Studying Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol'? Hallo there! How to revise from this guide You should be spending at least 30-60 minutes a week revising for English Literature from this point onwards, aiming to learn 5-7 key quotes for each character. If he had been, he'd have had somebody to look after him when he was struck with Death, instead of lying gasping out his last there, alone by himself.'. phrase on the line at the right. "It was long and wound about him like a til.". As we will later learn, his bitterness originates at Christmas time and has warped his perspective of it. Oh, no, no! The finger was still there. Stave 3 - Scrooge's willingness to learn patience and hope fro them. The Fezziwigs throw a party and treat everyone the same - no matter their status. The synonyms 'alone' and 'by himself' emphasise again the loneliness of the life he has chosen. Here, Scrooge is talking about Fezziwig and how he uses his wealth to lift others up. Of course, there is still a massive equality gap between the rich and the poor. Their terrible behaviour is a consequence of the ignorance and want that Dickens personified in stave 3. Only financial gain. uses long and short clauses to show how busy they are. All rights reserved. Of course, Dickens does use his trademark lengthy descriptions but nearly everything has a point. Fezziwig's office has a large fire which adds to the welcoming atmosphere, offering the reader an additional opportunity to compare it to Scrooge's cold office with the meagre fire. ". This is another quote where Dickens draws on the semantic field of the cold weather. The metaphor shows the are poor but make the best of a bad situation, always smiling and showing they are grateful for what little they have. Setting can help create an atmosphere or mood in a literary work. Scrooge hung his head to hear his own words and was overcome with penitence and grief. A Christmas Carol: Key Moments Being such a short story there is very little that is extraneous. ', Stave 5: 'No fog, no mist; clear, bright, jovial, stirring, cold;', Stave 5: 'He became as good a friend, as good a master, and as good a man, as the good old city knew, or any other good old city, town, or borough, in the good old world.'. The Cratchits are generous and loving in very difficult circumstances. "The cold within him froze his old features", Early description of scrooge. A merry Christmas to everybody! 'Long and wound about him like a tail made of cash-boxes, keys, padlocks, ledgers, deeds and heavy purses.'. The ghost of Christmas yet to come is a symbol of the effect that memories have on someone as they age. This may be a way of showing what Dickens thinks should be happening. The noun phantom has negatives connotations in contrast to the more positive spirits - once again, warning scrooge of his fate if he doesn't change his ways. Scrooge learns how little generosity creates a lot of happiness. This is one of Freds lines, and it really helps to highlight the difference in viewpoints between Fred and his uncle. Scrooge's grave, by comparison to Tiny Tim's is 'overrun by weeds'. The key theme for Dickens is that money does not lead to happiness, Greed is the single factor that is responsible for the breakup of Scrooge's marriage, 'Another idol has displaced me a golden one', Stave 2: 'The happiness he gives, is quite as great as if it cost a fortune', The Cratchit family are used as a depiction of a family in poverty, More than any other time in history there was a huge divide between classes, the lower classes lived in deperate poverty and were in want while the upper classes enjoyed a life of luxury, Stave 1: 'Many thousands are in want of common necessities, sir and many hundreds of thousands are in want of common comforts', Scrooge's staff selling off his old goods, Victorian aristocracy were very keen to remain ignorant about the sufferings of the poor. Themes= poverty/family/greed and generosity. Stave 3 - Tiny Tim Privacy Policy, https://bookanalysis.com/charles-dickens/a-christmas-carol/themes-and-analysis/. Analysing the evidence "I am sorry, with all my heart, to find you so resolute. Then there are some of the settings contained in A Christmas Carol. Oh! Refine any search. A Christmas Carol Key Quotes Major Themes Major characters How to revise effectively Isolation and loneliness Ebenezer Scrooge One mistake people often make is to try to revise EVERYTHING. Dr Aidan, PhD, brings you the second video. The opening line says, ''Marley was dead: to begin with. ', 'secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. These cover themes like wealth, poverty, Christmas, and kindness. Stave 5 - The response of the portly gentleman to the money Scrooge wants to give him: Scrooge was better than his word. Scrooge. The simile shows Bobs wealth in his family; he values them more than money and so is content with their love. The Christmas Spirit By Section Stave One: Marley's Ghost Stave Two: The First of the Three Spirits Stave Three: The Second of the Three Spirits Stave Four: The Last of the Spirits Stave Five: The End of It By Character Ebenezer Scrooge Bob Cratchit Fred Jacob Marley The Ghost of Christmas Past The Ghost of Christmas Present However, some of the scenes are to help develop Scrooges character and add backstory. Repetition of 'chuckle' emphasises Scrooge's newfound delight in giving. Here, we get the image of a country that is united during this time of year; a place where Christmas and Britishness are inextricably linked, which would have been incredibly popular for a Victorian audience who were in the throws of empire building. Ideas about purgatory and hell would have been recognisable to the mainly Christian readership at the time - and would have made the allegory more frightening. A frosty rime was on his head, and on his eyebrows, and his wiry chin. Themes= Christmas/greed