The Seamstress (A Tale of Two Cities)
Encyclopedia
The seamstress is a fictional character
in Charles Dickens
's A Tale of Two Cities
.
Committee of Public Safety
during the Terror
of the French Revolution
in 1793.
Found guilty of this imaginary crime, she was condemned to death by beheading. She became acquainted with Charles Darnay
during their imprisonments in La Force Prison
, and was the only person to recognize Sydney Carton
as an imposter as the two of them rode to their execution together.
She spends her last moments conversing with Carton noting that he provides strength to her. The Republic executes her as the 22nd of fifty-two to be killed that day. Sydney Carton dies directly after her.
Her calm disposition only breaks once as she tells Carton of her cousin, five years her junior, who is her only familial relative. She remains calm as she describes that they have been separated by poverty and that her cousin will not know of her fate, but begins to tear up as she wonders if it will be a long wait before she sees her again in heaven. It is thus debatable whether The seamstress displays a mostly caring or self-serving character in this situation as she worries more about seeing her cousin than she does about her cousin.
Somehow, she is understanding and accepting of the Republic even as she is sentenced to death. She states, "I am not unwilling to die, if the Republic which is to do so much good to us poor, will profit by my death". She only references the Republic once more as she mentions her cousin in that the Republic may extend her cousin's life to old age. This patience with the very force that wishes to kill her furthers her character in the reader's eyes.
After she realizes that Carton has sacrificed himself for Darnay, she calls him "brave and generous", the sole character of the book to overtly do so (other characters have only alluded to his potential for goodness).
She asks Sydney Carton to hold her hand as she rides with him to the guillotine
, a request to which he readily acquiesces. As they get off the carriage, Carton continues to hold her hand until she is called to death. They share a brief kiss before she goes to die. Though they share only a moment together, their relationship is one of the most profound and moving of the entire novel. Some believe that the two fell in love in their last moments of life, though this is not explicitly stated in the book. Carton's last meaningful action in his life is to provide solace to the seamstress in her last moments, in which Dickens effectively continues his theme of redemption in the novel as Carton moves on to a supposed better life.
played the seamstress. In the 1935 film version
, the seamstress is played by Isabel Jewell
.
In the 2008 Broadway adaptation of A Tale of Two Cities
, the seamstress was played by MacKenzie Mauzy
.
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
in Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
's A Tale of Two Cities
A Tale of Two Cities
A Tale of Two Cities is a novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. With well over 200 million copies sold, it ranks among the most famous works in the history of fictional literature....
.
Overview
The seamstress is an unnamed twenty-year-old woman featured as a desperately poor peasant accused of plotting against the French Republic by Robespierre'sMaximilien Robespierre
Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre is one of the best-known and most influential figures of the French Revolution. He largely dominated the Committee of Public Safety and was instrumental in the period of the Revolution commonly known as the Reign of Terror, which ended with his...
Committee of Public Safety
Committee of Public Safety
The Committee of Public Safety , created in April 1793 by the National Convention and then restructured in July 1793, formed the de facto executive government in France during the Reign of Terror , a stage of the French Revolution...
during the Terror
Reign of Terror
The Reign of Terror , also known simply as The Terror , was a period of violence that occurred after the onset of the French Revolution, incited by conflict between rival political factions, the Girondins and the Jacobins, and marked by mass executions of "enemies of...
of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
in 1793.
Found guilty of this imaginary crime, she was condemned to death by beheading. She became acquainted with Charles Darnay
Charles Darnay
Charles Darnay, or Charles St. Evrémonde, is a fictional character in A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens.-Overview:A French aristocrat by birth, Darnay chooses to live in England because he cannot bear to be associated with the cruel injustices of the French social system...
during their imprisonments in La Force Prison
La Force Prison
La Force Prison was a French prison located in the Rue du Roi de Sicile, what is now the 4th arrondissement of Paris.Originally the private residence of the Duke of la Force, the structure was converted into a prison in 1780....
, and was the only person to recognize Sydney Carton
Sydney Carton
Sydney Carton is the central character in the novel A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens. He is a shrewd young Englishman and sometime junior to his fellow barrister C.J. Stryver. In the novel, he is seen to be a drunkard, self-indulgent and self-pitying because of his wasted life...
as an imposter as the two of them rode to their execution together.
