of the t w o fo u nt ai n s , t ha t i s t o s a y, t h e as s oc i ati o n
o f “ t he l i t t l e b un d l e ” i n s e nt e n ce (i i ) , w h i c h r e f e r s t o t h e c h i l d k i l l e d b y
t h e c a r r i a g e , w i t h t h e word “blood” in sentence (vi).
Through their
association, by the construction of a ve r ba l c ir c le , we a r e ma de a wa r e
of the mu rder of the Marquis.
Dickens often repeats a word wit h di fferent referent s and
me a n i n gs i n di ffe r e nt s c e n e s , a n d a t t e mp t s t o e s t a b l i s h a cl o se l i n k
b e t w e e n t h e s c e ne s .
T hi s t e c hn i q ue c o nt r i b ut e s t o i n di c a t i n g a c a u se
and effect relation and foreshadowing.
6. Fi nal Remarks
The
for e goi ng
argu me nts
j us tify
stating
that
Dicke ns
d el i b er at e l y e xp l oi t s t he t e c h ni q u e o f r e pe t i t i o n w i t h gr ea t ar t i st r y i n
or d er t o i n di vi d u al i ze c ha r ac t er s , t o ma k e c r e a t i v e us e o f c o n ve n t i o n a l
s y mb o l i c me a n i n g s , t o p r e fi g u r e f u t ur e e v e n t s , a n d t o convey the main
themes of the novel, such as fate, resurrection, and c o n t r a s t , t o t h e
mi nds of the reader.
The novelist’s use of repetition for the stylistic
e ff e c t s of e mphasis and irony can also be found in his other novels.
However, in A Ta l e of Two Ci ti es, the repetitions of words and phrases
are well organized and structurally used, and thus have the obvious
function of creating a strong sense of unity in the structure of the novel.
I n a me t a p h or i c a l s e ns e , a s v a r i o u s kinds of threads are woven together
25
i n t o t e xt u re , v ar i ous ki n d s o f re p et i t i o n ar e s ki l l ful l y i n t e r w o ve n i n t o
the story, and provide a strong sens e of continuity and association
w i t hi n t h e n o ve l .
S u c h st r u ct ur al use of repetition is one of the
linguistic pecul i ari t i e s o f A Tal e o f Tw o Ci t i e s.
kkoguchi@yasuda-u.ac.jp
Refere nces:
Brook, G. L. (1970) The Language of Dickens, Andr e De utsc h,
London.
de Vr ies, Ad. (1976) Dictionary of Symbols and Imagery,
North-Holland Publishing Comp any, London.
Fowler, H. W. (1965) A Dictionary of Modern English Usage 2 n d e d . ,
revised by Si r Er nest Gowers, Oxfo rd University Pr ess, Oxford.
Fowler, R. (1977) Linguistics and the Novel, Methuen, London.
Glancy, R. (1991) A Tal e of Two C i t i e s: D i c ke n s ’s R e v ol ut i on a ry
Novel , Twayne Publishers, Boston.
Halliday, M. A. K. and Hasan, R. (1976) Cohesion in English,
Longman, London.
Hasan, R. (1989) Linguistics, Language, and Verbal Art , Oxfo rd
University Pr ess, Oxford.
Hori. M. (1993) “Some Collocations o f t h e Wo r d ‘ E y e ’ i n D i c ke n s: A
P r e li minary Sketch” in Aspects of Modern English, Ei c h o s h a ,
Tokyo, 509-27.
Hori. M. (2004) Investig at ing Di c k e ns’ St y le : A Colloc ational
Analysis, Palgrave Macmillan, New Yo rk.
Imai, M. (2004) “Repetition in Middle English Metrical Roma nces,”
in Risto Hiltunen and Shini c hir o Wa t a na be ( e ds .) , Approaches to
St yle and Discourse in English , Osaka University Pr ess, Osaka.
Ito, H. (1980) The Language of The Spectat o r : A L e x i c a l a n d Sty l i s t i c
Approach , Shinozaki Shorin, Tokyo.
