A Christmas Carol (1843) (edit title/settings)

Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit see section history

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Summary edit see section history

Characters edit see section history

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• Ebenezer Scrooge: The protagonist; The owner of an accountant's office in London. An old man with no Christmas spirit. He is a horrible man who hates Christmas. (I.e. the 1%)
• Jacob Marley: Scrooge's former business partner who passed away and was the first spirit who visited him before the ghost of christmas.
• Bob Cratchit: Scrooge's employee and symbol of simple goodness. Cratchit comes from a poor family and has a wife with two daugthers and two sons, one of whom is Tiny Tim, a cripple. Cratchit wants to make merry for Christmas with his family and Scrooge belittles him for this desire. (I.e. one of the 99%)
• Ghost of Christmas Past: The spirit that comes one night that shows Ebenezer Scrooge past christmas'. Good and bad memories.
• The Ghost of Christmas Present: The second ghost to visit Scrooge who shows Scrooge how others, rich and poor honor the Christmas spirit in the present time.
• The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come: The third and final ghost to visit Scrooge who shows Scrooge what the future holds if he doesn't change his ways.
• Mrs. Cratchit: Wife of Bob Cratchit.
• Tiny Tim: Youngest son of the Cratchits, a loving, crippled child.
• Martha Cratchit: The oldest child of the Cratchits.
• Peter Cratchit: Eldest son of the Cratchits.
• Belinda Cratchit: Second daughter of the Cratchits.
• Fezziwig: Scrooge's old boss when he was a apprentice. A very nice, kind, jolly man. Made all his employees joyous.
• Mrs. Fezziwig: Wife of the store owner where Scrooge worked as a young man.
• Dick Wilkins: Scrooge's fellow apprentice. (In the past)
• Fred: Scrooge's nephew who's enduring Christmas spirit allows him to still love his uncle no matter how mean he is.
• Mrs. Dilber: A laundrywoman who is seen in Scrooge's future selling items stolen from Scrooge's bedchamber to a pawnbroker.
• Joe Miller: A pawnbroker seen in Scrooge's future who buys the items stolen from Scrooge's bedchamber by Mrs. Dilber and a charwoman.
• Caroline: A woman seen in Scrooge's future who owes Scrooge money and celebrates his death.
• Topper: The one who had an eye on one of Scrooge's niece's sisters during the Christmas Party.
• Belle: A woman in Scrooge's past
• Fan: Scrooge's sister and Fred's mother.

Quotes edit see section history

• “Mankind was my business!”

  Ghost of Marley

• “Dead as a doornail”

• “External heat and cold had little influence on Scrooge. No warmth could warm, no wintry weather chill him. No wind that blew was bitterer than he, no falling snow was more intent upon its purpose, no pelting rain less open to entreaty.”

• “Darkness is cheap, and Scrooge liked it.”

• “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!”

  Scrooge

• “God bless us every one!”

  Tiny Tim

• “I have endeavoured in this Ghostly littlebook, to raise the Ghost of an Idea, whichshall not put my readers out of humourwith themselves, with each other, with theseason, or with me. May it haunt theirhouses pleasantly, and no one wish to lay it.”

  Charles Dickens

• “Old Marley was as dead as a doornail. Mind! I don't mean to say that I know, of my own knowledge, what there is particularly dead about a door-nail. I might have been inclined, myself, to regard a coffin-nail as the deadest piece of ironmongery in the trade. But the wisdom of our ancestors is in the simile; and my unhallowed hands shall not disturb it, or the Country's done for. You will therefore permit me to repeat, emphatically, that Marley was as dead as a door-nail.”

  Charles Dickens

• “Business!" cried the Ghost, wringing its hands again. "Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were, all, my business. The dealings of my trade were but a drop of water in the comprehensive ocean of my business!”

  Jacob Marley

• “Scrooge, a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner!”

• “It is a fair, even-handed, noble adjustment of things, that while there is infection in disease and sorrow, there is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good-humour.”

  Charles Dickens

Setting & Locations edit see section history

• Turkey
• Heaven
• Camden Town: Home to Mr. Scrooge's clerk.

Organizations edit see section history

• Scrooge and Marley: The counting-house firm owned by Mr. Ebenezer Scrooge and Mr. Jacob Marley (Who was once Scrooge's parter and was now dead).

First Sentence edit see section history

Table of Contents edit see section history

Glossary edit see section history

• Almshouse: Privately funded lodgings for the poor - as opposed to the workhouse, which was publicly funded.
• Blind man's buff: Popular parlor game in which the contestant is blindfolded. They must then catch another player and guess who he/ she had caught. The game dates from ancient times.
• Humbug: Used to express disbelief or disgust: nonsense or rubish.

