Book III - Chapter XII. Darkness Practice Quiz — A Tale of Two Cities
by Charles Dickens — tap or click to flip
Practice Quiz: Book III - Chapter XII. Darkness
Why does Sydney Carton decide to visit the Defarges' wine shop?
He wants the revolutionaries to see his face and recognize him as a separate person from Charles Darnay, so Darnay can later escape using Carton's identity papers.
What significant personal change has Carton made by the time this chapter begins?
He has stopped drinking strong alcohol for the first time in many years, having "dropped the brandy slowly down on Mr. Lorry's hearth like a man who had done with it."
Who is present at the wine shop when Carton arrives?
Madame Defarge, Monsieur Defarge, Jacques Three (a member of the Jury), and The Vengeance.
How does Carton disguise his understanding of French in the wine shop?
He speaks in deliberately poor, heavily accented French and pretends to struggle while reading a Jacobin newspaper, tracing words slowly with his finger.
What does Madame Defarge mutter when she first sees Carton?
"I swear to you, like Evrémonde!" — she immediately notices his resemblance to Charles Darnay.
What word does Madame Defarge use to describe her goal for the Evrémonde family?
"Extermination." She says she has this race "a long time on my register, doomed to destruction and extermination."
What is Madame Defarge's personal connection to the Evrémonde crimes?
She is the younger sister of the peasant woman who was assaulted by the Evrémonde brothers. Her sister, brother, father, brother-in-law, and their unborn child were all victims.
What is Madame Defarge's chilling response when her husband urges restraint?
"Tell the Wind and the Fire where to stop; not me!" — meaning her vengeance is a force of nature that cannot be halted.
How does Defarge differ from his wife in their debate about the denunciations?
Defarge wants to stop with Darnay and spare Lucie, the child, and Dr. Manette, arguing the Doctor has suffered enough. But he is a "weak minority" against his wife's implacable fury.
What violent thought does Carton briefly entertain as Madame Defarge walks him to the door?
He reflects "that it might be a good deed to seize that arm, lift it, and strike under it sharp and deep" — he considers assassinating her but restrains himself.
What does Carton learn from the spy Barsad about Madame Defarge's plot?
A wood-sawyer near the prison has been coached by Madame Defarge to testify that Lucie was making signs and signals to prisoners — a capital crime that would be used to denounce the whole family.
What happens to Doctor Manette when he finally returns to Tellson's Bank?
He has completely relapsed into his old prison madness, searching for his shoemaking bench and unable to recognize anyone. All his years of recovery are undone.
What does Doctor Manette cry out when he arrives?
"Where is my bench? I have been looking everywhere for my bench... What have they done with my work? Time presses: I must finish those shoes."
What critical document does Carton find in Doctor Manette's coat?
A certificate permitting Doctor Manette, Lucie, and her child to pass the barriers and leave France at any time.
What time does Carton tell Mr. Lorry the carriage must be ready?
Two o'clock in the afternoon the next day, with horses in "starting trim."
What warning does Carton give Mr. Lorry about the escape plan?
"Change the course, or delay in it—for any reason—and no life can possibly be saved, and many lives must inevitably be sacrificed."
What does Carton tell Lorry to say to Lucie to convince her to flee?
That it was her husband's last arrangement, and that more depends upon it than she dares believe or hope — and to stress the danger to her child and father.
Why does Carton not want to take his travel certificate into the prison?
He says he prefers not to, without explaining why — but the reason is that he plans to give it to Darnay so Darnay can escape in his place.
How does Chapter 12 end?
Carton helps the broken Doctor back to Lucie's lodging, then stands alone in the courtyard, looks up at the light in her window, breathes a blessing and a farewell.
What does the title "Darkness" symbolize in this chapter?
Multiple forms of darkness: the literal night, the moral darkness of the Terror, Manette's mental collapse back into insanity, and the darkest hour before Carton's redemptive sacrifice.
How does Dickens contrast Madame Defarge and Carton in this chapter?
Both are driven by powerful emotion, but Madame Defarge is consumed by hatred seeking destruction, while Carton is motivated by love seeking to save others — showing vengeance and self-sacrifice as opposing responses to injustice.
What does Carton's sobriety in this chapter represent?
His complete transformation from the dissolute, self-loathing "jackal" of earlier chapters into a purposeful man capable of the ultimate sacrifice. Giving up drink symbolizes giving up his old wasted life.