scrooge's attitude towards the poor essay

A Christmas Carol

Describe scrooge's attitude toward the poor and the unfortunate provide a quote of scrooge's that sums up his attitude..

describe srooge's attitude in a formal way and give a quote that goes with your answer.

Initially, Scrooge finds the poor and poverty stricken to be an annoyance. He feels that they somehow deserve their plight and he should not be expected to prolong their miserable existence by giving charity. When a charity worker laments that people would rather die than go to the filthy workhouses, Scrooge replies:

"If they would rather die," said Scrooge, "they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population."

He was an old miser and he was malcontent.

We are learning about this in school in ELA and I just thought you might want to know this :)

im not really sure if i want to put these answers because there not sentence wise .

" if they would rather die, they better do it and decrease the surplus population."

The word "surplus" is an adjective, the adjective indicates an excess in population therefore a reader can infer that Scrooge thinks there is no need for the poor and the destitute that they are in excess. the adjective "surplus" further interlinks with the Malthusian Economic Theory, it shows the inchoate mentality the people of convention had.

i think scrooge is selfish and self-centered towards the poor

Ok so the gcse questions you have to answer now have a way different format of answering so I'm gonna put an answer that would be more convenient to use using the answers above and from the website I've put plus my own writing coz I'm answering a question like this myself rn.

In the 19th century, poverty was a major problem and was a crucial crisis for those who couldn't support themselves. Dickens reflects ACC back to those who were unfortunate and his own experience as a message to the reader to take heed. After the poor law had passed in 1834, life was harsh and workhouses were the only option of being supported but they were horrible and miserable places. Dickens uses language, punctuation, imagery and his own experience to present the theme poverty.

In stave 1, our impression of Scrooge is that he was an old bitter miser and was malcontent. Initially Scrooge finds the poor and poverty to be an annoyance and feels they deserve their plight and that he should not be expected to prolong their miserable existence by giving charity. When a charity worker laments that people would rather die then go to workhouses Scrooge replies,"if their would rather die...surplus population". The word 'surplus' is an adjective which indicates to excess in population therefore the reader can infer that Scrooge thinks that there is no need for the poor and destitute as they are excess. The adjective 'surplus' interlinks with the Malthusian economic theory which shows the inchoate mentality people had. Scrooge continuously asks the workers questions showing his reluctance and displeasure to give charity. "Are there no prisons?" And,"and the union workhouses?" He also asks about the poor law which shows he doesn't care about the poor and dismisses them as they aren't his responsibility. He refers to them as "surplus population" and that they should die which tells us the welfare of the poor doesn't concern Scrooge. He says "mine occupies me constantly" confirming the readers suspicions that Scrooge is inconsiderate and parsimonious.

It's clear that Dickens has a very sympathetic attitude towards the poor and views then as victims of the circumstance. He advocates the giving of charity and strongly opposes the poor law to help ease the burden of charity.

https://quicklitsstudyhelp.wordpress.com/2018/01/27/how-does-dickens-present-poverty-in-a-christmas-carol/

^the question I had to answer that for was :

write about scrooges attitude to poverty in stave 1

if any of my classmates stumble on this you don't know me and don't copy word to word

In stave 1, our impression of Scrooge is that he was an old bitter miser and was malcontent. Initially Scrooge finds the poor and poverty to be an annoyance and feels they deserve their plight and that he should not be expected to prolong their miserable existence by giving charity. When a charity worker laments that people would rather die then go to workhouses Scrooge replies,"if their would rather die...surplus population". The word 'surplus' is an adjective which indicates to excess in population therefore the reader can infer that Scrooge thinks that there is no need for the poor and destitute as they are excess. The adjective 'surplus' interlinks with the Malthusian economic theory which shows the inchoate mentality people had.

"If they would rather die," said Scrooge, "they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population." is the quote he used

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Stave 1: Scrooge's Attitudes to Christmas and the Poor

The story begins on Christmas Eve. Scrooge is in his counting house, working with his clerk, Bob Cratchit.

