Video SparkNotes: Charles Dickens's A Tale of Two Cities summary

Check out Charles Dickens's A Tale of Two Cities Video SparkNote: Quick and easy A Tale of Two Cities synopsis, analysis, and discussion of major characters and themes in the novel. For more A Tale of Two Cities resources, go to www.sparknotes.com/lit/twocities/.

[@mariolancellotti4583]

Whoever invented sparknotes is my personal hero

[@yevgrafjakimowicz2622]

Then said God on the eighth day; “Let there be a safe haven for struggling students, and let it be called Sparknotes.” And it was so.

[@tomnack593]

[SparkNotes] and [Halo Grower BAD-Reads] are my favorite booktube shows to prep for exams! LOL.

[@JoeySehn]

TRUUUUTH XD If only it could help me in Geometry and Chemistry

[@SnowingAsh111]

They haven’t uploaded in over 5 years. What happened to them?

[@primeval0268]

Touche Brother

[@stinky.404]

Thank god someone made sparknotes

[@scatman7238]

I know right?

[@AegisNova]

For sure! I’m learning about the classics I haven’t read, yet!

[@els-englishlessonsforstudents]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bKWqhomomJWJr9U A Tale of Two Cities Novel by Charles Dickens (Audio Book)

[@snapchatjessejames8434]

I'm a sophomore and my teacher made us read this:/ I fell behind when she started making us read 3 chapters a night and annotate lmao. I would enjoy the book more, if I wasn't rushed!! but tmrw is our test over the entire thing and this just saved my life lol

[@diorskinnies666]

yeah im a freshman and i have to read it :/

[@drew1371]

+Ecir Naph yeah same. I'm a freshman having to read five chapters a night and do analysis guides. This is a life saver.

[@diorskinnies666]

+Emory Farrand yeah its 4 chapters a night for us too :/

[@karinefan2Miley]

snapchat jesse james I'm in 3rd year at the University and I'm French and I'm studying this in English... I'm not even be lingual 😂😂 this is so hard

[@nikiz.2085]

i'm in grade 9 an di have to read the entire book over the weekend and have a test on Monday​

[@afrin4391]

Everyone here must read this book! The best dialogue for me was when Carton whispers in Lucie's ears: "A life you love." These 4 words convey so much that a thousand can't

[@mansisinha4560]

hey.. can u tell the backstory of this and more best quotes or dialogues from the book... some 3 4.... actuallly i have the illustrated version of it so it doesnt have much detailed content..

[@maddieforsythe1690]

Is it just me or is Mr. Lorry like the mom friend of the story. Always comforting and keeping people out of trouble and bad proposals

[@alyssamarie8479]

Don’t get me wrong, Darnay and Lucy Manette are literal goals, but Sydney Carton willingly gave up his life so that the woman he was madly in love with could live happily with some other man. He sacrificed everything for her, including the chance at a happier life, all so that she and Darnay could live peacefully in love, even though it was clear that Lucy had no feelings for him. Idk about you, but that sets the bar pretty high for me. That’s love at its finest right there.

[@InglebertHumptyDump]

That's called suicide, not love.

[@alyssamarie8479]

@@InglebertHumptyDump being willing to die just so the woman you loved could be happy, even if it was with another man? Nah, that’s love. Pure, selfless love.

[@thinkaboutit1377]

@@alyssamarie8479 thats stupid and delusional, did Carton run out of his own dreams and ambitious? He was a fool, very simple.

[@liquidsteel49]

@@alyssamarie8479 Have you considered the story of Jesus?

[@KevinSmith-wp9qs]

Sydney Carton is the greatest hero in literature.

[@Mrdenverfan01]

I'm not even lying this book made me cry...

[@filipinodragonfruit8178]

LinearAlgebra4Life like cuz it’s hard to read and you don’t understand it or like cuz it’s a beautiful story?

[@LordMoeX]

Francis X. Saburov 😭💔

[@dislocatedshoulder7986]

Filipino Dragonfruit I'll take reason #1 for myself

[@molotovmafia2406]

same bro. i didin't just because i was at the middle of a history lesson

[@A3MinuteEgg]

I knew Sidney was gonna die (my mom has read this book a million times) but every time I get there I’m sad and IDK whyyyy

[@squadgoals1017]

This book is so confusing, especially because all the characters. I don't even know who's who. Ugh... Why am I so stupid? Even when given a direct summary, I have a hard time understanding.

