How is Scrooge presented in a Christmas Carol - What is he like? Are we sympathetic to him? Does he change? What language features are used to do this? Ebenezer Scrooge This essay is looking at the character, Ebenezer Scrooge throughout the play. It looks at the person he is and the person he becomes. It also looks at the language Dickens uses to portray Mr Scrooge. Dickens portrays Scrooge as a ' tight fisted, penny pincher' with alliterations and metaphors such as, 'wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner' emphasising his meanness. He seems a mean old man with no time for the festivities of Christmas, nor any other special day at that! Even when the cheerful voice of his nephew rings out to wish him a very Merry Christmas, his reply was ' Bah, Humbug!' He snubs visitors with the frost of his nature and speaks with a voice that begrudges their happiness and united joy. He is even bitter to the clerk, Bob Cratchit for having a paid day off, stating ' A poor excuse for picking a man's pocket every twenty - fifth of December! ' (Stave 1) When the ghost of Marley appears, Scrooge tries to jest with him to distract his fears but the spectre voice 'disturbs the very marrow in his bones.' He begs for mercy and asks why the 'dreadful apparition is troubling him' Although mean and nasty, the reader sees here that Scrooge is also a coward! Jacob Marley tells of the chains that were forged in life and what is waiting for Scrooge, telling him 'I am here tonight to warn you, that you have a chance and hope of escaping my fate' (Stave 1) If Scrooge did not change his mean old ways, then he is only to look forward to an after life like poor Jacob. To Scrooge's disappointment and di... ... middle of paper ... ...tion of the word 'and' quickens the pace, and indicates the excitement felt by Scrooge. Scrooge remembers all that was shown to him and he sets off to alter the future, which only evoked doom. He buys an overwhelmingly large turkey for Bob Cratchit, attends his Nephews party and generally spreads the good will and festive cheer of Christmas! Scrooge keeps his promise, and everyone benefits. There is a repetition of the word good ' He became a good friend, a good 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' (Stave 5) This proves that he has genuinely changed for the better of himself and everyone around him. The moral of the story is, as Dickens surely tried to put across, that it is never too late to alter your ways, and if you don't change, things could happen to you too.
Dickens displays guilt as the main form of how Scrooge’s character develops into a compassionate person by the end of the novella. As Scrooge feels this quilt, it's purely based on the visions that the ghosts provide which further causes Scrooge to realise the consequences of his actions. His alienation from specific characters that he used to love such as Belle, “...has displaced me…” whom left Scrooge, due to his desire for money and wealth which grew. This desire grows with him as he is rejecting the christmas joy and spirit as he continuously states that Christmas is a “humbug,” but by stating this it provides comparison. Dickens depicts that Scrooge has become a better person because of fear but in the end he has become kinder. As the
Scrooge was and owner of a factory and made a whole bunch of money, but he did not care about anyone else. “Merry Christmas said his nephew, what right do have to be merry you are poor enough”. This shows that scrooge is mean to family and does not care about Christmas.
Throughout the play, A Christmas Carol, we learn that change begins simply. As stated by Robin Sharma, “Change is hard at first, messy in the middle, and gorgeous at the end.” Luckily Scrooge changed directly like what Robin Sharma’s quote stated. When he had the help of the three ghosts it was hard in the beginning, messy in the middle, and truly gorgeous at the end. Unfortunately, Scrooge believed that he will suffer too many hardships to change and became a stingy, greedy, and cold-hearted old man. Since Scrooge thought it was hard to change he didn’t think it was worth the time and effort to do it. Luckily for Scrooge, Past, Present, and Future helped him out so he could change. In conclusion moving forward Scrooge will transform into a new man, he keeps Christmas in his heart all year round and will spread love and joy to
small its as if it only has one coal. Being so cheap and not wanting
up by the sad event, but that he was an excellent man of business on
In Conclusion, in the 1st Stave Dickens presents Scrooge as an evil, aged, prosperous man. As you read the Staves 2, 3 and 4, Scrooge’s behaviour, thoughts and attitude changes gradually. In Stave 2 a quote to show how shrude Scrooge is 'All he could make out was that it was still very foggy and extremely cold' this shows that Scrooge is an unpleasant ‘a covetous sinner’. This has an effect upon the reader as it shows how the cold weather can hurt and be distasteful to people just like Scrooge. Scrooge is described as the weather as he is like it; he hurts the people around him. Finally, in the 4th Stave he changes and he admits it, here is a quote “Spirit!'' he cried, tight clutching at its robe, “hear me! I am not the man I was.” This shows Scrooge is pleading that he has changed. I think he has transformed because of the experience he had by the four spirits.
