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Symbolism in a christmas carol
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A Christmas Carol , is a story that uses symbols used in everyday life to create a feel for the overall meaning of the story. Charles Dickens used the symbol of fire in Scrooge’s house and the Cratchit Family, to show how each character utilizes fire to warm their home. Dickens uses the symbol of fire to compare how two different social classes can warm themselves during the winter days. No matter how poor a family is, they always create the warmest house because they are united as a family. Fire is used in this novel to bring compassion, hope, and light. The symbol of fire is seen in the beginning of the story when Scrooge and his clerk are in the store. “Scrooge has a very small fire, but the clerk’s fire was so very much smaller than it looked like one coal” (Dickens 3). His argument is that he wants to save money, so he only …show more content…
Scrooge, was able, to repent himself from living a life full of sorrow and he learned to appreciate everyone, even the poor people. The Cratchit family always showed a positive attitude even with their poor living conditions. The Victorian age, marked a significant impact on all the poor families that were unable to speak up, causing them to allow other people to feel higher than they were. Fire is a light symbol in this story. The fire, was able, to open Scrooge’s mind and ask for forgiveness. Warmth, was spread across the town, even to the tiniest places that cannot be seen. Hope was the only thing that the low-class families never lost. They kept a firm in their wishes that someday, Scrooge would change. At the end of the story, Scrooge sends the Cratchit family a huge turkey and for the first time he does not care about announcing who gave this wonderful gift. Scrooge has learned that “giving is more important than receiving and the gift is one of profound pleasure” (English works). Finally, Scrooge has learned the true meaning of being a compassionate and loveable
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.
In the story, “A Christmas Carol”, Scrooge goes through many changes, one of Scrooge is him being one of the most closed minded people in his hometown to the most thoughtful person. This happened when the Ghost of Christmas Present visited Scrooge and showed him Cratchit and his family. Little did Scrooge know one of Cratchit’s children, Tiny Tim, was dying. Him seeing this showed Scrooge what his little pay to Cratchit was doing. As a result, Scrooge began to feel a little more thoughtful and raised Cratchit’s salary in hopes of being able to raise enough money to cure Tiny Tim and to support his family. Doing this, Scrooge became like a second father towards Tiny Tim.
(Dickens 11) During the visit of Christmas Past, Mr. Scrooge traveled through the past from another’s perspective, instead of his own. (Video 1984) To Mr. Scrooge, Christmas is no longer a bah-humbug. No matter what medium you watch A Christmas Carol, there will be one moral: greediness and selfishness will result in a depressing life with loneliness surrounding you. This was the message the three Christmas spirits delivered in conclusion, welcome family and friends into your life, and you will enjoy a jubilant life.
Often, readers don’t hear their protagonist shouting phrases such as “Bah!” and “Humbug!”, yet Ebenezer Scrooge is known as the prime character in the novel A Christmas Carol written by Charles Dickens. Right off the bat, the reader can notice Scrooge is known for being bitter, self absorbed, selfish, and cruel. Over the course of the book, the reader will reevaluate the main character and notice he becomes warmer, joyous, and pleasant. Growth and prosperity have both taken place by the end of the novel.
The novel introduces Scrooge as a man of greed. This is shown in the first stave when Scrooge's clerk Bob Cratchit can barely keep warm by such a small fire "that it looked like one coal." Because of Scrooge's greed, he insists on storing up on his wealth by burning less coal, despite it's lack of warmth. Furthermore, one can notice Scrooge's greed as he refuses to give any donation from his surplus wealth to the poor and destitute that the collectors were raising money for. Scrooge's selfish response to the collectors was, " 'I wish to be left alone...I don't make merry myself at Christmas, and I can't afford to make idle people merry..."
