Lesson Plan: A Tale of Two Cities — Opening Chapters

Objective

Students will read and analyze the opening of Charles Dickens's A Tale of Two Cities, identifying how Dickens uses contrast (paradox) and setting/atmosphere to introduce the novel's themes and tone. Students will be able to explain the effect of the famous opening paragraph and describe the mood created in Chapter II.

Materials

• Printed or projected copies of the resource text (Chapter I "The Period" and Chapter II "The Mail")
• Notebook paper or exit ticket slips
• Whiteboard/chalkboard (optional, for listing contrasts)

Warm-up (~5 min)

Write on the board (or read aloud) the opening line: "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times..."
Ask students to jot down, individually, what they think this sentence means and why an author might start a book this way. After 2–3 minutes, take two or three quick verbal responses (no need to discuss at length — just gather initial impressions to prime the class for reading).

Main Activity (~25 min)

1. Read Aloud / Popcorn Read Chapter I ("The Period") (~10 min): Have students take turns reading paragraphs aloud. Pause after the opening paragraph and ask: "List as many pairs of opposites as you can find in this one sentence" (e.g., wisdom/foolishness, Light/Darkness, hope/despair, Heaven/"the other way"). Write a few on the board.

1. Discuss Historical Contrast (~5 min): Continue reading the paragraphs about England and France. Point out concrete details Dickens gives: the king and queen "with a large jaw," Mrs. Southcott, the Cock-lane ghost, the youth punished for not kneeling to a procession of monks, and the descriptions of crime in England (highway robbery, prison fights, public hangings). Ask: "Does the opening sentence's idea of contrast/opposites continue in these details about England and France? How?"

1. Read Chapter II ("The Mail") Excerpt (~10 min): Have students continue reading (silently or aloud) the description of the Dover mail coach struggling up Shooter's Hill in the mist. Ask students to underline or note words/phrases that create a mood of suspicion, secrecy, or unease (e.g., "steaming mist," "like an evil spirit," passengers "suspected one another," the guard watching a loaded blunderbuss).

Wrap-up / Exit Ticket (~10 min)

Have students answer the following in a few sentences each on a slip of paper to turn in:

1. Explain in your own words what Dickens means by "it was the best of times, it was the worst of times."
2. Give one specific example from the chapter that shows England or France experiencing both good and bad conditions at once.
3. Describe the mood/atmosphere of Chapter II ("The Mail"). Use at least one detail from the text (the mist, the suspicious passengers, the guard's weapons) to support your answer.

Collect these as an exit ticket to check comprehension.

If Time Remains

Ask students to imagine they are one of the three unnamed passengers "wrapped to the cheekbones" traveling on the mail coach in the mist, each suspicious of the others. Have them write a short paragraph (4–6 sentences) describing what that passenger might be thinking or hiding, using only details Dickens provides (the secrecy, the fear of highwaymen, the refusal to speak to one another). Volunteers may share aloud if time allows.