Attitude to Fred

• Scrooge’s nephew, Fred, enters, wishing his uncle a merry Christmas.
• Scrooge responds with “Bah! Humbug!” and exclaims that he does not know how Fred can be so happy when he is so poor.

Scrooge's attitude to marriage

• Fred invites Scrooge to dinner with him and his wife on Christmas Day.
• Scrooge asks Fred why he got married – when Fred tells him it was because he fell in love, Scrooge growls at him, as if he thinks the whole idea is “ridiculous” .
• Fed up with his cheery nephew, Scrooge continually attempts to ignore him and tries to dismiss him by repeating “good afternoon!”

Scrooge's attitude to the poor

• Two gentlemen enter the counting house and tell Scrooge that they are collecting money for the “poor and destitute, who suffer greatly” .
• Scrooge responds by asking the men “are there no prisons?” He asks if the workhouses are still being used and if the Poor Law is still in effect.
• Scrooge does not feel that anyone needs to worry about poor people because they have options – he does not care about what these options would mean for people (i.e. leaving their families to enter workhouses and to live and work in horrific conditions for very little pay).

Scrooge's attitude to business

• The gentlemen reply that some people “would rather die” than go to the workhouses. Scrooge replies that they should just hurry up and die then, and “decrease the surplus population” .
• He goes on to tell the men that the poor are “not my business” and that “it’s enough for a man to understand his own business, and not to interfere with other people’s” .
• Scrooge dismisses the men and they leave.

Scrooge's attitude to working over Christmas

• Scrooge begrudgingly allows Cratchit the day off for Christmas, but states that he must get to work earlier than usual the day after Christmas Day.
• Cratchit is happy it is Christmas and runs home to play games with his family.
• Scrooge is alone – he has a “melancholy dinner in his usual melancholy tavern” before reading the paper, looking over his banking book, and going home.

Attitude to Christmas

• Scrooge complains that Christmas is just a time for wasting money and paying more bills – he thinks that anyone who celebrates Christmas is foolish and should be “buried with a stake of holly through his heart” .
• Fred tells Scrooge that Christmas is good because it is the one time in the year when people open up their hearts to one another – it is a “kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time” .

Stave 1: Scrooge is Spooked

Dickens introduces the supernatural in the first stave.

Symbolism and pathetic fallacy

• Scrooge’s home is described as being “dreary” and “old” – his life, home and personality are lifeless and lack any sort of fun or vitality.
• Maybe Scrooge cannot see the enjoyment in his life because he is metaphorically trapped in the fog of his own unhappiness.

Ghostly images

• Upon reaching his front door, Scrooge looks at the door knocker – it seems to take the shape of Marley’s face.
• Right from the start of the novella, Charles Dickens sows the seeds of the supernatural. He makes these ghostly images and ideas appear, which puts the readers on edge as they wonder what will happen next.

• Scrooge is rattled - he “double-locked himself in, which was not his custom” .
• He sits in front of the fire and eats his meal: gruel. On Christmas Eve, Scrooge is alone, eating gruel (which was quite tasteless and cheap), in front of “a very low fire indeed” on a freezing cold night.
• Dickens portrays Scrooge as a lonely man, obsessed with hoarding money and not spending it, even for his own comfort or enjoyment.

Stave 1: Marley's Ghost

Marley's ghost appears to Scrooge to warn him about how he is living his life.

Ghost's entrance

• An old, disused bell suddenly starts moving and chiming loudly. Every bell in the house starts chiming as well. Then, just as suddenly, all of the bells stop.
• From the cellar, Scrooge hears a clanging noise, which sounds like somebody dragging chains.
• He remembers hearing stories about ghosts dragging chains but refuses to believe that these stories might be true.
• He grows pale as he watches a ghost start to pass through his closed door and into the room.

