A Tale of Two Cities Book Three Chapter 8 “A Hand At Cards”

1. A Tale of Two Cities Book Three Chapter 8“A Hand At Cards” By Naimisha Rachakonda

2. Title Significance • Sydney Carton acts very sly and cunning here trying to win over Barsad into the plan Carton has to help Darnay. The hand of cards here is a metaphorical usage since there is no literal game of cards going on but instead Carton is trying to pull out his best “cards” which are the weaknesses in his opponent and use them to his advantage

3. Plot Summary • Jerry Cruncher and Miss Pross enter a wine shop where miss Pross clasps her hands and screams because she sees her brother Solomon whom she hasn’t seen in ages • The three then entreat outside where Solomon scolds her and that she would blow his cover because he was working as a spy. Miss Pross gets upset over the fact that her brother does not show the same affection that she feels towards him • Than Cruncher questions Solomon on his true identity, Cruncher recalls him as a witness from the Bailey but cant fully figure out who he truly was until Carton chipped in claiming he was Barsad. • Carton claims he had a purpose in following Barsad and he has been lying low in Paris for a day now, Carton’s casual manner gets him to convince Barsad to come to Tellsons with him • Carton introduces Lorry to Barsad and Lorry remembering that he accused Darnay of treason thirteen years ago looked at him with hatred. • Carton tells Lorry that Darnay’s been arrested and he takes this news as great shock • Carton than uses the analogy that winning Darnay’s freedom is like a card game and Carton goes through Barsad’s cards to win him over in order for him to help with the plan of helping Darnay

4. Plot (continued) • Carton first goes through Barsad’s good cards and asks Barsad himself to look over his own cards which prove to be more worse than he thought he had plenty of losing cards • Carton plans to draw his ace which is expose Barsad as an English spy when another card comes into play • Carton reveals that he's seen Barsad conversing with an English spy known as Cly, but Barsad claims Cly has been dead for several years • Cruncher than reappears at the news of Cly for he is the one who has dug up his grave a while back and questions him if he was the one who put Cly in his coffin and Cruncher claims that the Cly is not dead and that his coffin was filled with dirt and cobblestones. Cruncher refuses to explain how he knows this but it puts a turn of things in the already intense “card game” • Carton than sees this as another valuable card in that Barsad will be seen as a foreigner starting plots in the prisons against the Republic- an act which will surely send him to the guillotine • Barsad finally gives up and the conversation leaves at the two of them Barsad and Carton going to a dark room where they will have one final word

5. Literary Devices • Symbolism- Cards The cards represent the flaws and perks in each character they are almost representations of units of power in that one drawing and play of any any single one of these cards can be the answer of life or death of any of the character • Extended Metaphor- Game of Cards There is no literal game of cards going on but the game of cards remains continuous throughout the chapter in that the game of cards represents Carton trying to get Barsad onto his plan to save Darnay and Carton achieves this by a very sly, cunning manner in which Carton almost plays the devils advocate here making Barsad as uncomfortable as he can • Simile “Unseen by the spy, Mr. Cruncher stood at his side, and touched him on the shoulder like a ghostly bailiff”

6. Essential Quote • “In short,” said Sydney, “this is a desperate time, when desperate games are played for desperate stakes. Let the Doctor play the winning game; I will play the losing one. No man’s life here is worth purchase. Any one carried home by the people to-day, may be condemned tomorrow. Now, the stake I have resolved to play for, in case of the worst, is a friend in the Conciergerie. And the friend I purpose to myself to win, is Mr. Barsad.”