When we first met Scrooge, we are informed, and also observe that he is cold, miserly, and bitter. However, after the visit of the Ghost of Christmas future, Scrooge changes into a generous and cheerful man. It is clear that something must have caused a man who is really nice, turn into a mean and nasty person, in this case it was the Industrial Revolution.
In this essay I will be talking about how Dickens presents Scrooge’s fear in A Christmas Carol. It is about how Scrooge’s change throughout the novel through various techniques Dickens uses to convey this.
In a time in which the significance of Christmas gradually started to change, Charles Dickens, in accordance with these changes, wrote a Christmas tale: A Christmas Carol. The novella was published six days in advance of the Christmas celebrations of 1843; it was sold out three days later. Although a socially engaged narrative, Dickens’ work is not occupied with trivialities such as the introduction of Christmas cards; instead A Christmas Carol focuses on the transforming beliefs and values within society and endeavours to contribute to these changes.
Marley and Scrooge - the firm, known as Scrooge and Marley - although the sign hasn't changed since Marley’s death, the one thing that had worsened is the personality of Scrooge, the tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! On page two, I noticed the author says Scrooge has an insufficient fire for keeping himself warm, but the clerk’s fire (Bob Cratchit) was so indubitable small that it looked like one coal. Everyone knew Scrooge throughout the community to be an unpleasant friend to be around, in that his attitude is unacceptable and he is disrespectful to others. Consequently, he is all head and no heart, as explained within the text. Scrooge had absolutely no room
“hear me! I am not the man I was. I will not be the man I must have been but for this intercourse.” “I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future. The Spirits of all Three shall strive within me. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach. Oh, tell me I may sponge away the writing on this stone!” (Dickens, Stave 4, Page 84) Finally, Scrooge changed for good.
things to feel happy about in life. If we want to live a happy life,
At the beginning of the novel, Dickens presents Scrooge as an outsider by describing Scrooge as physically Cold hearted and unemotional person. This is seen in the quote, "A frosty rime was on his head, and on his eyebrows, and his wiry chin. He carried his own low temperature always about with him.". The words ‘frosty’ and ‘wiry’ shows the uses of adjectives and metaphor. Dickens uses these figurative techniques to emphasize to the reader how Scrooge has secluded his soul against society as a result of his own actions. Dickens uses dramatic irony here effectively to symbolise how the rich who are characterized as the construct Scrooge, who is presented as a gothic and supernatural being. This is ironic as the rich in Victorian society are
...t, the Present, and the Future. The Spirits of all Three shall strive within [him]." With this still resonating in his mind, he jumps out of bed and immediately begins setting things right. He buys a turkey bigger than Bob Cratchit's son and sends it to him, and instead of being rude to the Poulterer, he pays for a cab to get them to Cratchit's home. He then goes out with joy in his heart and bumps into a man who asked him to donate money to the poor the day before. As opposed to being unkind and cruel, the new and improved Scrooge donates a large sum of money to the cause happily. This kind, happy, and generous man is a complete change from the stingy and unkind Scrooge from Christmas Eve. If someone this awful can change, anyone and everyone can do the same. They just need a little push in the right direction.
Dickens shows us truth, beauty, and goodness through the miraculous transformation of the character, Scrooge, in his story A Christmas Carol. In the final chapter of Dickens’ story, we are privileged to witness a complete and total alteration of the personal identity in Scrooge that exudes all that is good, all that is beautiful, and all that is true from the depths of his core; revealing a genuine heartfelt conversion.