ATTC Multiple Choice Study Guide

How does Dickens compare England and France in 1775?

Both cities are described as unstable and dysfunctional.

Book 3

The track of the storm

Book 2

The golden thread

Book 1

Recalled to life

What do the large jaws of the kings symbolize?

The King’s detachment from their peoples suffering.

Why are the Dover mail drivers and passengers apprehensive?

They feel threatened and fear possible robbery and murder.

How does Dickens describe human beings?

Complex, capable of great good and evil as well as resurrection and love.

Explain the meaning of "recalled to life."

The release of Dr. Manette from prison after 18 years.

Identify Jarvis Lorry.

An employee of Tellson’s bank who helped rescue Manette.

Why does Lucie faint upon hearing Mr. Lorry's story?

She is overwhelmed and shocked from hearing the unbelievable news.

What does the broken cask of wine foreshadow?

The French Revolution and future bloodshed.

What is the significance of "Jacques" in the wine shop?

A secret group of revolutionaries using a code name to organize.

Who are seen peeping through a hole at Dr. Manette?

The revolutionaries (the Jacques).

Why has Defarge allowed the Jacques to look in?

Dr. Manette serves as a symbol of inspiration to them.

What is Dr. Manette doing when Lucie first sees him?

Making shoes.

Describe Madame Defarge.

A watchful observer who notices everything and is always knitting.

What is Dr. Manette's mental state in Book I?

He is weak and often forgetful of what people tell him.

Identify One Hundred and Five, North Tower.

The prison cell where Dr. Manette was held for 18 years.

How does Lucie react to Dr. Manette?

She is loving and becomes very close to him.

What does Jerry Cruncher object to his wife doing?

Saying prayers (he calls it "flopping").

Who is Charles Darnay?

A young French aristocrat convicted of treason in England for being a spy.

Identify Mr. Stryver.

The ambitious attorney who gets all the credit for legal victories.

Who is Mr. Carton?

The "Jackal" who does all the actual legal work for Stryver.

Why is Darnay acquitted at his first trial?

He resembles his defense lawyer, Sydney Carton.

How does Mr. Carton feel about himself?

He hates himself and considers himself a "loser" or a failure.

What name does Stryver call Carton?

“Memory” because his memory is so sharp.

What animal metaphors describe Stryver and Carton?

The Lion (Stryver) and the Jackal (Carton).

What does Carton actually do for Stryver?

He does all the research and hard work for Stryver’s cases.

How is the Manettes' home described?

A peaceful, sunlit area in Soho where trees and flowers flourish.

How is the privileged class in France described?

Extravagant individuals living lives of luxury and high maintenance.

How does the Marquis feel about the child he ran over?

He shows no sympathy and tosses a gold coin as compensation.

What is the countryside of France like?

Extremely impoverished and starving due to heavy taxes.

Why does Charles Darnay renounce his name and property?

He hates the nobility's actions and wants to fulfill his mother's dying wish.

Roger Cly

A police spy in England who faked his own funeral. He appears later as a prison spy in revolutionary France. Testified against Darnay

Who was the Marquis able to have imprisoned for no reason?

Dr. Manette, for 18 years using the letter de cachet.

Why was the Marquis killed?

Gaspard (the father of the child) stabbed him as an act of revenge.

Why doesn't Dr. Manette want Charles to reveal his true name?

He suspects a painful connection in their pasts.

How does Stryver view his potential marriage to Lucie?

He thinks he is doing her a favor and that it is an act of love.

How does Carton respond to Stryver's self-flattery?

He makes subtle insults at Stryver.

How does Stryver react when he realizes his suit will fail?

He gets angry, then convinces himself he never loved her.

What promise does Sydney Carton make to Lucie?

He would sacrifice himself for her or someone she loves.

What "fish" does Jerry Cruncher go after?

Dead bodies (grave robbing).

Why are Jerry Cruncher's fingers always rusty?

From the blood and iron tools used to dig up graves.

Who was the doomed man the road-mender told the Jacques about?

Gaspard, the peasant father who killed the Marquis.

What register does Madame Defarge keep?

Her knitting (a list of those marked for death).

Why does Madame Defarge wear a rose in her hair?

It is a signal that a spy has entered the shop.

Why is it ironic that John Barsad visits the shop?

Madame Defarge was knitting his name into the register at that moment.

Whose name is Madame Defarge knitting alongside the nobility?

Charles Darnay.

Why does Dr. Manette cobble for nine days after the wedding?

The news of Charles' identity caused a mental relapse.

What does Dr. Manette allow Lorry and Pross to do?

Destroy his shoe-making bench and bury his tools.

Why does Lucie ask Charles to be kind to Carton?

She sees a better side of him and knows he loves her.

What event marks the "echoing footsteps" in France?

The storming of the Bastille.

What metaphor describes the mob at the Bastille?

A "whirlpool of boiling waters" or a surging sea.

Who is The Vengeance?

Madame Defarge's lieutenant and friend.

Why was grass put in Foulon's mouth?

He told the starving peasants they should "eat grass."

Why does Mr. Lorry have to go to Paris?

On a business trip for Tellson’s Bank.

Why does Darnay go to France?

To help Gabelle, who was imprisoned by revolutionaries.

Why is it foolish for Darnay to go to France?

He is an aristocrat and will be recognized as an enemy of the people.

Why is Charles imprisoned upon arrival?

He is an emigrant and an aristocrat.

Why does the crowd support Dr. Manette’s cause?

They see him as a folk hero because of his long stay in the Bastille.

Why does Madame Defarge want to see Lucie and her child?

To recognize their faces so she can ensure their eventual deaths.

What change occurs within Dr. Manette in Book III?

He finds inner strength and a new purpose to save Charles.

What is the Carmagnole?

A frenzied dance the mob performs before executions.

Why does the jury initially acquit Charles?

They respect Dr. Manette and Charles renounced his title.

How do Miss Pross and Jerry shop for food?

They take small rations from different areas to avoid drawing attention.

Why is Charles arrested again immediately?

He was denounced by the Defarges and a third party (Manette)

Who identifies Solomon Pross as the spy John Barsad?

Sydney Carton.

What does Carton want from Solomon Pross?

Access to the prison to see Charles Darnay.

Why is Lorry appalled at Jerry Cruncher?

He discovers Jerry has been a grave robber ("Resurrection Man").

What arrangement does Carton make with Barsad?

He gains entrance to the prison for a secret purpose.

Who is the third person to denounce Darnay?

Dr. Manette (via a letter found in his cell).

Who is Madame Defarge in Dr. Manette's letter?

The younger sister of the family tortured by the Evrémondes.

Why is Charles condemned to die?

Because of the crimes of his family, as revealed in Manette's letter.

How has Carton changed since arriving in France?

He has found a selfless purpose and become stronger.

Where does Madame Defarge plan to end her vengeance?

With the total extermination of the Evrémonde line (Lucie and her child).

Why does Carton have Darnay write a letter?

To use the handwriting and content as part of his plan to swap places.

How does Jerry Cruncher change at the end?

He swears to never go "fishing" (grave robbing) again.

Why is Miss Pross in a "queer condition"?

She is permanently deaf from the gunshot that killed Madame Defarge.

How was Carton both right and wrong about dying young?

He died young, but his death was a meaningful sacrifice, not a waste.

How is Madame Defarge cheated?

Lucie and Charles escape, and she is killed before she can finish her revenge.

What are Carton's final prophetic words?

That he is honored and remembered by Lucie’s family for generations.

charles darnay's mother's maiden name

D'Aulnais