Despite his lofty language and high-handed tone, Ebenezer Scrooge 's grasping ways left him without friends or family. Bob Cratchit, living in his tiny cottage crowded with both children and love, was by far the happier man. Dickens was not, however, advocating poverty as the surest road to contentment. We know that Cratchit will happily accept the assistance Scrooge eventually offers. Rather, Dickens makes
Scrooge is completely heartbroken and ashamed when he finds out that the Cratchit’s Christmas Eve dinner will have an empty seat. When Tiny Tim passes away in the time to come, the Cratchit family and Scrooge, are mournful of the loss. The Cratchit’s, as well as Scrooge himself, are depressed and pitiful. Scrooge has everything compared to the Cratchit family, but desires one thing, Tiny Tim’s pure joy. As he looked in on the Cratchits Christmas Eve dinner, Scrooge didn’t take his eyes off of the boy. He is overjoyed about life and the holiday season despite his crippled condition. He had an overjoyed smile on his face and was surrounded by all he needed: love, shelter, and a warm meal. Tiny Tim did not take anything for granted. Everyday was a miracle for him. He was humble and thankful for the things God had provided for him. He embraced every moment, and was positive that everything happens for a reason. Tiny Tim was an extraordinary kid. He was loved by many (including Scrooge), had the necessities he needed in his life, and took nothing for
This turning point is different than the rest because it is shown to scrooge that the cratchit also has a family and everybody else does too. They care for their family but they need help. Scrooge needs to help them and his own family. The ghost of christmas present them the shadows of christmas present. The cratchit family is a happy family who respect and love what and what they have. Cratchit walks in with tiny tim on his shoulder. He has crutches and a brace on his leg. Cratchit is afraid that he might die. Show in this line
The Ghost of Christmas Past shows Scrooge the kindness of his former employer Fezziwig. Scrooge realizes how he has been a terrible employer to his own clerk Bob Cratchit. Scrooge denied Cratchit even simple pleasures and showed him no kindness or generosity. Scrooge is later visited by the Ghost of Christmas Present and is shown the effect of his greed on the Cratchits. Scrooge learns that Bob Cratchit has an ill child called Tiny Tim. He is grieved to find out that if the future is not changed then Tiny Tim will die. Scrooge wants to change the future for Tiny Tim, but the Ghost of Christmas Present reminds Scrooge of what he said to the collectors when they came to ask for a donation for the poor, by saying “If he like to die, he had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.’” (pg. 52). Seeing Tiny Tim makes him realize that he was wrong and that those he might consider to be unnecessary, could very well be like Tiny Tim. Scrooge is later visited by the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come and finds that Tiny Tim has died. Scrooge regrets having not treated Bob Cratchit better and for having a hand in the death of Tiny Tim. He regrets that his lack of generosity will have resulted in the death of the sweet child and probably others who needed his
We also see Scrooge as a bitter, cold-hearted, tight fisted, greedy man, who despises Christmas and all things which engender happiness. Scrooge has only disgust for the poor, thinking the world would be better off without them, "decreasing the surplus population," and praise for the Victorian era workhouses. He has a particular distaste for the merriment of Christmas, his single act of kindness is to give his clerk, Bob Cratchit, the day off with pay.
Throughout A Christmas Carol, we see exemplary examples that generosity is more about the spirit in which something is given than the item itself, from the schoolmaster's offer of food and wine to a young Scrooge and his adoring young sister Fan, or the humble but merry celebration hosted by Mr. Fezziwig and his wife, or even Fred's offer of assistance to a grieving Bob Cratchit in a future that does not come to pass: as Bob says, “Now, it wasn't for the sake of anything he might be able to do for us,so much as for his kind way, that this was quite delightful. It really seemed as if he had known our Tiny Tim, and felt with us." Despite this, the glee exhibited by the family acts as a stark contrast to their circumstances, endorsing the notion that generosity involves more than the giving of money and that the price of giving ones love and kindness cannot be quantified.
...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 had the cold hearted character Scrooge portray someone who changed his lifestyle and brought several families together to get through a time of great poverty. He planted several characters in the novel to represent impoverished people during the 19th century and what generosity of the wealthy could do to them and the town(Gevatheatre). Dickens never had someone take care of him as a child and he went his whole life with a feeling of abandonment(Gevatheatre). Dickens used realism in his novel to inspire change in the way that the wealthy treat the impoverished families and children, particularly by making the child Tiny Tim’s life rest in the hands of Scrooge in The Christmas Carol
In the novel, “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens, the author tells a story about an irritable man named Ebenezer Scrooge who dislikes Christmas. Not only was this novelette written to amuse and teach a moral lesson, but Charles Dickens also used his ability to express his outlook on the social and economic struggles during his time period which was the Victorian Era. In the novel, he shows the effects of gluttony, fortune, and the ignorance to the welfare of others. This story reveals the economic and social conflicts between the rich and the poor, and resembles how moral corruption and self-indulgence are the results of wealth and power.