[@gulipink7143]

Thanks for this comment because I thought I'm the only one who can't get it.

[@neemkys640]

me as well

[@blackbloodyprince8262]

A book you can read a thousend times. Because you still don't get it xD

[@carolinearellano4835]

squad goals101 same

[@nousername4402]

same bruh

[@Pain420]

Sydney Carton is one of the most heroic and saddest characters of all-time.

[@whousa642]

He is not a hero, he is a loser.

[@ED2THEMAX]

remember reading this book in highschool. hell of a hard read i had to read while listing to an audiobook to understand it. I hated it for most of the time i read it. But when reading the final chapter and actually crying while reflecting on the book as a whole I could honestly say it was the greatest book I had ever read, and still is.

[@benjaminvallejos7930]

This is exactly how I felt. I can't say this is the greatest book, but the ending really helped me to enjoy this book!

[@MenacingThreat]

Man, I thought Carton was a piece of work when I read the first half of the book... But watching this... Well.... I misread his character...

[@carljanenengasca3908]

All I know is that Carton should be given an award for the most martyr friendzoned man of all time.

[@unwind.7470]

Sparknotes literally made the most hardest book THE MOST EASIEST BOOK AND MY FAVORITE BOOK!!! Whoever invented SPARKNOTES is literally my hero!!!

[@swedbp1]

So it's your favorite book? Did you read it or just listen to the spark notes?

[@gabeparish9515]

This book was really confusing to me. I have a report due on it in school, and this helps tremendously. Thanks You!

[@koala5523]

Same

[@mikemyers1300]

Gabe Parish Sane

[@els-englishlessonsforstudents]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bKWqhomomJWJr9U A Tale of Two Cities Novel by Charles Dickens (Audio Book)

[@afrojew12-56]

For anyone who cares the books start at Book 2: 2:10 Book 3: 10:18

[@abdulrahmanelattar8930]

Amazing!!

[@A3MinuteEgg]

Oki. There first one was “Recalled to Life”, right?

[@afrojew12-56]

Nephicool yes, book one is “Recalled to Life” book two is “The Golden Thread” and book three is “The Track of a Storm”.

[@sassyblash]

Sydney Carton was always my favorite character

[@Pranckall]

carton - the stereotypical friendzoned guy who even had to die along with not getting the girl

[@HaloEliteLegend]

+Pranckall It's not a stereotype until it's repeated many times and woven into culture. This book was written long before that happened, so is it still considered stereotypical, or is there another term?

[@skylahelbig6818]

+Pranckall i have been friendzoned before, but Carton even went to DEATH for her. geez, what a sad life he had.

[@KoenM89]

wasn't really friendzoned, was he? He told her about his feelings upfront, and decided to leave it at that.

[@cgaqui5593]

You have a shallow understanding of their relationship. There was no friend zoning. He also didn't die for Lucie alone. He died because he knew Darnay didn't deserve it and by giving his own life, his life would have meaning and he would be good with God. Plus, it's not a steriotype. When something starts a steriotype, the thing that started it isn't a steriotype.

[@AngelDame17]

@@HaloEliteLegend I think the term you're looking for is "Trope" which is just a term for narrative tools used in an overall story. Victor Hugo tends to fancy the "Never got their Love" trope- after all he wrote Les Miserables. Either way I like this trope. Not everyone gets True Love and there's a nobility to the idea of being willing to give everything- even your life, even though you'll get nothing in return.

[@Catzzzz187]

whoever made sparknotes is my personal hero! I always forget to finish reading assignments or i get bored during the books and just read the same line over again or sometimes i dont even understand the book and it makes me feel so useless cause i often struggle to finish assignments but then i came across sparknotes and it has literately saved me! so thank you sparknotes creator

[@hakurochimaru6470]

That was a sad ending

[@meteriote45]

It was sad yet a very brave and kind

[@TheSakura809]

It was sad he had to die to do so.

[@gweng123]

It’s very bittersweet

[@nustada]

The only good thing about crappy books is when the shitty characters die.

[@nustada]

@Armin Tamzarian It is such a good book, the only reason people know about it is that at some point they were forced to read it.