She spends her last moments conversing with Carton noting that he provides strength to her. The Republic executes her as the 22nd of fifty-two to be killed that day. Sydney Carton dies directly after her.
Character analysis
The seamstress is described as "a young woman, with a slight girlish form, a sweet spare face in which there was no vestige of color, and large widely opened patient eyes". She often denotes herself as "poor," "little," "ignorant," and "weak". Although she says she is weak, she maintains a calm temperament through her last moments as Dickens often describes her hands, eyes, and face as "patient".Her calm disposition only breaks once as she tells Carton of her cousin, five years her junior, who is her only familial relative. She remains calm as she describes that they have been separated by poverty and that her cousin will not know of her fate, but begins to tear up as she wonders if it will be a long wait before she sees her again in heaven. It is thus debatable whether The seamstress displays a mostly caring or self-serving character in this situation as she worries more about seeing her cousin than she does about her cousin.
Somehow, she is understanding and accepting of the Republic even as she is sentenced to death. She states, "I am not unwilling to die, if the Republic which is to do so much good to us poor, will profit by my death". She only references the Republic once more as she mentions her cousin in that the Republic may extend her cousin's life to old age. This patience with the very force that wishes to kill her furthers her character in the reader's eyes.
Relationship with Sydney Carton
The seamstress is the last person Sydney Carton speaks to before his death and acts as a powerful love interest for him in their final moments. Through her character, Dickens provides hope and closure to the story of Sydney Carton as he subjects the reader to believe that they will be together in the afterlife.After she realizes that Carton has sacrificed himself for Darnay, she calls him "brave and generous", the sole character of the book to overtly do so (other characters have only alluded to his potential for goodness).
She asks Sydney Carton to hold her hand as she rides with him to the guillotine
Guillotine
The guillotine is a device used for carrying out :executions by decapitation. It consists of a tall upright frame from which an angled blade is suspended. This blade is raised with a rope and then allowed to drop, severing the head from the body...
, a request to which he readily acquiesces. As they get off the carriage, Carton continues to hold her hand until she is called to death. They share a brief kiss before she goes to die. Though they share only a moment together, their relationship is one of the most profound and moving of the entire novel. Some believe that the two fell in love in their last moments of life, though this is not explicitly stated in the book. Carton's last meaningful action in his life is to provide solace to the seamstress in her last moments, in which Dickens effectively continues his theme of redemption in the novel as Carton moves on to a supposed better life.
Literary significance and criticism
Doris Y. Kadish describes the seamstress as "a humble heroine of the revolution," while "Lisa Robson (Modern Criticism, pp. 97-101) and other feminist critics draw on late-twentieth century studies of the role of women in the French Revolution to offer new perspectives on...the seamstress..." and Beth Harris writes that "the anonymous seamstress in A Tale of Two Cities, who has 'done nothing,' re-establishes a narrative horizon that charts its length along the great actions of men..."Cinematic and theatrical portrayals
In the 1911 film version, Norma TalmadgeNorma Talmadge
Norma Talmadge was an American actress and film producer of the silent era. A major box office draw for more than a decade, her career reached a peak in the early 1920s, when she ranked among the most popular idols of the American screen.Her most famous film was Smilin’ Through , but she also...
played the seamstress. In the 1935 film version
A Tale of Two Cities (1935 film)
A Tale of Two Cities is a 1935 film based upon Charles Dickens' 1859 historical novel, A Tale of Two Cities. The film stars Ronald Colman as Sydney Carton, Donald Woods and Elizabeth Allan. The supporting players include Basil Rathbone, Blanche Yurka, and Edna Mae Oliver. It was directed by Jack...
, the seamstress is played by Isabel Jewell
Isabel Jewell
Isabel Jewell was an American actress most active in the 1930s and early 1940s.-Early life and career:...
.
In the 2008 Broadway adaptation of A Tale of Two Cities
A Tale of Two Cities (musical)
A Tale of Two Cities is a musical with book, music and lyrics by Jill Santoriello based on the novel of the same name by Charles Dickens....
, the seamstress was played by MacKenzie Mauzy
MacKenzie Mauzy
MacKenzie Grace Mauzy is an American actress.-Career:Mauzy played the role of Phoebe Forrester on CBS soap opera The Bold and the Beautiful until December 2008 ....
.
Further reading
- Lynn M. Alexander, "Following the Thread: Dickens and the Seamstress," Victorian Newsletter 80 (Fall 1991): 1-7.