Old Gcse A Christmas Carol Essay

Scrooge is an unfortunate character who has been forced to seek comfort in his isolation, but in doing so, has led himself along with the people around him into unfortunate circumstances. Dickens uses Scrooge as a warning to the contemporary audience as unlike Scrooge, a chance for redemption may not come for them. A Christmas Carol may be their chance for redemption.

In the beginning of the didactic novella, A Christmas Carol, the character of Scrooge is depicted as an apathetic and misanthropic fraction of the weathy in society through the use of the metaphorical quotation, "to edge his way along the crowded path of life". In this quotation, Scrooge's parsimonious nature governs him to purposefully avoid the 'crowded path of life', which in this case, could be seen as a metaphor for the poor. In the Victorian Era, it was a wide-spread belief that the poor were in such dire circumstances due to their own faults which caused an abundance of unpopularity towards them and fueled discriminatory laws, such as the 'Poor Laws', which reduced the amount of money spent aiding the poor; Scrooge mirrors this exact belief as he is described to 'edge' his way along. The verb 'edge' in this context, gives off the impression of isolating or distancing yourself from an obstacle yet it also can be seen as risky due to the path being described as 'crowded'. It is interesting that Scrooge still continues to execute such a risky action solely to avoid his own lack of progress and it highlights the extent of the wealthy's selfishness as Scrooge willingly isolates himself from the poor's plight for his own profit. This causes him to live a miserable life 'as solitary as an oyster'. The first description of Scrooge which labels him as a 'covetous, old sinner' could also allude to the biblical theory that the 'crowded path of life' that he is on is a path constructed for sinners. The Bible states - in the book of Matthew - that the road to destruction is broad and many may enter through it. Dickens may have used the quotation in order to reveal to the audience that although there is may be no apparent consequence for their avaricious and exploitative actions on earth, their sins are heavy and inescapable in the afterlife and will leave you remorseful, regretful and much like Marley. He may have also done this in order to expose the aquisitive and uncharitable nature of the upper class.

The Ghost of Christmas Past then reveals to us the foundation for Scrooge's nature through his childhood in Stave Two. It is here we learn that just as akin to Scrooge in the beginning of the novella, he is isolated and solitary and as a child, also 'neglected by his friends' and left to seek comfort solely in his imagination. This is evident in the quotation, "a solitary child, still neglected by his friends, is left there still" which is used to describe how Scrooge was left at the time of Christmas - 'a kind, forgiving, charitable and pleasant time'. The adjective 'solitary' is repeated a multitude of times to describe Scrooge throughout the novella but in this case, he is not choosing to be isolated of his own will but rather he is just being 'left there', ostracised from his peers and family and stranded with no hope to grasp onto. In this context, the adjective being used to describe Scrooge as a child which directly opposes Dickens ideology and perspective of how children should be treated; Dickens strongly believed in the idea that childhood is the foundation of life and it should be protected and stable as it shapes you into the type of adult you will become. However, Scrooge's childhood visibly juxtaposes this through the use of the phrase, 'neglected by his friends'. The verb 'neglected' generally has negative connotations of a deliberate action which creates a sense of seclusion away from something. In addition to this, the verb also gives of the impression of something that is uncared for and continuously avoided; yet this action is being done by his 'friends' - a collection of people who he could trust, people he had a mutual bond of affection with. This puts an emphasis on how severe he was overlooked by society and allows the audience to understand how and why he has become the miserly and unlikeable character he once was. Scrooge 'sobbed' as the memories of his solitary childhood had resurfaced from the restraint of his repression, bringing one of the first genuine outbursts of emotion out from Scrooge and rehumanizes his character from the character who 'external heat and cold' could not affect. Dickens does this to highlight the importance of family.

Hopefully this can help someone, so i didn’t waste my time writing this for a one time use 😭😭