[@Jason-sy9pm]

Watched this video and got a 10/10 on a quiz, very nice

[@TheSakura809]

The ending made me so sad...I felt bad for Carton since the very beginning. Great read, as difficult as it was to get through it! Also, in 17:17, it is Mr. Lorry that Carton foresees dying "tranquilly," not Doctor Manette.

[@samuelrs5138]

Yeah, I noticed that too. ''I see that good old man so long their friend in ten years time enriching them with all he has, then passing tranquilly to his reward.'' or something like that

[@deenagara9151]

Since you mentioned it, what happen to Dr. Manette then?

[@ajansmithegleniyor4902]

I felt really sorry for Carton but his courage is one of the things that makes this novel epic

[@TheMistyMolly]

Wonderful book and story. Sadly, I was rushed and never had the chance and finish the third book. I'm going to buy the book just because of how wonderful Carton was at the end. He was so selfless and cared for Lucie so much.

[@camryncormier2307]

There's three?

[@MrEndshow]

This should continue in 2018! Best thing ever!

[@bakasooka8074]

I was looking for Jcole lol

[@pheeuh]

LMAO

[@sarahwoolley79]

It's a wonderful book and Carton does the most selfless act for Lucie's happiness. Interesting fact: the French continued to have the guillotine as their method of capital punishment until 1981. The last time it was used was 1977 - only 46 years ago!

[@Ayeoitshope]

I have a test on this tomorrow in english THANK YOU LORD FOR THIS.

[@Ayeoitshope]

Jackie this was two years ago and I'm gonna be honest, no I didn't.

[@Ryuzaki4269]

i have a mid_term exam tomorrow in english

[@Ayeoitshope]

Edwin Probably still awful.

[@rohanmathur8338]

nohopeforhope i

[@sagarbhabar]

nohopeforhope i have a exam today hope I'll get good marks 😂

[@danielbutts986]

I tried to read this book... I really did

[@ethereality21]

Not your fault love I tried as well.

[@mariamyahia6864]

lmaofr

[@paupiette8334]

These animated summaries were great! Why did you stop making them?

[@chrisjohn7986]

When I first read it, I had no idea what was going on. Now that I've watched this, I see how good of a book this is.

[@DMRoper1]

Dickens was some story writer. This was a fascinating story.

[@keonr82]

failing honors english 4 bought me here. and we are reading this book but i dont know nothing going on in here so this summary should catch me up. thumbs up it you can relate.

[@BooksAndChocolate]

I just finished reading the book. This video has stunning illustration!

[@jagotiberan211]

This is excellent. The artwork is lovely, and I love the way that I can now get a better picture of the characters in my mind when I read the book.

[@alphy79d]

Wow! This book seemed a bit long a out of my league for time and appreciation. Thank you for this sparknotes. I would have never known how amazing this story was without it.

[@1y167]

Nice one ! About the amazing cartoons: French judges, at the time of the Revolution, would wear no wig at all since this was associated to the nobility, but more likely a hat with tricolour Cocarde.

[@Aquajueqo]

Great channel, thank you for putting so much effort into some of the greatest books written.

[@CerebralVapor]

This summary is actually rather shallow. But very good in the short amount of time it is in. So read the book.

[@MadlyDecent]

And you upload this just in time!

[@haydenwoodworth4445]

Thank you so much! After watching this, I actually understand it and this will definitely help with the paper i have to write!!

[@quasidiem99]

This was one of the most difficult books I have read. The sudden changes in time and the various names for each person make it quite confusing.

[@ryancastro6487]

I need to undersrand this before I screw up at my literature test, but I can't focus even in a story telling video. What should I do??? I never get interested in things like this.

[@johnparadise3134]

Dance Break I actually listened to the video to help me fall asleep, and it worked! I couldn’t really follow the story either though. I guess I wasn’t even trying. Listening to it was a good sleep aid. Not that it was boring. But it was time for me to go to sleep! LOL I was tired, and listening to this summary gave me the added boost I needed to launch me into dreamland. And now I’m going back to sleep! LOL

[@catherinelikespink]

We just finished reading this book in my world authors class and I can't stop comparing it to Les Miserables for some reason! There's the setting involving revolutionary France, the ideal Victorian woman in search of a father figure, the father figure who's been through so much suffering, and I think you could even go as far as saying that Carton is a little bit like Eponine! And there's the whole theme of redemption and being recalled to life that we see in Carton, Dr. Manette, and Valjean!