Identifies ghost

• Scrooge realises that the ghost wearing chains is Jacob Marley (his old, dead partner).
• Marley’s ghost wears a long, heavy chain made of “cash boxes, keys, padlocks, ledgers, deeds, and heavy purses wrought in steel”.

Marley's chain

• Marley’s ghost says: “I wear the chain I forged in life”.
• In life, he created the heavy burden (the chain) through his own actions and mistakes. This chain now weighs him down in death.
• He tells Scrooge that his own chain is “ponderous” (heavy) and that he keeps doing things in his life which are making his chain longer and heavier.
• He tells Scrooge that he is there to warn him and give him a chance to change his fate.
• Scrooge will be haunted by three ghosts.

Hundreds of ghosts

• As he talks, Marley moves back to the window. Scrooge follows and sees hundreds of ghostly figures floating around, all with heavy chains wrapped around them, all seeming to moan and groan unhappily.
• Scrooge can see how these self-inflicted chains that people create in their lives seem to cause them pain and misery in death as well.
• As the ghosts all fade, Scrooge goes to bed.

1 Plot Summary

1.1 Plot Summary

1.1.1 Outline

1.1.2 Introducing Scrooge & Marley

1.1.3 Stave 1

1.1.4 Stave 2

1.1.5 Stave 3

1.1.6 End of Topic Test - Staves 1-3

1.1.7 Stave 4

1.1.8 Stave 5

1.1.9 End of Topic Test - Staves 4-5

2 Key Characters & Quotes

2.1 Ebenezer Scrooge

2.1.1 Outline & Stave 1

2.1.2 Stave 2

2.1.3 Stave 3

2.1.4 Stave 4

2.1.5 Stave 5 & Key Quotes

2.1.6 End of Topic Test - Ebeneezer Scrooge

2.2 Other Characters

2.2.1 Bob Cratchit

2.2.2 Tiny Tim

2.2.4 The Ghosts Pt 1

2.2.5 The Ghosts Pt 2

2.2.6 End of Topic Test - Other Characters

2.3 Grade 9 - Key Characters

2.3.1 Grade 9 - Key Characters

2.3.2 Grade 9 - Extract Analysis

3 Key Ideas

3.1 Key Ideas

3.1.1 Inequality, Ignorance & Want

3.1.2 Duality, Family & Love

3.1.3 Christianity & Redemption

3.1.4 End of Topic Test - Key Ideas

3.1.5 Grade 9 - Key Themes

4.1 Context

4.1.1 Dickens & Victorian England

4.1.2 Poverty & Victorian Christmas

4.1.3 Exam-Style Questions - Poverty

4.1.4 Gothic Fiction

4.1.5 Gothic Fiction & Victorian England

4.1.6 End of Topic Test - Context

5 Authorial Method

5.1 Structure & Techniques

5.1.1 Structure & Time

5.1.2 Time Frame & Pace

5.1.3 Narrative Voice & Tone

5.1.4 Settings, Similes & Metaphors

5.1.5 End of Topic Test - Authorial Method

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‘A Christmas Carol’: Sending the Poor to Prison

• December 22, 2017
• By Matthew Caruchet

Illustration of the Ghost of Christmas Present by John Leech from the 1800s.

When he was 12 years old in 1824, Charles Dickens worked 10-hour days in a rat-infested shoe-polish factory for six shillings a week. That’s the equivalent of £30.68 or $41.06 in 2017 currency.

It was all the money he had to get by. His father, mother, and five siblings aged 2-11 were in prison because the family was in debt. This is what Western society did with the poor in the mid-1800s. If you fell behind on your bills or couldn’t pay legal fines, you and your family went to flea-ridden government workhouses where you would labor to earn your keep.

Your work did not, however, pay off your debts – you could spend the rest of your life there. If you died in a debtor’s prison, your body was given to anatomists to dissect in the name of science.

