狄更斯：
查尔斯·约翰·赫芬姆·狄更斯，1812年2月7日生于朴次茅斯市郊，1870年6月9日卒于罗切斯特附近的盖茨山庄。19世纪英国批判现实主义小说家。狄更斯特别注意描写生活在英国社会底层的“小人物”的生活遭遇，深刻地反映了当时英国复杂的社会现实，为英国批判现实主义文学的开拓和发展做出了卓越的贡献。他的作品至今依然盛行，对英国文学发展起到了深远的影响。主要作品《匹克威克外传》《雾都孤儿》 《老古玩店》《艰难时世》《我们共同的朋友》《双城记》等。
双城记：
《双城记》是英国作家查尔斯·狄更斯所著的一部以法国大革命为背景所写成的长篇历史小说，情节感人肺腑，是世界文学经典名著之一，故事中将巴黎、伦敦两个大城市连结起来，围绕着曼马内特医生一家和以德法日夫妇为首的圣安东尼区展开故事。小说里描写了贵族如何败坏、如何残害百姓，人民心中积压对贵族的刻骨仇恨，导致了不可避免的法国大革命，本书的主要思想是为了爱而自我牺牲。书名中的“双城”指的是巴黎与伦敦。
可参考文献
‍
双城记解读——乔治 纽林
狄更斯三部小说《雾都孤儿》《大卫·科波菲尔》《双城记》的浪漫主义色彩研究
《双城记》:历史拐点处的记忆——再论狄更斯笔下的大革命描写
查尔斯·狄更斯的革命观——解读《双城记》
从《双城记》看狄更斯人道主义思想
新历史主义视角下的《双城记》
论文—解读狄更斯《双城记》
谈狄更斯在《双城记》中的人道主义思想

从双城记吧转帖过来的一篇，好不好见仁见智，但是绝对是作者原创：
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这是我看完《双城记》后写的两篇英文读后感，并作为英语周记发给了我的English teacher，现在拿出来share一下
A tragedy of the history
Crazily,but truthfully,I finished reading the most part of the novel "A Tale of Two Cities" in just one day.Lost in the story,I felt like being together with the characters and experiencing the same exciting events.Soon it came to an end.To tell you my feelings,it's infinite sadness and a strong emotion that can drive me to cry.
The story is set in London and Paris at the time of the great French Revolution.It shows the causes of revolution and its effects on people's day-to-day lives.Before the revolution,the King and the aristocracy treated their people cruelly in France.The common people were extremely poor and miserable.The crops in the fields were poor as if even the land shared the misery of the people.And there were so heavy taxes that all the villagers had nothing to hand over at last.On the other hand,the aristocracy made their will as the law by using money and gold.There were no justice,no equality and no fairness.Just as what happened to Dr Manette,he wrote to the Minister to show the crime what Marquis Evremonde had done,resulting in himself being arrested and sent to the prison Bastille without any reason.
Then this situation of darkness was needed to be changed.As people such as the Defarges prepared and arranged,at length the Revolution came to break out.When the Bastille was captured and the King was tried and put to death as well as many other aristocrats,things didn't go on as what they had been expected.The sistuation stayed the same,or even worse.The prisoners from the Bastille were set free while more prisons were filled with people who had done no wrong again.People who once lived on the bottom of class took the charge now and their heart had been full of evil.The only thing they wanted to do was to revenge.And these so-called "patriots" would like to see more and more innocent prisoners going to the guillotine and that's their joy.As the novel wrote,"In everything they did were merciless,for they had been hardened in the fires of suffering and the touch of pity could make no mark on them".
Equality and fairness is what people seek,which led to the French Revolution.As a consequence,neither equality nor fairness was got after the revolution.And that's the tragedy of the history.I was heavyhearted when reading what Sydney Carton said before death and I burst into tears finally.
作者：solomon518 封 2008-12-20 20:42 回复此发言