[@adamjaafar3754]

Please make new videos, they are really good.

[@wisteriamarks5515]

This was so sad! I mean, it's so sweet that that guy would do anything, ANYTHING for her, but wow... I just am a little saddened. Well I was gonna read the book but now I'm not sure I can handle it.

[@stevejordan7275]

I have reached the same conclusion and for the same reason. Nice to know I'm not the only one. At least we know where that "'Tis a far better thing I do..." line is from. But if you're not a dualist, it rings exceeding hollow, methinks. And I will probably never use it again...except maybe in sarcasm.

[@Find-Your-Bliss-]

You can!

[@jinc1950]

I wish there were more of these videos from this channel

[@SouthParkPerson012]

Oh man this helped me out so much when I was reading the book, it helped me picture what was going on cause I got so confused with all the characters

[@dynamicsamurai3803]

Cool, now I understand the last half much better now !

[@mrtrololorific]

The book was amazing. I had to reread almost every chapter to fully understand the book, but it was worth it. Also, props to this video, very good representation of the summary.

[@aren7138]

not gonna lie but I miss these videos, i hope you'll do more! I love to see some more :)

[@korneliamckenziemusic1126]

17:37 The screen fades for a second to a VERY blackish pic of Romeo and Juliet!

[@joshuacassell980]

+Kornelia McKenzie how in the hell did you catch that??????!!!

[@korneliamckenziemusic1126]

+joshua cassell Lol I have no idea. I had to rewind to see if I was seeing things haha

[@lucydiamond1595]

this video showed up after my exam. *did you know that i really need this BEFORE the exam?*

[@MrAmbarish710]

Excellent explanation, covering all the important points...

[@lilyjane182]

anybody else read the infernal devices by cassandra clare...she says her books is loosely based off this book =)

[@diananava9078]

😂😂

[@amyhuerta3980]

Yes

[@jazzy8834]

Yes! I looove the infernal devices! Will Herondale's character was based on Sydney Carton if I am not wrong, he does have a redemption arc tho and actually has a happy ending.

[@aishwaryas5734]

Couldn't stand the references they made in TID.. that's why I'm reading the Tale of Two cities.

[@veronicarollamas5633]

That's why I'm hereeeee

[@OnyxAgainstTheWorld]

VideoSparknotes , you are my savior.

[@meteriote45]

this was such an amazing book the ending was sad but it still made me smile miss pross makes me feel sad she left her brother

[@RennAztur]

I always loved this book, and I though this summary did well! Great job!

[@ramirosegoviajr8917]

I have an essay due tomorrow and I haven’t even read the book. This helped a lot ! Wish me luck !

[@kaittea]

is carton trying to do a jesus or something?

[@OlgaLight13]

basically, when he sacrifices himself, there are a lot of biblical allusions

[@A3MinuteEgg]

Your comment caught me off guard lol

[@rashimahajan8596]

He has written a letter to Lucie saying that he imagines her having a baby boy named Carton. I think the birth of the baby boy is somehow related to resurrection. Not sure because I am reading this novel as a part of my school syllabus and that novel is bit short. Before dying Carton remembered the words on his father's gravestone: I'm the life and resurrection said the Lord. He that believes in me shall never die. Its a quite clear indication, right?

[@HaloEliteLegend]

Thanks for this! I read the book, but there were things I didn't understand. Sparknotes has been helpful in filling the gaps, as always. I think I'll be alright for my test this week :)

[@Psyga315]

I like this summary. It actually makes me want to read the book because of how many interlying plans there are.

[@SoccerLuck]

Thank you so much...this book was so confusing but now using this I almost totally understand it. Thank you so much!

[@abdulhakeem7324]

Thank you soo much for creating this video.

[@Shankhagupta]

Thankyou your summary is just what I needed,i have an exam on this book

[@hasmithakurapaty4899]

This video helped me to prepare for my english seminar. Also I read notes from SPARK NOTES only. Thank you for the notes and video

[@amnaibad4699]

His summaries and this video has helped me so much because book one awash soo confusing and I am in the 8th grade so yeah. ....THANK YOU SPARK NOTES

[@nataliahdrake5909]

So I'm in a production of the Tale of Two Cities (I play Darnay/Carton) and because our play is shortened significantly, a LOT of the interesting aspects of the story are cut close. I didn't know a lot of the plot in this video as the lead role.