Needless to say, Charles Dickens grew to hate the system and rail against it in his works. In his seminal novella “A Christmas Carol,” Ebenezer Scrooge is visited by two portly men raising money for the poor.

“At this festive season of the year, Mr. Scrooge,” said the [one of the gentlemen], taking up a pen, “it is more than usually desirable that we should make some slight provision for the Poor and destitute, who suffer greatly at the present time. Many thousands are in want of common necessaries; hundreds of thousands are in want of common comforts, sir.” “Are there no prisons?” asked Scrooge. “Plenty of prisons,” said the gentleman, laying down the pen again. “And the Union workhouses?” demanded Scrooge. “Are they still in operation?” “They are. Still,” returned the gentleman, “I wish I could say they were not.” “The Treadmill and the Poor Law are in full vigour, then?” said Scrooge. “Both very busy, sir.” “Oh! I was afraid, from what you said at first, that something had occurred to stop them in their useful course,” said Scrooge. “I’m very glad to hear it.” “Under the impression that they scarcely furnish Christian cheer of mind or body to the multitude,” returned the gentleman, “a few of us are endeavouring to raise a fund to buy the Poor some meat and drink, and means of warmth. We choose this time, because it is a time, of all others, when Want is keenly felt, and Abundance rejoices. What shall I put you down for?” “Nothing!” Scrooge replied. “You wish to be anonymous?” “I wish to be left alone,” said Scrooge. “Since you ask me what I wish, gentlemen, that is my answer. 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.” “Many can’t go there; and many would rather die.” “If they would rather die,” said Scrooge, “they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.”

Interpretations of “A Christmas Carol” have often tried to turn it into an assault on the wealthy, critiquing capitalism’s effect on society. It is not. There is nothing wrong with being very wealthy in Dickens’ book. The two good men raising money for the poor are capitalists and entrepreneurs. They are “portly” in a time when food was scarce and people starved on the streets.

The evil in society comes from indifference towards fellow people and a reliance on a governmental system that does more harm than good.

Take for instance the “Treadmill” and “Poor Law” mentioned above.

A treadmill at Brixton Prison in London in the 1800s.

The treadmill was a feature in prisons where inmates would walk endlessly, pushing a huge wheel while holding bars at chest height. With every step, the wheel would turn, grinding corn. Prisoners were allowed 12 minutes of break every hour. It was meant to be a form of “preventive punishment” so difficult that that nobody exposed to it would ever risk reoffending.

The Poor Law is a reference to the popular economic theories of Thomas Malthus. Malthus argued that ruinous poverty and starvation were necessary ills, as society could not possibly provide for everyone and death would remove the undesirables from the population. He supported the Poor Law to create workhouses for the poor, as people who were unable to sustain themselves did not have the right to live.

In the fevered haunting of the second night, Scrooge and the Ghost of Christmas Present visit the holiday celebration of Bob Cratchit, with its tiny pudding to serve a family of seven. Bob works 60 hours a week and earns 15 shillings – £89.78 or $120.19 in 2017 dollars.

His son, Tiny Tim, would have died under the Poor Law system. That’s why, of all the Christmas spirits, the Ghost of Christmas Present has the most disdain for Scrooge, mockingly spitting his words back at him.

“God bless us every one!” said Tiny Tim, the last of all. He sat very close to his father’s side upon his little stool. Bob held his withered little hand in his, as if he loved the child, and wished to keep him by his side, and dreaded that he might be taken from him. “Spirit,” said Scrooge, with an interest he had never felt before, “tell me if Tiny Tim will live.” “I see a vacant seat,” replied the Ghost, “in the poor chimney-corner, and a crutch without an owner, carefully preserved. If these shadows remain unaltered by the Future, the child will die.” “No, no,” said Scrooge. “Oh, no, kind Spirit! say he will be spared.” “If these shadows remain unaltered by the Future, none other of my race,” returned the Ghost, “will find him here. What then? If he be like to die, he had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.” Scrooge hung his head to hear his own words quoted by the Spirit, and was overcome with penitence and grief.

