After reading · Part III · Chapter 1

Part III · Chapter 1A Journey into Captivity

Reading boundary Start: The traveller fared slowly on his way Stop after: with the wail of voices that he knew, in the swell that rose above them.

Summary

Travelling toward Paris in autumn 1792, Darnay finds revolutionary checkpoints everywhere. Armed citizens inspect papers and lists until he understands that returning to England is impossible. At a small town he is awakened, declared an emigrant, and placed under escort despite explaining that he has voluntarily come to help a citizen.

The escort delivers him to Paris, where Defarge recognizes him but refuses to carry a message to Mr. Lorry. Officials classify Darnay as an aristocrat and send him “in secret” to La Force. The other prisoners receive him with spectral courtesy before he is isolated in a foul cell. Pacing its dimensions, he struggles against memories of Doctor Manette’s imprisonment and shoemaking.

Who’s who

Charles Darnay — The returning traveller, treated as an emigrant and prisoner.
The escort — A revolutionary citizen who conducts Darnay to Paris for payment.
Defarge — The Saint Antoine wine-shop keeper, now an official who recognizes Darnay.
Monsieur Gabelle — The imprisoned man whose appeal brought Darnay to France.