Themes & Symbolism edit see section history

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• Redemption: Scrooge changes from bad to good in this story
• Materialism vs. Idealism: At the beginning of the novel, Scrooge seems aware of only the present tense - reality and facts. He believed that money was the answer to life, not love. Anything that needed faith or idealism was absurd (I.e. "Humbug"). Also, the past and future exist only to serve the present. Dickens' attention to clocks and bells reinforces Scrooge's mania with time. The idealists - like the Cratchit family, believed in faith, hope, and love (all things that aren't always attainable). Christmas is the major example of idealism, with religion, Santa Claus, and promise of happiness, and etc.
• Free Will: While Scrooge is shown visions of the future, he states (in Stave Five) that they are only visions of things that "May" be, not what "Will" be. Thus breaking his materialistic view and accepting idealism. Scrooge has the power to change the future with his present actions. Dickens tries to impact this sense of free will to the reader - if Scrooge can change, then so can anyone.
• The Christmas Spirit: Above all, "A Christmas Carol" is a celebration of Christmas and the good it inspires. It was also written during an era of new traditions (I.e. the Christmas tree & greeting cards). At Christmas time, people can forget their worries in favor of friendship, joy and hope. Several represent these virtues in Dickens' cast. Fred is a model of good cheer, while Fezziwig adds to this the dimensions of being a tremendous friend and generous employer. Tiny Tim's courage and selflessness in the face of his ill health are also noteworthy, as is the loving nature of the entire Cratchit family. Scrooge learns the lessons of the Christmas spirit through his visions of Christmases past, present, and future. In each he sees either the good tidings that others bring about through their love and kindness.
• Epiphany: Scrooge is redeemed when he learns to integrate the past, present, and future into his worldview. He ends his obsession for money and power. The help of the Spirits of times, Scrooge is directed to a new way to live his life. His appreciation of the three tenses also comes in one fell swoop - overnight, and suggests that the epiphany (the sudden revelation of a profound meaning in life) encapsulates all three tenses.
• Empathy: Empathy is to understand what another person's life is like; their feelings, beliefs, hopes, heartaches, etc. In order to feel compassion one must feel empathetic. With the help from the Christmas Spirits, Scrooge is able to feel empathy and then compassion towards others. He no longer is a narcissus who is greedy, selfish, heartless, controlling, and rude. In the end, Scrooge is able to find joy and peace with others because of his compassion.
• Redemption (theology): Scrooge's transformation from money-pinching grouch to generous gentleman is what a good and morally right redemption could be. His redemption, a major motif in Christian theory, is made possible by accepting his faults. The Christmas Spirits show Scrooge his errors and sins. Scrooge then begs for forgiveness and the opportunity to redeem himself. His redemption happens all within one night. Scrooge is a changed man by the morning.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens blames the huge class stratification of Victorian England on the selfishness of the rich and on the Poor Laws that keep down the underclass. Scrooge is the obvious symbol of the greedy Victorian rich, while the Cratchits represent the working poor. Dickens goes beyond sentimental portraits and reveals the underbelly of the city (notably in Stave Four). Even in the scene of the thieving workers divvying up the dead Scrooge's possessions, the accountability for their actions is put on Scrooge. Had he not been such a miser, they would not have resorted to stealing from him. When the children of Ignorance and Want crawl out from under the robes of the Ghost of Christmas Present, they send a message to Scrooge. The same message is given to the Victorian reader: to help out those in Want, and beware of Ignorance in oneself and others.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens blames the huge class stratification of Victorian England on the selfishness of the rich and on the Poor Laws that keep down the underclass. Scrooge is the obvious symbol of the greedy Victorian rich, while the Cratchits represent the working poor. Dickens goes beyond sentimental portraits and reveals the underbelly of the city (notably in Stave Four). Even in the scene of the thieving workers divvying up the dead Scrooge's possessions, the accountability for their actions is put on Scrooge. Had he not been such a miser, they would not have resorted to stealing from him. When the children of Ignorance and Want crawl out from under the robes of the Ghost of Christmas Present, they send a message to Scrooge. The same message is given to the Victorian reader: to help out those in Want, and beware of Ignorance in oneself and others.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens blames the Industrial Revolution on the selfishness of the rich and on the Poor Laws that kept the underclass in great poverty. Scrooge is the obvious symbol of the greedy Victorian rich, while the Cratchits represent the working poor. Dickens goes beyond sentimental portraits and reveals the underbelly of the city (notably in Stave Four). Even in the scene of the thieving workers divvying up the dead Scrooge's possessions, the accountability for their actions is put on Scrooge. Had he not been such a miser, they would not have resorted to stealing from him. When the children of Ignorance and Want crawl out from under the robes of the Ghost of Christmas Present, they send a message to Scrooge. The same message is given to the Victorian reader: to help out those in Want, and beware of Ignorance in oneself and others.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens blames the Industrial Revolution on the selfishness of the rich and on the Poor Laws that kept the underclass in great poverty. Scrooge is the obvious symbol of the greedy Victorian rich, while the Cratchits represent the working poor. Dickens goes beyond sentimental portraits and reveals the underbelly of the city (notably in Stave Four). He also uses the children of Ignorance and Want from the Ghost of Christmas Present as a political warning. They gave Scrooge and the Victorian reader a message. To help out those in Want, and beware of Ignorance in oneself and others.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens blames the huge class stratification of Victorian England on the selfishness of the rich and on the Poor Laws that keep down the underclass. Scrooge is the obvious symbol of the greedy Victorian rich, while the Cratchits represent the working poor. Dickens goes beyond sentimental portraits and reveals the underbelly of the city (notably in Stave Four). Even in the scene of the thieving workers divvying up the dead Scrooge's possessions, the accountability for their actions is put on Scrooge. Had he not been such a miser, they would not have resorted to stealing from him. When the children of Ignorance and Want crawl out from under the robes of the Ghost of Christmas Present, they send a message to Scrooge. The same message is given to the Victorian reader: to help out those in Want, and beware of Ignorance in oneself and others.