It’s easy for Scrooge to feel sorry for Tiny Tim. It’s someone he knows – a single instance with a face and a personality. But it’s harder to feel compassion for large swathes of people, faceless segments of the population hidden away in debtor’s prisons and workhouses. That’s why the Ghost of Christmas Present has more words to throw back as he dies.

“Forgive me if I am not justified in what I ask,” said Scrooge, looking intently at the Spirit’s robe, “but I see something strange, and not belonging to yourself, protruding from your skirts. Is it a foot or a claw!” “It might be a claw, for the flesh there is upon it,” was the Spirit’s sorrowful reply. “Look here.” From the foldings of its robe, it brought two children; wretched, abject, frightful, hideous, miserable. They knelt down at its feet, and clung upon the outside of its garment. “Oh, Man! look here. Look, look, down here!” exclaimed the Ghost. They were a boy and girl. Yellow, meagre, ragged, scowling, wolfish; but prostrate, too, in their humility. Where graceful youth should have filled their features out, and touched them with its freshest tints, a stale and shrivelled hand, like that of age, had pinched, and twisted them, and pulled them into shreds. Where angels might have sat enthroned, devils lurked, and glared out menacing. No change, no degradation, no perversion of humanity, in any grade, through all the mysteries of wonderful creation, has monsters half so horrible and dread. Scrooge started back, appalled. Having them shown to him in this way, he tried to say they were fine children, but the words choked themselves, rather than be parties to a lie of such enormous magnitude. “Spirit! are they yours?” Scrooge could say no more. “They are Man’s,” said the Spirit, looking down upon them. “And they cling to me, appealing from their fathers. This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want. Beware them both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom, unless the writing be erased. Deny it!” cried the Spirit, stretching out its hand towards the city. “Slander those who tell it ye! Admit it for your factious purposes, and make it worse! And bide the end!” “Have they no refuge or resource?” cried Scrooge. “Are there no prisons?” said the Spirit, turning on him for the last time with his own words. “Are there no workhouses?”

Note that Ignorance is worse than Want. Want is an immediate need – food to eat, a bed to sleep in. But Ignorance keeps you from ever improving your situation. Without education, children are condemned to a lifetime of poverty, creating a permanent underclass that dooms society as a whole.

As we all know, Scrooge awakes from his last ghostly visit a new man. He buys Bob Cratchit a turkey and pays the two portly men hefty sums to help the poor. Then he goes to celebrate Christmas at a sumptuous party thrown by his wealthy nephew Fred.

Again, “A Christmas Carol” is not an attack on wealth. Scrooge remains wealthy in the end, and the ideal Christmas is a celebration filled with excesses of food, drink and gifts. But it condemns the violence of looking away, ignoring the evils foisted on people who cannot afford to survive in society, and the political structure that keeps mortifying poverty in place.

It’s easy to believe we don’t live in a society with the sheer injustice of Victorian England. But there are many similarities.

A debtor’s prison in London.

Two hundred years ago, the United States banned debtors’ prisons, but they still exist today . State and local courts raise money by charging fees to people convicted of crimes. In Washington State, people who are unable to pay parking tickets and fines for low-level offenses are jailed , without options for alternatives or community service.

In prison, people often have to pay for their own incarceration , a debt that follows them when they are freed. Prisons have also become workhouses, paying inmates paltry wages for work while incarcerated. In Washington, inmates earn $0.36 an hour working for private industry , and up to $2.70 an hour working for state-owned industries.

We have a tax system in Washington reliant on property and sales taxes, which affect the poor more than the rich. While the poorest in our state pay 16.8 percent of their income in state and local taxes, the rich pay only 2.4 percent.

Our education system is chronically underfunded , with one of the highest student-teacher ratios in the country. Increasing amounts of money are being funneled out of public schools and into charter schools – cementing Ignorance in the children of families who can’t afford a private education.