[@jienop3640]

I had 15 min before my English test... THANK YOU SO MUCH SPARKNOTES

[@chloevasil2700]

Thank you for sharing this video!

[@gcf75gaming78]

Thank you SparkNotes

[@user-lv3oi8bl8k]

really a very useful summary for the 13 hours reading book and keep it up... I benefited from this video

[@annepierce2410]

Back in 9th grade, the Honors English classes had to read this. We all hated it since we had to rush through it. We were supposed to finish the book for homework. The next day, our teacher stood at her podium and she asked us what we thought about the ending. Someone immediately blurted out, "I laughed so hard!". We, including our teacher, were all speechless.

[@himamulchandani9641]

Love sparknotes❤️

[@Dreamfyre_]

Wish I had seen this last year when I had to do an english project on it. The book was utterly boring in the beginning.

[@camryncormier2307]

I beginning was my favorite just because it was the calm before the storm

[@molotovmafia2406]

Well it gets much better near the end!

[@deniseocampo2704]

Awwh. I've never read the book(s?), and was just interested in why this is pretty known. I'm actually interested now in reading this (besides the already given summary), because of this sad story, and I want to see the actual full-given details of it. Thank you, SparkNotes. ~

[@alexa7063]

this is so informative, thanks.

[@Melvinshermen]

I still miss them

[@marvlehmann4892]

Thank you guys!

[@PastelRoyel]

you saved me for my midterm exams, THANK YOU

[@beekay9607]

I’m reading this for fun and I keep coming back to this because it’s so hard to understand.

[@bookworm4174]

Keep going! It's a lovely book! I'm so thankful I got to read it for fun.

[@beekay9607]

@@bookworm4174 I finished it. It was worth it in the end. 🙂

[@Kol2388]

great as always, keep up with the good work! :)

[@claudeyaz]

If this is confusing, you can make a mind map, every time you hear a name of a character write it down make a circle around it and then if you hear that they have a wife or a sister you can write a line between them and put a heart between a man and his wife, or 2 lines connecting someone to the same parent for siblings.. If you do this the story makes a lot more sense and a lot of stories will make more sense

[@yo9979]

That's a good ides thanks for posting that for ppl

[@somiashah4222]

Sparknote are a blessing

[@Mermernochie]

Well that was fricken' helpful. Thanks sparknotes!

[@horus4862]

Loved it, good work

[@mntv2405]

Thanks a lot. This helped me for my exam.

[@swaradeore66]

Thanks for this... I am in 7th and we have this chapter to read as homework i didnt get it tgat much but after this video i understood everything Thanks again

[@kaitlyningalls846]

I'm pretty sure you are wrong about the fact that the only reason the Doctor didnt go on the honeymoon was because he relapsed. I think the entire plan was that Darnay and Lucie will go for two weeks and then he would meet them in Scotland for the next two weeks of their honeymoon.

[@maureenalexis894]

yeah! it just happened that he relapsed, and he only allowed charles to reveal his secret to him-- already knowing it may cause a relapse and already suspecting what he was to tell him-- because he knew he'd have time to recover before meeting up with them.

[@rashimahajan8596]

Such a beautiful novel 💙

[@worldofcreativityammu95]

It was helpful....we have this entire novel for our upcoming exam.

[@anonymous_a]

Long story short: Incel sacrifices himself to the Chad he envied.

[@cheerleadergal213]

yay! my teacher was trying to make us read like 4 chapters of this book a night, needless to say everyone fell behind and its hard catching up because the book is so hard to read but this helps a lot

[@AshokSingh-ef3mb]

Very well narrated sir thankyou

[@MopTopRock]

I may not always follow through in finishing books I start to read but A Tale of Two a cities is a huge exception. Phenomenal book.

[@Fresh2Death326]

Sparknotes saved my life 😂💯

[@preggioperson]

If Great Expectations is about the good deeds of Magwitch, a Tale of Two cities is about the resourceful wonderful Sydney Carton.

[@JoeF315]

@VideoSparkNotes: Your Sir are a great storyteller !

[@jeandreboshoff]

Very good summary

[@nohahaggag]

Thank you so much. I found the summary very useful, indeed :)

[@AnnikDeRoh]

We want more videos!!!