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens blames the huge class stratification of Victorian England on the selfishness of the rich and on the Poor Laws that keep down the underclass. Scrooge is the obvious symbol of the greedy Victorian rich, while the Cratchits represent the working poor. Dickens goes beyond sentimental portraits and reveals the underbelly of the city (notably in Stave Four). Even in the scene of the thieving workers divvying up the dead Scrooge's possessions, the accountability for their actions is put on Scrooge. Had he not been such a miser, they would not have resorted to stealing from him. When the children of Ignorance and Want crawl out from under the robes of the Ghost of Christmas Present, they send a message to Scrooge. The same message is given to the Victorian reader: to help out those in Want, and beware of Ignorance in oneself and others.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Describe this theme.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: L
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens wrote in the wake of British government changes to the welfare system known as the Poor Laws, changes that required among other things, welfare applicants to work on treadmills. Dickens asks, in effect, for people to recognise the plight of those whom the Industrial Revolution has displaced and driven into poverty, and the obligation of society to provide for them humanely. Failure to do so, the writer implies through the personification of Ignorance and Want as ghastly children, will result in an unnamed "Doom" for those who, like Scrooge, believe their wealth and status qualifies them to sit in judgement of the poor rather than to assist them.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens blames the huge class stratification of Victorian England on the selfishness of the rich and on the Poor Laws that keep down the underclass. Scrooge is the obvious symbol of the greedy Victorian rich, while the Cratchits represent the working poor. Dickens goes beyond sentimental portraits and reveals the underbelly of the city (notably in Stave Four). Even in the scene of the thieving workers divvying up the dead Scrooge's possessions, the accountability for their actions is put on Scrooge. Had he not been such a miser, they would not have resorted to stealing from him. When the children of Ignorance and Want crawl out from under the robes of the Ghost of Christmas Present, they send a message to Scrooge. The same message is given to the Victorian reader: to help out those in Want, and beware of Ignorance in oneself and others.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens blames the Industrial Revolution on the selfishness of the rich and on the Poor Laws that kept the underclass in great poverty. Scrooge is the obvious symbol of the greedy Victorian rich, while the Cratchits represent the working poor. Dickens goes beyond sentimental portraits and reveals the underbelly of the city (notably in Stave Four). Even in the scene of the thieving workers divvying up the dead Scrooge's possessions, the accountability for their actions is put on Scrooge. Had he not been such a miser, they would not have resorted to stealing from him. When the children of Ignorance and Want crawl out from under the robes of the Ghost of Christmas Present, they send a message to Scrooge. The same message is given to the Victorian reader: to help out those in Want, and beware of Ignorance in oneself and others.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens wrote in the wake of British government changes to the welfare system known as the Poor Laws, changes that required among other things, welfare applicants to work on treadmills. Dickens asks, in effect, for people to recognise the plight of those whom the Industrial Revolution has displaced and driven into poverty, and the obligation of society to provide for them humanely. Failure to do so, the writer implies through the personification of Ignorance and Want as ghastly children, will result in an unnamed "Doom" for those who, like Scrooge, believe their wealth and status qualifies them to sit in judgement of the poor rather than to assist them.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens wrote in the wake of British government changes to the welfare system known as the Poor Laws, changes that required among other things, welfare applicants to work on treadmills. Dickens asks, in effect, for people to recognise the plight of those whom the Industrial Revolution has displaced and driven into poverty, and the obligation of society to provide for them humanely. Failure to do so, the writer implies through the personification of Ignorance and Want as ghastly children, will result in an unnamed "Doom" for those who, like Scrooge, believe their wealth and status qualifies them to sit in judgement of the poor rather than to assist them.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution
• F
• C
• 1
• 2
• 4
• 5
• 6
• 7
• 8
• 9
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: L
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: L
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: L
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens blames the huge class stratification of Victorian England on the selfishness of the rich and on the Poor Laws that keep down the underclass. Scrooge is the obvious symbol of the greedy Victorian rich, while the Cratchits represent the working poor. Dickens goes beyond sentimental portraits and reveals the underbelly of the city (notably in Stave Four). Even in the scene of the thieving workers divvying up the dead Scrooge's possessions, the accountability for their actions is put on Scrooge. Had he not been such a miser, they would not have resorted to stealing from him. When the children of Ignorance and Want crawl out from under the robes of the Ghost of Christmas Present, they send a message to Scrooge. The same message is given to the Victorian reader: to help out those in Want, and beware of Ignorance in oneself and others.
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Error
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Rror
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Error
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Error
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Error
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Error
• 3
• Victorian Era & Industrial Revolution: Dickens wrote in the wake of British government changes to the welfare system known as the Poor Laws, changes that required among other things, welfare applicants to work on treadmills. Dickens asks, in effect, for people to recognise the plight of those whom the Industrial Revolution has displaced and driven into poverty, and the obligation of society to provide for them humanely. Failure to do so, the writer implies through the personification of Ignorance and Want as ghastly children, will result in an unnamed "Doom" for those who, like Scrooge, believe their wealth and status qualifies them to sit in judgement of the poor rather than to assist them.