In Seattle, we have the third-highest homeless population in the country , even though Seattle is the nation’s 18th-largest city. Black people are being priced out of the city . Seattle is now at a level of income inequality rivaling San Francisco .

Dickens wasn’t against wealth; he was against greed. He was against income inequality so stark that the people at the bottom could barely survive, and that people who could not work were better off dead.

Dickens also believed it’s never too late for redemption. “A Christmas Carol” teaches that people who turn a blind eye to suffering are still inherently good in their deepest heart. They are just unable to put themselves in the shoes of the less fortunate. Or, as I would like to believe happens to many of us, they are so overcome with the enormity of society’s problems that they are stricken with paralysis.

To that, the story provides an elegant solution – enjoy your life, help those around you that you can have an immediate effect on, and work to change a system that propagates destitution.

• Leave a Reply

The Multiple Tragedies of “Skibbereen” ‹ https://www.cherrycreekchorale.org

[…] a debtor’s prison, your body was given to anatomists to dissect in the name of science. (from “A Christmas Carol: Sending the Poor to Prison”—The entire article is well worth a […]

Mar 3 2020 at 4:25 PM

Do you not realize that capitalism is what causes “the indifference towards fellow people and a reliance on a governmental system that does more harm than good”?

Dec 4 2020 at 10:36 AM

Capitalism does not cause indifference toward our fellow people; a desire to lift oneself above others feeds that inequality, and it sadly happens in any economic system.

Dec 13 2020 at 7:21 PM

Bruce Veale

One only has to look at places like CA, NYS and NJ to see high income taxes, high property taxes and high sales taxes. Giving Inslee an income tax is just handing him another source of money to tax and he’s never seen a tax he didn’t like.

Dec 31 2020 at 1:02 PM

Does anyone know the names of the gentlemen who asked for donations from Scrooge?

Dec 1 2021 at 3:39 PM

Benjamin George Coles

Mostly I thought this was a good essay, but I felt it skirted some difficult questions, like: Is it OK to live in luxury, while people around you don’t even have the means to meet their basic needs (and, in fact, through no fault of their own, fundamentally – but because of the system you describe)? You do object to greed towards the end of your essay, but that’s one common-sense way you could define greed. Earlier in your essay, you seem to say it’s OK for some to be ‘portly’ while others starve – you seem to say the portly can still be ‘good’ in that case. Isn’t that the same greed you condemn at the end of the essay? If not, how so? Also: What exactly qualifies one as ‘wealthy’? Does wealthiness, just conceptually, imply fairly extreme inequality? Or could everyone be wealthy? If resources were sufficiently distributed for everyone to have the means to meet their basic needs, would there be enough left for anyone to be wealthy, in your sense? Or for anyone to live in luxury? If not, what then?

And as for your interpretation of Dickens… I don’t know. It’s been too long since I read the book. You might be bang on. But I think the material you quote doesn’t quite show what you imply it does. For instance, the fact that those gentlemen were collecting for charity does not necessarily mean they’re ‘good’ in any simple sense, or that Dickens viewed them that way. Dickens may have meant their portliness is to indicate their own hypocrisy. That wouldn’t necessarily mean they’re evil either. Just normal people, with good sides, and bad sides.

Dec 6 2021 at 10:28 AM

I love this story. However it isn’t until now at life’s midpoint and all its experiences that has led me to realize our place in the world. Some people argue for the free market and capitalism others fairness and living wages. While others will take advantage of both. All these examples are found here in this story. Amazing it’s reverence in our lifetime.

Dec 8 2021 at 12:29 PM

The two gentlemen are not named in the Dickens novel.

Dec 25 2021 at 9:11 PM

Capitalism is the allocations of scarce resources that have alternative uses. Put differently, it is anger management at reasonable (2%) ratio of risk.

Jan 12 2023 at 10:20 AM

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'A Christmas Carol' Stave 1: Scrooge the Miser

I can understand how Scrooge is portrayed in the opening of the novella

Lesson details

Key learning points.

