Is Dickens more modern or Victorian in the way in which he paints his characters in A Tale of Two Cities?In contemporary literature it is often the...

In some ways, Dickens’s characters are stereotypical.  For
example, Lucie Manette is a stereotypical Victorian woman.  However the stereotypical characters
in Dickens books are not the focus.  In a Dickens book, the characters that are nuanced are the
ones that are important.  For example, Sydney Carton is a complex character.  He is contradictory
and evolves as the story progresses.  Darnay, by contrast, is mostly one-dimensional.  Dr.
Manette is rather complicated too, as he struggles to keep his severe psychological disfigurement
in check.  Imagine knowing that your daughter was going to marry a man whose family sent you to
prison for 18 years! 

It is easy to dismiss the Defarges as cartoon
villains, but that is not exactly the case.  They have suffered along with the peasants for
years.  Their unique position as proprietors of a wine shop allows them access to the upper
classes, but they see the lower classes scrounge daily.  Madame Defarge is not a stereotypical
Victorian woman in any sense!  She is strong, and although she may seem evil she is seeking
vengeance for her family and her people.

Don't dismiss this book as
Victorian soap opera!