Book I - Chapter II. The Mail Practice Quiz — A Tale of Two Cities
by Charles Dickens — tap or click to flip
Practice Quiz: Book I - Chapter II. The Mail
Where does Chapter 2 of A Tale of Two Cities take place?
On the Dover road, specifically Shooter's Hill, as the Dover mail coach lumbers uphill on a Friday night in late November 1775.
Why are the passengers walking beside the coach instead of riding inside?
The hill, harness, mud, and mail are all so heavy that the horses have already stopped three times and even tried to turn the coach back to Blackheath.
What message does Jerry deliver to Mr. Lorry?
"Wait at Dover for Mam'selle." It is a dispatch from Tellson's Bank, sent after Mr. Lorry from London.
What reply does Mr. Lorry send back with Jerry?
"Recalled to Life." Jerry calls it "a Blazing strange answer."
What do the other two passengers do after Jerry's appearance?
They scramble into the coach, shut the door, pull up the window, hide their watches and purses in their boots, and pretend to be asleep.
Who is Mr. Jarvis Lorry?
A passenger on the Dover mail and a representative of Tellson's Bank, traveling on business to Paris. He serves as a link between England and France throughout the novel.
Who is Jerry Cruncher in this chapter?
A hoarse-voiced messenger from Tellson's Bank who rides after the mail coach to deliver a dispatch to Mr. Lorry. He is covered in mud from his hard ride from Temple Bar.
Who are Tom and Joe in this chapter?
Tom is the coachman who drives the Dover mail, and Joe is the guard who rides armed on a perch at the back of the coach.
What weapons does the guard carry?
A loaded blunderbuss on top of six or eight loaded horse-pistols, deposited on a substratum of cutlass, all stored in an arm-chest.
What does the phrase "Recalled to Life" foreshadow?
The liberation of Dr. Manette from the Bastille after eighteen years of imprisonment, and the broader theme of resurrection that runs throughout the novel.
How does mutual suspicion function as a theme in Chapter 2?
The guard suspects the passengers, the passengers suspect each other and the guard, and everyone suspects strangers on the road. This reflects the broader atmosphere of distrust in both England and pre-Revolutionary France.
What does the mist symbolize in this chapter?
The mist represents secrecy, moral obscurity, and danger. Dickens personifies it as "an evil spirit, seeking rest and finding none," foreshadowing the dark events to come.
Why does Jerry say "recalling to life wouldn't do for you, Jerry"?
It foreshadows the revelation that Jerry is a resurrection man (grave robber). The idea of the dead being recalled to life threatens his illicit trade of digging up and selling corpses.
What is the pathetic fallacy in Chapter 2?
The oppressive fog, freezing cold, and thick mud mirror the fear, suspicion, and moral darkness of the characters and their world.
How does Dickens use personification to describe the mist?
He describes it as "an evil spirit, seeking rest and finding none," an allusion to biblical language about unclean spirits (Matthew 12:43), giving the landscape an ominous, supernatural quality.
What dramatic irony exists in the guard and coachman's exchange at the end of the chapter?
Tom and Joe agree they can make "nothing at all" of the message "Recalled to Life." The reader senses the phrase carries enormous weight, but its full meaning is withheld.
How does Dickens use the coach passengers to create suspense?
By wrapping them in identical heavy cloaks so they cannot see each other's faces, Dickens transforms ordinary travelers into potential threats, making the approaching horseman's arrival genuinely terrifying.
Who says "In the king's name, all of you!" and what does it mean?
The guard Joe shouts this when he hears a horse galloping toward the coach. He is invoking royal authority to command everyone to prepare for a potential attack.
What does the guard mean when he says "if I should make a mistake, it could never be set right in your lifetime"?
He is warning the unseen horseman (Jerry) that if he makes the mistake of shooting, the man will be dead—there is no undoing a fatal shot. It is a grim, darkly humorous threat.
Who says "That's a Blazing strange answer" and in response to what?
Jerry Cruncher says this after Mr. Lorry gives him the reply message "Recalled to Life" to carry back to Tellson's Bank.
What year is it in Chapter 2, and why does this matter?
The year is 1775. The American Revolution is beginning, and the French Revolution is fourteen years away. Dickens sets the story in a period of political upheaval and social tension.
Why was highway robbery such a concern in 1775 England?
Dickens explains that every posting-house and ale-house might harbor informants working for highwaymen ("in the Captain's pay"). Travelers could trust nobody, and guards carried heavy weaponry as standard practice.