Koguchi, K. (2001) The Language of Charles Dic k e n s ’s A Tal e o f Tw o
Cities: From a Cohesive Point of Vi ew, R e s e a r c h I ns t i t u t e f o r
Language and Culture, Ya suda Wo me n’s University, Hiroshima.
Koguchi, K. (2003) “Repet ition and Contrast in A Tal e of Two Ci ti es ”
in St udie s i n M ode r n English: The Twentieth Anniversary Publication
of the Modern English Association, Eichosha, Tokyo.
26
Leech, G. N. (1979) A Linguistic Guide to English Poetry, L o n g ma n ,
London.
Leech, G. N. and Short, M. H. (1981) Sty l e i n Fi c t i o n: A L i n g ui s t i c
Introduction to English Fictional Prose, Longman, London.
Monod, S. (1968) D ickens the Nov e list , University of Oklahoma
P r e s s, N o r ma n .
Quirk, R. (1974) The Li nguist and the English Language, Edwa r d
Arnold, London.
Sørensen, K. (1985) Charles Dickens: Lin g u i s t i c I n no v at o r, Arkona,
Aarhus.
St o e h r, T. ( 1 9 6 5 ) D i c k e n s: T h e Dre a m e r ’s St anc e , C or n el l U n i v e rs i t y
Press, New York.
Wa les, K. (1991) A Dictionary of St ylistics , Longman, London.
Ya ma mo t o , T. ( 2 0 0 3 ) Growth and System of the Language of Dickens:
An Introduction to A Dickens Lexicon 3rd edition, Keisuisha,
Hiroshi ma.
1
The self-made Dickens Corpus includes 22 novels: Sketches by Boz
( 1 8 3 3 - 3 6 ) , T h e P i c k w i c k P a p e r s ( 1 8 3 6 - 3 7 ) , O l i v e r Tw i s t ( 1 8 3 7 - 3 9 ) , N i c h o l a s
Nickleby (1838-39), The Old Curiosity Shop (1840-41), Barnaby Rudge
( 1 8 4 1 ) , A C h r i s t m a s C a ro l ( 1 8 4 3 ) , M a r t i n C h u z z l e w i t ( 1 8 4 3 - 4 4 ) , T h e C h i m e s
(1844), The Cricket on the Hearth (1845), Battle of Life (1846), Dombey and
Son (1846-48), The Haunted Man (1848), David Copperfield (1849-50),
R e p r i n t e d P i e c e s ( 1 8 5 0 - 5 6 ) , B l e a k H o u s e ( 1 8 5 2 - 5 3 ) , H a rd Ti m e s ( 1 8 5 4 ) ,
L i t t l e D o r r i t ( 1 8 5 5 - 5 7 ) , T h e U n c o m m e rc i a l Tr a v e l l e r ( 1 8 6 0 ) , G re a t
E x p e c t a t i o n s ( 1 8 6 0 - 6 1 ) , O u r M u t u a l F r i e n d ( 1 8 6 4 - 6 5 ) , E d w i n D ro o d
(1869-1870).
2
M i k e S c o t t ’s We b s i t e : h t t p : / / w w w. l e x i c a l l y. n e t / w o r d s m i t h / i n d e x . h t m l
3
A l l q u o t a t i o n s o f D i c k e n s ’s n o v e l s a r e t a k e n f r o m T h e O x f o rd I l l u s t r a t e d
D i c k e n s ( O U P, 1 9 4 7 - 5 8 , 2 1 v o l u m e s ) . I a l s o r e f e r t o e l e c t r o n i c t e x t s o f
D i c k e n s ’s n o v e l s f r o m P ro j e c t G u t e n b e rg . T h e G u t e n b e rg C o r p u s c a n b e
found at http://promo.net/pg/index.html. The italics and the underlines are
all mine unless otherwise indicated.