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2 回复：我来晒一下自己写的英文读后感
第二篇
Miss Pross VS. Madame Defarge
From the first minute I read A Tale Of Two Cities forward,I have been in love with this book.The chapter which impressed me most is neither "The Great Escape" nor "Revolution",it's "The Knitting Is Finished",which I'd like to call Miss Pross PK Madame Defarge.
As Mr Lorry had driven a carriage in which lay Darnay and his families to escape from Paris,Miss Pross and Jerry Cruncher,the ones who were left because the carriage couldn't be overloaded,had to order another carriage for themselves.When Miss Pross was preparing things alone in the house,a figure appeared unexpectedly,making her cry out.It was Madame Defarge,who came here aiming for Lucie and the child.Madame Defarge knew well that this woman was a trusted friend of the family and Miss Pross knew that the other woman was the family's enemy.Then the combat between two woman began.
Miss Pross was one of those woman who thought nothing of their own needs and who,through pure love and admiration,are ready to make themselves slaves to youth when they have lost it,to beauty which they have never had,and to bright hopes that have never shone upon their own dark lives.As Mr Lorry said,"there is nothing better in the world than the honest service of the heart".Since Miss Pross had become like a mother to Lucie and would have given her life for her,she would do everything she could to keep Madame Defarge in the house so that the carriage carrying Lucie could run farther.
Madame Defarge was a woman with a very keen eye,a strong face and a great calmness of manner.When the French Revolution broke out,it was her who led the woman and cut off the head of the governor of the prison.She had a strong,fealess and a kind of beauty that called attention to her qualities.She had grown up with a deep sense of wrong and a powerful hatred of the arisyocracy;any pity that she once may have had was now dead.To her,Darnay's family must be destroyed,the wife and child must follow the father.
Both were determined woman in their different ways.Hatred had made the heart of the Frenchwoman hard;love now filed the Englishwoman's with coyrage.It's very intereing to see that each woman spoke in her own language and neither understood a word of what the other said while each knew well the other's intention.
As a result of the combat,Madame Defarge died lying on ground and Miss Pross could hear nothing for the rest of her life.That's another tragedy in my heart.
作者：solomon518 封 2008-12-20 20:43 回复此发言 删除

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希望能合你用吧，注意版权，谢绝抄袭^_^

The tale of two cities is a historical story, one of Dickens’ long fictions.The background to the novel is the revolution of France .It portrayed a brutal and bloody story , but it also contained love and friendship.

　　In the novel, Dickens sarcastically described a typical cruel nobleman—marquis of Evermonde . When he was young he and his brother stole a countrywoman by force and killed her family .What’s worse , he used his power to imprison Dr Manette , a kind and honest man who knew all the things they had done and wanted to disclose their crimes . In order to hide their crimes. Marquis of Evermonde and his brother threw Doctor Manette into prison for 18 years . During these 18 years,Doctor Manette lost his freedom and suffer a great in spirit .

　　I felt unthinkable that Marquis of Evermonde and his brother killed people just as easily as they killed chickens. They deprived other people’s freedom as they liked and they thought it was normal and unremarkable. They had never realized that they had done something wrong or something improper. Because their nature was cruel and evil, like demons. There is an old saying which means: People who commit too many crimes will kill themselves. After all, there is justice in the world. The demons can’t be rampant forever. Because the world will not forgive them. They will pay their lives for their crimes. Let’s see the consequence of the Marquis,’’He lay there like a stone with a knife pushed into his heart.” I think it was just what he ought to gain and it is a real exciting scene.

　　The Marquis’ death was just the beginning of people’s resistance to the nobleman. Gradually more and more people joined in the revolution. One after another nobleman were sentenced to death and their heads were cut down . However, some innocent people were implicated in the revolution. Charles Darney was one of them He was the nephew of Marquis of Evermonde. To the opposite of his uncle, Darney was a kind and independent young man.

　　Dickens spoke highly of kindness mercy and love in the novel too. This is the other thone of the novel when Doctor Manette was released from prison. It was his daughter Lucie who took care of him and helped him return to normal. During this time, Dr manette and Lucie knew Charles Darney and Sydeny Carton, the two young man fell in love with Lucie at the same time . At last, Lucie married Chares Darney .Dr Manette accepted Darney as his son-in-law although he knew that Darney was the nephew of the man who threw him into prison for18 years. This is the love between father and daughter. And Sydeny Carton , the very great man ,loved Lucie deeply. He promised Lucie that he would do everything for her happiness. He did it truely ,he sacrificed himself instead of Darney who looked the same as him. This is love for lovers . This is the most wonderful thing in the world. It also reminds us that no matter how no matter when there is true love existing. At the end , Lucie, Dr Manette and Darney arrived in England safely.

　　The tale of two cities is different from other historical fictions. Its characters and main plots are fictional under the real background of the revolution of France. The author made the experience of the fictional charactor Dr Manette as the main clue.The plots are complicated, and they are flexuous and dramatic. The structure is complete and rigorous.

　　Dickens had dear love and hate. He praised those who ought to be praised and attacked those who ought to be attacked. The motivation of the novel maybe just warn the English dominators. But I think we can learn something meaningful from the tale of two cities.