The Tangled Threads of Fate
The French Revolution was an epoch marred by bloodshed and hatred, a time seemingly controlled by humanity's darkside. But this senseless violence is actually driven by Fate, a force that manifests itself in sinister 'angels' of death who carry out its destructive campaign against Man. During this bloody era, Madame Defarge and the guillotine are agents of Fate in Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities, and their Revolution is the ultimate defeat of human civility.
Madame Defarge has a vengeful and destructive soul, making her the ideal candidate to carry out the will of Fate. Using her knitting as a way of condemning thousands, she registers them as "doomed to destruction" (207), leaving them with no chance of survival. Defarge not only knits the names into her register, but she also commits them to memory, so that her prey can have no possible way of escaping their Fate. It is Defarge's obligation to deliver the souls damned by her precious Republic into the waiting mouth of the Guillotine, a task that she accomplishes through deception. Throughout the Revolution, Defarge manipulates others in order to sow the seeds of revolution and bloodlust within them, thus baiting her trap for the weak minded. She seduces people into Fate's campaign against humanity by appealing to their jealousy of the upper class and nobility. These new members become so awed by the possessions of the rich that they soon yearn to destroy them out of envy. Defarge's bait works perfectly, and the number of freedom fighters increase exponentially, as they are all enticed by the thought of destruction and chaos. Defarge also exploits an army of women for her cause, letting them all "sit knitting, knitting…as another darkness was closing over France"(224), a darkness that will soon engulf all its citizens. Defarge seduces the women so that they can, weave together the strings of destruction in Fate's quilt of Death. The final result of this knitting is a revolution that will claim the lives of thousands and bring about a New Order. But instead of having a king, this Order is ruled by a machine with a decapitating blade meant to strike fear into the hearts of its subjects, and give pleasure to those who brought about its inception.
Man's latest attempt to 'combat injustice' is the guillotine, a killing machine that actually serves as Fate's weapon to enslave humanity. The people are so transfixed by the blade of death that they christen it "the Little Saint Guillotine" (342) in honor of its righteous deeds. But while humanity honors its national symbol with every head it removes, they are further distancing themselves from civilized behavior. The citizens of Paris are now following a pre-determined path of regression in which the only joy they experience is in the deaths of their fellow comrades. The guillotine is worshipped so much that it soon becomes synonymous with the 'Republic' of France, all the while accomplishing its mission for Fate. It is fitting that the guillotine's blade removes the head of its victims, for it is actually beheading the society that poses a threat to Fate and its minions. The cosmic balance in the universe is upended when people have free will over their destiny, because the idea of 'Fate' becomes archaic and thus fades away into obscurity. To prevent this, Fate intervenes by turning Paris into "a city dominated by the axe" (387), where the people are enslaved by chaos. The guillotine ensures that the populace gets its daily dose of blood, thus preventing them from realizing that they have developed a fatal addiction to the violence they crave. Therefore, Fate is once again in charge of man's path of social development, and prevents him from evolving any further. The revolution is a victory for Fate, and its agent, the guillotine, continues to feed off those to continue its master's dominance over humanity.
Fate's campaign to prevent man from realizing his destiny is successful because the citizens of Paris give in to the lure of blood and chaos, and discard their human righteousness and integrity. Fate turns the once calm city into a place "with no touch of pity, or kindred humanity" (400), as its citizens delight themselves with every execution, prostrating themselves before the guillotine. Their willingness to serve any cause so long as it brings Death, proves that Fate has truly subjugated humanity. The victory celebration continues each day, as the 'angel' known as the guillotine removes the heads of those who try to control their Fate. The entire Earth seems to realize Fate's victory as "it seemed…that Creation were delivered over to Death's dominion." (389) It is a grim site to see how man is now forced to feed himself with the blood of others, instead of attempting to end the carnage spreading throughout the land. This carnage even consumes those who were instrumental in starting Fate's revolution. Ironically, the seemingly invincible Madame Defarge is defeated by her vengeful feelings, as she is bested by Miss Pross, a woman fighting to defend her freewill. Defarge believed that by aligning herself with Fate, she would be spared from the anarchic destruction she conceived. But Defarge is struck down by Fate because she fails to control the dark inferno raging within her, thus becoming another victim of her own Revolution. It is only in the end when Defarge realizes that it is impossible to be the master of one's Fate.
The citizens of Paris learn too late that Fate is not a force to be trifled with, as those who exert their free will are executed without a second thought. Humanity's belief that they could control their destiny sends them down a path that leads them into an endless spiral of violence. While Man believes he controls Life and Death, it is actually Fate pulling the strings of mortality. Man constructs great societies as a testament to 'free will', but his efforts are in vain because he is easily overcome by his dark instincts to destroy and conquer. These feelings serve as Fate's weapons for keeping Man in check, while the agents of Fate carry out a bloody campaign to beat the civility of the human race into total submission. The French Revolution proves once and for all that Fate is the true master of the universe, and those who deny its supremacy will be wiped from existence with the quick strike of a deadly blade.
Analysis
This sample Honors English essay seeks to portray the French Revolution as a war between fate and mankind. It draws from episodes in Dickens' novel to argue its point. For instance the paragraph about the guillotine is effective because it illustrates how the killing machine becomes a character itself.
In general, the essay is well-written but it does occasionally suffer from awkward phrasing. The author occasionally dives too deep into the metaphor. The sentence "If people were to have free will over their destiny, then 'Fate' as a whole would be considered an archaic idea" could better be worded: "If people knew for a fact they had free will, there would be no need to talk about Fate." The essay could be better improved by adding more direct quotes and examples. The guillotine paragraph, for example, only has two direct quotes, with a lot of uncited paraphrasing. If the author had pointed to more specific examples or at least cited the paraphrased sections, the reader would have a clearer idea of what to reference.
1,071 words / 4 pages
|
Home
