I found that while reading this book, the setting is more important than in other books. I mean not in whose home or place of business the chapter or passage is set in, rather when and where in the world it is being set. After a little bit of background information given, I found that it is set in both England, near Dover, and a few chapters later, in France. During this time in history one of the most complex and interesting events is transpiring, the French Revolution. I know little about the French Revolution from History class, so I did some research about it. Basically, it is my understanding that monarchy is dying in France and democracy is beginning to prevail. I know from World History last year that the main reason that monarchy was accepted and democracy was not adopted earlier in society, is because it worked. Contrary to popular belief, monarchy did work at some points in history in Africa and Asia; it has not always been so frowned upon. It has also worked in France up until this point. So, the reason the French Revolution happened is because things started to go bad in France.
I had read the book carefully and had not found a definitive event that proved that people were unhappy, until chapter five. In the chapter, a large case of wine was dropped in the streets of a town in France. To people who are doing fine, happy and healthy, I would expect nothing more than a quick glance and continuation of their day; this did not happen, in fact almost the opposite happened. Apparently, when wine is dropped in the street, it is a very big deal. People were licking the pavement to get the sweet taste of the wine. “Others, men and women, dipped in the puddles with little mugs of mutilated earthenware…” I was completely shocked when Dickens said this. Things were clearly not going well for these people. They would take sips of wine out of puddles of mud and “lick the shards of the bottles” just to get the taste of wine. This was a big eye opener to me of just how bad things must be going for these people. I would consider myself to be somewhat content and financially secure. I would never like the earth or shards of glass just to get a taste wine or another delicious beverage. I am sure that many people who are not as financially secure as I would do so either. I cannot honestly picture a homeless man licking a shard of glass just to get the taste of wine in his system. Clearly, this passage reveals much of the setting to the reader. It does not as much reveal when or where, rather it reveals how.
Michael-
ReplyDeleteI do agree with you. For me the setting was somewhat unclear at first but once I realized that they were going from London to Dover, England to France and back and so forth it became quite obvious to me that where the story is taking place is very important in the overall understanding of the book. For instance, Charles Dickens does not literally tell us at the beginning of every Chapter where they are, they being the important characters in the scene; for example in Chapter Five Dickens does not tell us that the story is taking place in Paris, first he tries to have us put the pieces together and figure out where they are. Also, I did not know much about French Revolution either, but after reading your blog post I understand more about what is happening during this time in France. Moreover, I think that your idea about how in some instances in the book, passages reveal not only when or where the setting is but how it is taking place was very interesting, and in my opinion true in many cases.
Michael:
ReplyDeleteNice job providing some historical background. This will be even more important as we get further into the book.
My question/suggestion for your post is what you mean in your last sentence when you write, "It does not as much reveal when or where, rather it reveals how." I'm not sure what you mean by the word "how."