Friday, January 29, 2016

Who is Darnay in A Tale of Two Cities? Who is his double?

Charles Darnay is one of the primary characters in A Tale of Two Cities.  He is a good man who had the misfortune of being born into a cruel and sadistic family, the Evremondes.  They are part of the rich aristocracy in France who eventually fall during the French Revolution.  Darnay wants to cut all ties with his heritage, so he moves to England and changes his name to an English equivalent of his mother's maiden name--D'Aulnais becomes Darnay.


He eventually marries Lucie Manette, who is connected to his family through her father--though only Dr. Manette knows that. There are much more complicated matters ahead of him, but when we first meet him he's on trial in England for the crime of treason (of which he is both found innocent and, we find out later, is innocent).  He is found innocent because someone in the courtroom--while NOT his double--looks enough like him to cause "reasonable doubt" in the minds of the court.  Sidney Cartonis going to play a major role in saving Darnay's life once again at the end of the story.

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