Knitting, Knitting, Redemption

                Chapters fifteen (Knitting) and sixteen (Still Knitting) from A Tale of Two Cities, portray Madame Defarge and the underground rebellion she leads. For this blog post, I’d like to discuss the symbolism of Madame Defarge’s knitting.  Madame Defarge has been seen knitting at different times in the story, often in the background at important events. For example, when the Marquis St. Evremonde’s carriage ran over Gaspard’s son,“… the wretched father was groveling on his face on the pavement in that spot, and the figure stood beside him was the figure of a dark stout woman, knitting” (Dickens 117). This passage illustrates Madame Defarge at the scene of the “Monsieur the Marquis in Town”. She is the figure in the background knitting. At that point in the book, little is known about Madame Defarge except for the fact that she is the wine keeper’s wife. Now (chapter twenty-two; book two), we know much more of who Madame Defarge is. 

                We were able to conclude that Madame Defarge has a robust position in this ‘underground uprising’ on page 183 when she tells her husband, in response to the news that a new spy is in St. Antoine, “’It is necessary to register him …  ‘Barsad,’ said Defarge” (Dickens).  When John Barsad (Aristocrat Spy), enters the wine shop, and begins a conversation with Madame Defarge, ironically, she is adding his name to the hit list. Even as Madame Defarge knits Barsad’s fate, she is still able to outsmart everybody with her knitting.

                Up to this point in the book, Madame Defarge has been a character of mystery, embedded and set upon the goal of a French revolution. Her knitting not only represents a physical register of oppressors, but I also believe it is a symbol of stealth and the underground uprising.  It’s a symbol of stealth because she is able to organize a hit list, while under the constant supervision of the aristocrats. Her knitting is also a symbol of the uprising because it’s both a peasant’s hobby as well as a symbol of organization. An issue I face with Madame Defarge is her motivation for her harsh ideas. The background context implies very little about her rationale for the position she holds in the movement. I thought that for a person to hold a burden of the risk of being in the uprising, they must have a strong reason. Yet the mystery is still continuing, and we continue to learn more and more about these characters.