Use of Irony in A Tale of Two Cities :: Tale Two Cities Essays

Use of Irony in A Tale of dickens Cities   In A Tale of Two Cities, the designer, Charles Dickens, uses a great deal of irony in the opening chapter to fall out the reader into the story. By using a slew of contradictory statements in the opening paragraph, the author forces the reader to further investigate the meaning of the vatic opening line It was the best of times, it was the worst of times... As the reader continues, he finds that the story is a dramatization of the circumstances surrounding London and capital of France during the time period of the French Revolution.   The historical record of the conditions of life in France and England during the French Revolution were identical to the ways they ar described in the story. Life for the nobles or higher class people was exquisite, while the scorn class was crawling in poverty. People were constantly being nagged by thieves and petty criminals, causing the state of life in those two countries to be especially unbalanced.   To begin the story, the author uses a long paragraph more or less perfectly describing life in Europe during the late 1700s. However, the paragraph consists of goose egg precisely seemingly absurd statements about the spring of hope and the wintertime of despair. By writing phrases such as ...it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness..., the author brings an ironic feeling to the whole story. Of course, the seasons of Light and Darkness could never coincide, but in France and Englands situation during the time period of the story, that is exactly what life is same for the people living there.   Through the use of self-contradiction in the first chapter, readers are able to understand the plight of the countries of France and England in a darkly pleasing way.