Series & Lists edit see section history

Authors & Contributors edit see section history

1. Charles Dickens (Author)

Other Contributors:

1. Michael Patrick Hearn
2. Nancy J. Skarmeas
3. Darwin Reid Payne
4. Tama M. Montgomery
5. Jane Parker Resnick
6. Arthur Rackham
7. Vivian French
8. I. M. Richardson
9. Frank Muller (Reader)
10. John Leech (Illustrator) - Original illustrator.

First Edition edit see section history

Awards edit see section history

• BBC's Big Read (April 2003, #47)
• Audie Award - Narrated by Charlton Griffin (2010: Classic)

Classification edit see section history

• Library of Congress: PR4572.C68
• Dewey: 741.5973

Notes for Parents edit see section history

Wonderful ghost story with a message of redemption. Great read-aloud book for ages as young as 7.

Subjects edit see section history

• Books › Literature & Fiction › World Literature › British › Classics › Dickens, Charles
• Books › Literature & Fiction › Authors, A-Z › ( D ) › Dickens, Charles
• Books › Literature & Fiction › Literary
• Books › Literature & Fiction › Contemporary

Links to Supplemental Material edit see section history

• Wikipedia: Learn more about this book at Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
• Wikisource: Read this book online at Wikisource, the free library.
• Internet Archive Scanned Book: 1910 Hodder & Stoughton Ltd, Illustrator: A. C. Michael
• Librivox Free Audio Book: read by Glen Hallstrom (Total running time: 2:43:45)
• Project Gutenberg: E-book, full text

Movie Connections edit see section history

• A Christmas Carol (animated) (IMDb): 2009; Jim Carrey as Scrooge
• A Christmas Carol: The Musical (IMDb): 2004 Musical
• Christmas Carol: The Movie (animated) (IMDb): 2001; Simon Callow as Scrooge.
• A Christmas Carol (IMDb): 2000
• A Christmas Carol (IMDb): 1999
• The Muppet Christmas Carol (IMDb): 1992
• Scrooged (IMDb): 1988; Bill Murray as Scrooge.
• Christmas Carol (IMDb): 1984
• A Christmas Carol (IMDb): 1984; George C. Scott as Ebenezer Scrooge
• Mickey's Christmas Carol (IMDb): 1983; Scrooge McDuck as Scrooge.
• Christmas Carol (IMDb): 1978
• A Christmas Carol (IMDb): 1971
• A Christmas Carol (IMDb): 1951; Alistair Sim as Scrooge - the quintessential Scrooge!
• A Christmas Carol (IMDb): 1938; Reginald Owen as Scrooge.
• Scrooge (IMDb): 1935; Seymour Hicks as Scrooge.
• A Christmas Carol (IMDb): 1914; Charles Rock as Scrooge
• A Christmas Carol (IMDb): 1910; Marc McDermott as Scrooge.
• The Smurfs: A Christmas Carol (IMDb)
• Mister Magoo's Christmas Carol (IMDb)

More Books Like This edit see section history

Books with Additional Background Information edit see section history

Books That Influenced This Book edit see section history

Books Influenced by This Book edit see section history

Books That Cite This Book edit see section history