The Bitter Sweet Courage of Sydney Carton

In Book the Second, "The Golden Thread," chapter 13, "The Fellow of No Delicacy," Sydney Carton at last reveals his aching love to Lucie Manette. With courage he professes his love:

"My last supplication of all, is this; and with it, I will relieve you of a visitor with whom I well know you have nothing in unison, and between whom and you there is an impassible space. It is useless to say it, I know, but it rises out of my soul. For you, and for any dear to you, I would do anything. If my career were of that better kind that there was any opportunity or capacity of sacrifice in it, I would embrace any sacrifice for you and for those dear to you. Try to hold me in your mind, at some quiet times, as ardent and sincere in this one thing. The time will come, the time will not be long in coming, when new ties will be formed about you — ties that will bind you yet more tenderly and strongly to the home you so adorn — the dearest ties that will ever grace and gladden you. Oh, Miss Manette, when the little picture of a happy father's face looks up in yours, when you see your own bright beauty springing up anew at your feet, think now and then that there is a man who would give his life to keep a life you love beside you" (Pg. 154).

Reading this I could feel Carton's pain. A pain that brought ache to his heart and peace to his soul. As I read the novel I was constantly waiting for Carton to finally reveal his heart's desires and genuine intentions. With that said, it is inevitable to ignore the way Dickens uses this powerful moment of love and heartache to foreshadow the motivation behind Carton's decision to sacrifice himself to preserve the life of the man who was his rival in earning Lucie's love. The way he would "embrace any sacrifice for [Lucie] and for those dear to [her]." How do you guys feel about this all or nothing moment?

The Golden Thread

Lucie is said to be the golden thread that unites her father to " a past beyond his misery, and to a present beyond his misery" (pg. 8). She is Mr. Manette's life line, reeling him in whenever the agonizing memories of his imprisonment in the Bastille attempt to engulf him. Eighteen years of forced solitude endangered his grasp on humanity. His evanescent state was made apparent by his feeble voice, vacant stares and slow mechanical movements. I like to think of him as a defenseless child who has had a nightmare and must be comforted and slowly caressed into reality. When he is removed from France, the source of his distress, the nurturing is allowed to commence.

Karina Enriquez

The Peasant's Plight

Chapter 5 of Book the First not only foreshadows the savagery of the Revolution, but also identifies its predominant instigator. "Want" plagues the people. They have been continually ground down. Every furrow of oppression on their face bears the sign of hunger.
Dickens use of anaphora in page 30 is very effective. He talks about the prevalence of Hunger in all aspects of the peasants' lives. This singular noun is inseparable from the poor. Their life is steeped in misery because the hunger eats away at their spirit and quality of life. "It's abiding place was in all things fitted to it." The permeation of unfulfilled basic necessities is inescapable. As I read the passage, I could sense the desperation and constriction that residents of Saint Antoine felt. They harbored so much pent-up rage and resentment that when it eventually broke loose, a torrent of bloodshed issued forth. To what extent do you think the grotesque violence of the Revolution could have been avoided? How supportive do you think Charles Dickens is of the peasants' struggle and subsequent actions?

Karina Enriquez

Make it Count!

Congratulations on joining AP English! This is your senior year so I hope you guys will take advantage of all that South Ridge has to offer. I encourage you to take the literature Mrs. Ross will review out of the classroom and into your own life. Here are some tips to help aid in your endeavors in AP English.

·         TAKE NOTES! If Mrs. Ross talks about it, it’s important and should be written down. She shouldn’t have to tell you to write and I encourage you keep your notes organized. They are meant to help you, not make your life hard.

·         KEEP ORGANIZED! Have a planner to keep track of due dates and work that has to get done.

·         READ! Don’t just read what Mrs. Ross assigns. The more you read and review what you have read, the more prompts you’ll be ready for when the AP test comes around.

·         DON’T PROCRASINATE! Don’t wait until the last minute to work on your projects.

·         BACKUP! Things happen, save your work periodically and have duplicates in different places.

Reminders: Get your college stuff done. Hopefully you have all taken the SAT’s and if not, there coming up in October (you’ll have to register by SEPT. 7th by going to the collgeboard.com). Scholarships are miracle workers! Fill out as many scholarships as you can! Don’t forget that colleges have deadlines and it’s a first come first serve basis. Your chances of getting scholarships and getting into colleges will improve if you get involved with your community by joining clubs and collecting community service hours.

            I have faith in you guys! Work hard and always strive for improvement. Remember; make your last year of high school count.

The Good Ol' Wine Shop :)

In A Tale of Two Cities, I think that chapter 5, The Wine Shop still remains the most vivid, memorable chapter from the book, and one of my favorites. It gives insight to how "savage like" the French Revolution would become. The chapter depicts the dropping of the wine casket outside of the wine shop, which is ironic because that was where the Defarge's resided and commenced their gatherings of planning the revolt. The red wine is also a symbol of the blood that was shed & how the people of that street desperately desired the wine. The chapter continues on explaining in great detail the drinking of the wine, which I find the most favorable. Dickens describes the "wine game" lasting. The roughness, playfulness, companionship, frolicsome embraces, shaking of hands, and the eagerness to drink the wine was able to create a picture perfect scene in my mind. Not only that, but the way Dickens continued to foreshadow the time when "wine too would be spilled on the street-stones, and when the stain of it would be red upon many there." Anyway, enough of my rambling. I was wondering what other passages or chapters were most favored by you guys? :)

"A wonderful fact to reflect upon..."

In the beginning of chapter three of Book The First in A Tale of Two Cities, the narrator opens the chapter with a thought on the mystery that everyone holds:

“A wonderful fact to reflect upon, that every human creature is constituted to be that profound secret and mystery to every other. A solemn consideration, when I enter a great city by night, that every one of those darkly clustered houses encloses its own secret; that every room in every one of them encloses its own secret; that every beating heart in the hundreds of thousands of breasts there, is, in some of its imaginings, a secret to the heart nearest it! Something of the awfulness, even of Death itself, is referable to this.” 

I have always wondered how it's like in the minds of others and what secrets separate their life to be unique from everyone else’s. Our personal thoughts play part in defining us and I find that to be a bittersweet gift of life. It’s saddening to know that we will never be able to fully know our beloved ones; but that’s exactly what holds it to be beautiful. This quote also reminds me of transcendentalism because Dickens is aware that we are limited to know one another because of our minds. How do you interpret this quote?

-Cinthia Monge

Wuthering Heights

Bronte has chosen a setting reflective of her characters. The area, as Lockwood explains, is subject to "atmospheric tumult."  No doubt its inhabitants will be as volatile as their environment. Descriptions about the house's structure allowed me to make connections to the protagonist. Wuthering Heights was built strong, with narrow deep-set windows to protect it from the ferocious wind. Similarly, Heathcliff's eyes "withdraw suspiciously under their brows'' upon contemplating, not nature's, but human intrusion. His cold, hard exterior and rough "corners" are defenses. Heathcliff is the true misanthropist. Because he does not resist but rather embrace and incite the hostile surroundings, he is able to avoid the fate of the poor stunted firs. What intrigues you about this chapter?