and generosity/family. " Whoever the author.Discover new and exciting books to dive into with our Book Explorer Tool. Representing Victorian society. '', Stave 3 - the ghost uses Scrooge's words against him when he asks where there is refuge for the children, ignorance and want. ", "there's a cold within him" that "froze his old features", sociable- "wonderful party, wonderful games, wonderful unanimity". The use of light throughout the novel suggests the truth/ the right path which Scrooge at first does not want to see. His selfish ways have left him this way. Im sure you will all e familiar with the one percent statistic. Stave 2 - Belle breaks off the engagement Dickens believed in collective responsibility - that the wealthy should take responsibility for helping the poor, specifically through the provision of education and support for children. The ghost of Christmas future symbolizes death and the mistakes that are sure to haunt him after his death. His narrator describes events as they happened and doesnt spend a great deal of time on extraneous details. sungiemarie. The ghost of Christmas presents it sitting on a throne of food. Stave 4 - in the rag 'n' bone man's shop Bell, dong, ding; hammer, clang, clash! These morally repugnant, ugly people are simply treating Scrooge the way he treated others and he is horrified. A Christmas Carol is rarely classified as a gothic novel. Below one can explore the themes, symbols, and more that appear throughout the novel. In this quote, Dickens describes London as a dark and dangerous place. 'It was a strange figurelike a child: yet not so like a child as like an old man'. ", cynical- "what's Christmas time to you but a time for paying bills without money", Isolated- "secret and self-contained, and solitary like an oyster. The noun cell has connotations of Bob being imprisoned by scrooge. Bovey, Lee-James "A Christmas Carol Quotes " Book Analysis, https://bookanalysis.com/charles-dickens/a-christmas-carol/quotes/. A merry Christmas to everybody! I defy himif he finds me going there, in good temper, year after year, and saying, Uncle Scrooge, how are you? If it only puts him in the vein to leave his poor clerk fifty pounds, thats something. Scrooge's language has been formal and official: here he is informal, natural and joyous. Spirit! he cried, tight clutching at his robe, hear me! Tiny Tim is frequently referred to in Christian terms - as though his true goodness is close to God. () The famous phrase Humbug really means either shame or hoax. A happy New Year to all the world! These include Scrooges cold nature, the power of wealth, and loss. Exhausted- "i cannot rest,i cannot stay, i cannot linger anywhere.". Invite Scrooge to come for Christmas dinner 4. International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct,London, EC1A 2BN, United Kingdom, 2023 Book Analysis. Scrooges offences carry their own punishments. Then, identify each underlined word by writing above it ADV for adverb or ADJ for adjective. I am sure we shall none of us forget poor Tiny Timshall weor this first parting that there was among us? Given an unexpected opportunity to communicateperhaps as a Christmas miracleMarley feels determined to help Scrooge and he warns him here. It acts as a mirror for Scrooges wealth and position but also as a stark contrast in approach. Tiny Tim's comment is generous in spirit, seeing his disability positively as it will remind others of the true meaning of Christmas by allowing them to think of Jesus on Christmas day. Scrooge can see the error of his ways and then acts accordingly to become a better person. Scrooge will avoid spirits for the rest of his life geddit? Ignorance could represent the wealthy upper classes who are ignorant of what they must do to help. I think he wanted to make it accessible to all classes so he could better spread his message. This girl is Want. however, her reference to their father suggests that he had not been kind in the past, thus reinforcing our sympathy. The last line of A Christmas Carol is God bless us, everyone. Its spoken by the well-loved character Tiny Tim. However, the verb 'profit' still has a hint of selfishness - as well as an implication of individual, even material, gain. The simile has a snake like connotations, Marley is a symbol of evil. Whoop! () At the time, Camden town would have been a crowded suburb. Belle to Scrooge: "Another idol has displaced me a golden one.". A description of how the Cratchit family mourned the death of Tiny Tim. Throughout the book, Dickens makes use of metaphors, personification, imagery, and more. These include Scrooge's cold nature, the power of wealth, and loss. Key quotes from A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Scrooge is not unfortunate in the way of relatives - he has a family awaiting his . "Are there no prisons?" A Christmas Carol is a well-loved and commonly read novel that focuses on themes of Christmas and poverty. The image of the 'lonely boy near a feeble fire' reflects very closely the older Scrooge we have seen, alone eating gruel. These compare with the bells at the start of the novel, signifying the hellish arrival of Marley's ghost. The 10 Most Important Quotes in A Christmas Carol - https://youtu.be/8wpegV4ueYY'The Ghosts' in A Christmas Carol - https://youtu.be/15HiKFCMEyk'Scrooge' in A Christmas Carol - https://youtu.be/c2x9wiRRFQYQuick, relaxed, and informative, Dr Aidan's Guide to Literature aims to make literature accessible to everyone. ". Stave 2 - The first of the three spirits "Crown of its head there sprung a bright clear jet of light." Description of the Ghost of Christmas Past, Stave 2, this ghost is much less scary than Marley which symbolises the innocence of childhood. It was shrouded in a deep black garment, which concealed its head, its face, its form, and left nothing of it visible save one outstretched hand.