A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

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A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

In the book ‘ A Christmas Carol’, Dickens describes the poor, how they

were treated unfairly and how they were thought as animals rather than

human beings. Dickens portrays the rich as ignorant and selfish people

that think they are bigger than the world itself. Charles Dickens new

a lot about poverty, as his parents were not earning enough money to

pay of debts, which meant that Dickens himself had to leave school at

the age of 12 to work in a factory. He had a terrible experience; he

had felt what it was like to be poor, to have no hope for the future

and worked long hours in a dirty factory.

Charles dickens used Scrooge to symbolize the minority of the

population that are inconsiderate & rich. Scrooge was a mean man, who

made people work hard and lived for profit, ‘ but he was a tight

fisted hand at the grindstone’. Ebenezer Scrooge was a cold hearted,

emotionless and pessimistic man that was very lonesome but was not

bothered about this situation. Scrooge had a lifeless source of

friendship, money! As long as he had money, along with power, he was

happy in his miserable home all alone, ‘secret and self contained and

solitary as an oyster.’ Scrooge was a strong minded man who would

rather see poor and destitute people in jail,’ if they would rather

die they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.’

Scrooge had a clerk called Bob Cratchit, who even thought gets treated

unfairly by Ebenezer, still has some respect for him. Mr Cratchit was

one of the poor people described in the novel, along with his family,

but one thing he was rich in was happiness. Bob earned 15 ‘bob’ a week

but was a cheerful man all his life because of his wife and kids. This
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...way they act, so they should be a given a chance to prove themselves.

Also the morale is that happiness is everywhere where you believe it

can be, no matter how poor or rich you are, no matter how ill or well

you are, you can bring happiness, not only for yourself but for others

as well. The ‘present’ Ghost reveals the two children from under his

robe, which represent ignorant and want, are very important to the

novel, especially the Boy. Dickens tries to illustrate the ignorance

of those who could help change things but choose to ignore them, and

also Dickens is trying to express that the poor are ignorant too and

that if they had a little help they would be able to help themselves.

Scrooge does change at the end of the story, once seeing the future

when he was at the graveyard. He helps the Cratchit’s and Tiny Tim

live, which represents light and warmth.

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