• Scrooge is portrayed as a miser
• Dickens experienced poverty firsthand and dedicated his life to campaigning for better legislation to support the poor
• Dickens uses the setting of Scrooge's lodgings to reflect his miserly nature
• Dickens is critical towards those who lack compassion for the poor, like Scrooge
• Scrooge represents selfish and greedy upper-middle class Victorian citizens, who showed little empathy for the poor

Common misconception

Pupils think that Scrooge keeps his money to himself so that he can spend it on himself.

Scrooge's frugality also extends to his own existence: Scrooge refuses to spend money even on himself, choosing to live a meagre lifestyle.

Preface - The preface comes at the beginning of a book and introduces its aims or scope.

Impoverished - Someone impoverished would have very little money and very few possessions.

Staves - Dickens calls his chapters ‘staves’.

Avaricious - Being avaricious means having an extreme greed for wealth or possessions.

Miser - A miser is a person who hoards wealth and spends as little money as possible.

You will need access to a copy of Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol' for this lesson.

Content guidance

• Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
• Depiction or discussion of sensitive content

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited ( 2024 ), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Starter quiz

6 questions.

represents generosity (Scrooge's are always very small).

darkness -  

represents Scrooge's ignorance

represents Scrooge's miserliness - he denies himself luxury

bitter weather -  

represent Scrooge's cold-hearted nature

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Consider Dickens's portrayal of Scrooge's change in attitude in a "Christmas Carol". What message do you feel Dickens Conveys to the reader?

English Coursework

Consider Dickens’s portrayal of Scrooge’s change in attitude in a “Christmas Carol” What message do you feel Dickens Conveys to the reader.

The essay will discuss the moral messages, which can be interpreted in the novel. It will examine the main character Scrooge, and his attitude towards life, his mean, grumpy and selfish character and his lack of Christian charity. It will explain the transformation of Scrooge and why the transformation occurred.

Scrooge's mean attitude was demonstrated when he said to his nephew,

“What right have you to be Merry? You're poor enough"

This is the first indication that Scrooge was not in the Christmas spirit as he was not joyful. This is also an indication that Scrooge was greedy and mean with his money. He thought that you can only be merry by becoming wealthier.

Scrooge said,

"… Christmas time… time for paying bills without money… and not an hour richer"  

This quotation enforced the comment that Scrooge was not in the Christmas Spirit. It also tells us Scrooge was worried about paying bills and making money and becoming richer.

Scrooge's lack of Christian charity was visible when two charity workers asked for donations and Scrooge refused. Scrooge said,

“Are there no prisons…workhouses?"  

“I can't afford to make idle people merry"

 These two quotations refer to poor people; Scrooge did not have any compassion towards these poor people. He called them idle people, which re-enforced his lack of Christian spirit. It also shows that Scrooge is not a true Christian as true Christians give money to charity. Scrooge is angry with poor people for no apparent reason and said that they should die and

“Decrease the surplus population"

These quotations show Scrooge was greedy he wanted fewer people on earth so he can have more money. This again shows that he had no feelings for poor people, as his business will only appeal to wealthy people.

Scrooge was cruel and heartless and did not allow others to celebrate Christmas. He said,

“A poor excuse to pick a man's pocket every twenty-fifth December!"

He was extremely insensitive and cold-hearted he became furious when his clerk asks him for a day off on Christmas Day. He ignored his nephew when he said,

"Merry Christmas Uncle"

As this demonstrated he wanted everyone to be miserable at Christmas and did not allow his clerk and nephew to celebrate Christmas in the traditional way by being merry and enjoying Christmas. Bob Cratchit was probably on low wages because Scrooge was tight with his money. He also told him to come to work early the next day.