4
One of the key words, “knit,” frequently happens in the descriptions of
M a d a m e D e f a rg e , a n d s e e m s n o t o n l y t o r e p r e s e n t h e r c h a r a c t e r, b u t a l s o t o
closely relate her to one of the dominant themes of the book — fate.
H o w e v e r, i t w i l l b e d e a l t w i t h o n a n o t h e r o c c a s i o n .
5
T h e c o m b i n a t i o n o f “ e y e ” w i t h “ b u s i n e s s ” i n t h e d e s c r i p t i o n o f M r. L o r r y i s
one demonstrative instance of “a regional, social, occupational, or
philosophical typification by language.” cf. Quirk (1974: 8)
6
This italic is in the original.
7
Another instance of “I have no business” is observed in the following
passage:
( A f t e r t e l l i n g C a r t o n t h a t h e h a s d e c i d e d t o m a r r y L u c i e , St r y v e r
criticizes Carton for making himself so unattractive to women.)
27
8
‘ Yo u h a v e n o b u s i n e s s t o b e i n c o r r i g i b l e , ’ w a s h i s f r i e n d ’s a n s w e r,
delivered in no very soothing tone.
‘I have no business to be, at all, that I know of,’ said Sydney Carton.
( B k . I I , C h . 11 )
O E D 2 s . v. B u s i n e s s 1 6 . c .
9
O E D 2 s . v. B u s i n e s s 1 3 . d a n d 1 . a .
St o e h r ( 1 9 6 5 : 2 5 ) q u o t e s J . H . M i l l e r ’s w o r d s t o e x p l a i n D i c k e n s ’s u s e o f
images:
10
Images in a novel get their significance not simply in their immediate
relation to the narrative line, but in relation to all the images in their
c o n t e x t s b e f o r e a n d a f t e r. I n D i c k e n s t h i s s p a t i a l q u a l i t y r e s u l t s i n p a r t
from the intricate plots in which everything that happens and all the
characters turn out in the end to be somehow related. The revelations
at the end cause the whole pattern of the novel to fall into place almost
with an audible click.
11
I n A Ta l e o f Tw o C i t i e s , t h e w o r d “ w i n e ” ( 1 2 0 ) i n c l u d e s “ w i n e s ” ( 2 ) , a n d
“red” (56) includes “redder” (16) and “reddest” (2).
12
One instance of the dehumanization can be observed in the following
passage:
13
Lovely girls; bright women, brown-haired, black-haired, and grey;
y o u t h s ; s t a l w a r t m e n a n d o l d ; g e n t l e b o r n a n d p e a s a n t b o r n ; a l l re d w i n e
for La Guillotine, all daily brought into light from the dark cellars of the
loathsome prisons, and carried to her through the streets to slake her
devouring thirst. (Bk. III, Ch. 5)
Vr i e s ( 1 9 7 6 ) , s . v. Wi n e 5 .
14
Vr i e s ( 1 9 7 6 ) , s . v. P l a n e ( t r e e ) .
15
T h e “ p l a n e - t r e e ” o c c u r s p r e d o m i n a n t l y i n A Ta l e o f Tw o C i t i e s i n D i c k e n s ’s
n o e l s ; o n l y o n e i n s t a n c e i s f o u n d e x t e r n a l l y i n T h e U n c o m m e rc i a l Tr a v e l l e r .
The instance is found in the following passage.
16
17
The illegible tombstones are all lop-sided, the grave-mounds lost
their shape in the rains of a hundred years ago, the Lombardy Poplar or
P l a n e - Tre e t h a t w a s o n c e a d r y s a l t e r ’s d a u g h t e r a n d s e v e r a l
common-councilmen, has withered like those worthies, and its departed
leaves are dust beneath it. (UT 23)
I n A Ta l e o f Tw o C i t i e s , t h e w o r d “ f o u n t a i n ” ( 4 2 ) i n c l u d e s “ f o u n t a i n s ” ( 2 ) .
c f . Vr i e s ( 1 9 7 6 ) , s . v. F o u n t a i n 1 .
28