Scrooge In The Christmas Carol

Have you ever met someone so grouchy that his name might be Scrooge? The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens has many great characters. Are you curious about what happens to the great characters? Do you feel like it has good slang and symbols? The Christmas Carol was the most successful book in 1843, and also by Christmas, it sold six thousand copies and it continued to be popular into the New Year. Now it’s time to get into the true meanings of the characters, tone, and symbols.

In The Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens Ebenezer Scrooge, since he is the main character of the story, All 3 ghosts visit him. In the book, he is made out like he hates Christmas and he is constantly hating on others in the book, some feeling pity, others

I don’t make merry myself at Christmas, and I can’t afford to make idle people merry. I help to support the establishments I have mentioned--- they cost enough; and those who are badly off must go there.” (Dickens 15). The feeling I get about Scrooge is that he had such a messed up life that he doesn’t know how to be happy anymore. Tiny Tim’s father Bob Cratchit is an employee of Scrooge and he is the only one in the Cratchit family to thank him honestly for the job. The pay that he has given him to support his family and keep food in their bellies. "…and in came little Bob, the father, with at least three feet of comforter, exclusive on the fringe, hanging down before him, and his threadbare clothes all darned up to look seasonable, and Tiny Tim upon his shoulder."(Dickens 121). Cratchit seems honest even though he has no money to support his family. He is doing his job as a parent to make sure they have food, even if they ask for

If you live your life in seclusion, only speaking to those who you must and always being nasty, you can never be truly happy. Dickens uses Scrooge as the epitome of selfishness and we are supposed to realize this and contrast it with Tiny Tim’s attitude of caring and sharing. He is the epitome of joy and hope. He is the person in the book with who we are supposed to learn from. The ghost is the conduit from which we are to understand the past, present, and future of an unhappy man. Life in the 1800’s was one of simplicity; everyone seemed to know each other in their area. People lived and worked in their neighborhood, which brought a greater sense of community and family values. Some Christmas customs were hanging candles from a tree instead of ornaments. Holidays always seemed to be a gathering of people to celebrate the occasion. The dress in the time period seemed to be top hats, slacks, vest, and a coat. From the movie that we watched, the style seemed very formal. When speaking to another person, it was speaking in proper English, never a "Yo" or a "Whaz up". This is because of the time period and the slang we use now had developed with our generation. Although very different, it is very, much alike. A Christmas Carol was a very good book and a lesson to be learned by all, and in the words of Tiny Tim, "God Bless Us, everyone"