I'm still reading A Tale of Two Cities and, to make sure I didn't miss anything, I did something I usually never do and opened the Sparknotes pages besides me to make sure I got all the relevant information.
Well, I finished reading about Darnay and Carton's confessions, and considering the Sparknotes commentary on those, I have thoughts.
The argument made by Sparknotes is that Darnay's confession comes off as vapid and unimaginative compared to Carton's which is much more emotionally charged and conveys a deeper psychological complexity, making his feelings supposedly "worthier of reciprocation than Darnay's" (whatever this is supposed to mean).
I want to make it clear that I love Sydney Carton. In a novel thematically constructed around the themes of destruction and rebirth, he illustrates perfectly the man who has given up on himself and on life. Dickens depicts his psychological state in an absolutely brilliant way, making him sympathetic despite his flaws and somewhat anti-social behavior. In fact, at this point, I can believe him to be one of the more psychologically complex characters in the book. His confession to Lucie is beautiful, and I found myself highlighting and noting down a great part of it. The fact that Lucie, through her very presence, managed to inspire him with the desire to make something of himself is wonderful and makes their relationship very touching and inspiring.
That does not mean that he is more worthy of her than Darnay, nor does it mean that being more emotionally and psychologically invested in her would make him a better partner.
Does Darnay's confession pale in front of Carton's? Undoubtedly so, and that is not helped by the fact that he makes it to her father and not Lucie herself. However, there is still something beautiful in Darnay understanding Lucie's complex position regarding her father and going out of his way to make it clear that he will always respect her love and devotion to him. Through his confession, he shows an understanding of her, of her needs, her wants, and her feelings of duty towards her father. Is it rooted in Victorian's values about filial duty, relationships between men and women, and a woman's ideal behavior? Absolutely! (just like a lot of Lucie's character to be honest). But just because it stems from outdated values (to say the least) does not make it any less worthy of respect and appreciation.
In the end, both confessions have as their flaw the fact that they require little from Lucie herself. They are about their reactions and response to Lucie, not about what she may feel for them. It can make the relationships feel relatively one-sided. However, I do have a problem with taking them as evidence that Carton "deserved" Lucie more.
