Previous
Book 2, Chapter 17
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in A Tale of Two Cities, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Tyranny and Revolution
Secrecy and Surveillance
Fate and History
Sacrifice
Resurrection
Imprisonment
Summary
Analysis
On the day of the wedding, Charles Darnay and Dr. Manette speak privately. When they emerge, Mr. Lorry notices that Manette looks deathly pale, though he had looked perfectly normal before the meeting.
Charles has just revealed his secret to Dr. Manette: he is an Evrémonde. Somehow this means something to Manette.
Themes
Quiz
Test Yourself
After the wedding, Charles and Lucie leave for their honeymoon in Wales. The plan is for Dr. Manette to join the newlyweds after nine days. But after Lucie leaves, Mr. Lorry notices that Dr. Manette seems absent-minded. By that evening, Manette is lost and incoherent, making shoes again in his room. Mr. Lorry and Miss Pross keep an anxious watch over him, and decide not to tell Lucie in hopes that Dr. Manette will improve. He doesn't improve for nine days.
The discovery that Lucie has married an Evrémonde pushes Manette back into his old shoe-making mania. These events link the Evrémondes to Manette's years in prison, though just what role the Evrémondes played in Manette's imprisonment remains unclear.
Themes
Quiz
Test Yourself
