The French Revolution was a time of unjustified bloodshed between the French nobility and the peasants. From 1787 to 1799, peasants rebelled against the nobility due to unfair treatment and oppression. In A Tale of Two Cities, English writer Charles Dickens tells the story of the desperate lives of peasants and their bloody rebellion against the nobles. In contrast, Dicken's novel also chronicles the excessive life of the aristocracy and their unawareness of the impending change. The novel has many themes, but among them the most important is the theme of sacrifice. Many characters sacrifice things, but the following are the main selfless acts performed in the name of love. Charles Darnay's choice to give up his family's wealth and nobility, Mrs. Pross's sacrifice of her hearing ability, and Sydney Carton's sacrifice of her life all support Dicken's theme of sacrifice for the people they love in the novel. Charles Darnay, known by this surname in England, was born into the French aristocratic family, the Evrémondes. However, he sacrifices his family's wealth and nobility because he knows of the horrible deeds his family had committed in the past. Darnay says, “…I believe our name is more detested than any other name in France” (Dickens 93), referring to his family's morbid affair with the wife of a local wine shop owner, Madame Defarge. Years before, Darnay's uncle had mistreated Madame Defarge's family, leaving her with a vendetta against the Evrémondes, including all future generations. Knowing this disturbing information, Darnay states: "- I would abandon him and live otherwise and elsewhere..." (95) in the hope of ridding myself of the despised name Evrémonde. Charles' sacrifice leads to him being able to live a life free from... middle of paper... selflessly enduring the pain and devastation originally intended for another person. Exemplifying the theme of sacrifice for others, the selfless acts of Charles Darnay, Mrs. Pross, and Sydney Carton enhance the plot of the novel. Carton says: “Remember these words tomorrow: change the course, or delay it – for any reason – and no life can be saved, and many lives must inevitably be sacrificed.” (268) alluding to the fact that innocent lives are destined to be sacrificed, but they do so for the sake of others and in the name of love. Sacrifices are pursued and made in the name of love, as seen in the sacrifice of Mrs. Pross. Love pushes people to help others and risk anything for those they love or even give their lives in the case of Sydney Carton. A Tale of Two Cities is a great novel that shows selfless acts in the name of love for other people.