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Later in the novel Marley's face appears on his doorknocker. This could show that Scrooge does care about Marley as he looked behind him when he goes into his house. It is visible in the house, that Scrooge was very strict with his money and did not spend it on himself. The outlook of his house was dull. This quotation illustrated this

“It was old enough, dreary enough, for nobody but Scrooge"

The inside of his house was also dull and dark and was like nobody lived in it. He had splinters on his staircase and it was dark and dull, which was very similar to Scrooge’s character. He had a “heavy door" which again shows he did not spend any money on his house. He was very conscientious about his fuel as he only used a handful so only a small amount of heat was generated. His fireplace was old and the tiles were "disjointed" Scrooge did not spend any money on his food either as he had a meagre meal. He had gruel and this sort of meal was associated with poor people. There was irony as he disliked poor people yet behaved as though he is underprivileged. He could afford it but was parsimonious with almost everything including food, utilities and repairing damaged parts of his house. The moral issues in this section of the novel are not to behave in the manner Scrooge is behaving. This was to give money to charity and spend your money wisely and on the necessities and essentials in life. The other message was to be happy at Christmas and celebrate the birth of Christ.        

The appearance of Marley's ghost was to frighten Scrooge and offer him chance to change his wicked ways. Marley tried to shock people that doing sinful acts causes bad consequences in the afterlife. The ghost had links on his arm; they represented the sins that Marley is trying to make Scrooge realise. Scrooge however, is given a chance in the novel because of Marley's ghost. The novel was trying to exemplify that in real-life you do not get a chance so change your ways as soon as possible. The appearance of Marley's ghost is also very entertaining as ghosts and spirits are interesting as they are fictitious and very rarely are there sightings in reality. Marley also said how people should behave in life, as a ghost is entertaining, the moral message could reach many people.

“The common welfare… charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence"

These are reference to how humans should behave in this life. Scrooge's attitude towards the ghost was relaxed and thought the ghost has no relevance to him. He asked a question

“Could I take'em all at once and have it over with"

This showed that he was still worried about his business; as he does not want to lose time focusing on it. Dickens introduced humour into the novel as it is a time when the reader least expects Scrooge to show a relaxed attitude.

The ghost of Christmas Past tried to demonstrate to Scrooge and the reader that Scrooge had transformed and was not always monotonous and ill tempered. The first time in the novel Scrooge was laughing when shown "Ali Baba". This showed that Scrooge did have another side to him. The spirit also hinted to Scrooge that Scrooge had transformed into a grumpy man. It seemed Scrooge had forgotten what he was like when he was younger. The spirit said,

“…Strange to have forgotten it"

Scrooge regretted the things he had done in life. The moral message is that it is not too late to change your ways as God is forgiving. Scrooge regretted what he had done in the past when he said,

“…A boy singing Christmas Carol…I should have given him something."  

The moral message here was that it was all right to regret because you know you have done wrong and you have learnt from your mistakes. The same message was trying to be illustrated and this was to love the young and be generous to them and give money for good deeds. The First Spirit showed Scrooge, his sister, Scrooge remembered the happy times and the spirit was trying to see if this made Scrooge regret his mean attitude towards his nephew. The moral message in this section was to love your family and protect your children. Scrooge when shown his ex-employer Fezziwig, was quite excited by seeing him. Fezziwig allowed him to party on Christmas Eve. Scrooge again regretted what he has done when he said,

“I should be able to say a word or two to my clerk now"  

It can be seen that Scrooge did once love and did actually have a love life. Scrooge was distraught when he saw his former partner married to another man and this shows he regretted not marrying her. Later The Cratchits was shown where they celebrated Christmas properly. The ghost is giving another moral message he is telling Scrooge and reader the correct way Christians should behave. It was possible interpret a moral message from each scene. Scrooge is shown. He was also saying that you should not be how Scrooge is at present. Again, there is always a chance to change your ways. In real-life people probably fantasized about turning the clock back if they could change their ways. You only have one chance which you should take in this life, otherwise later you may have to face the consequences.

The ghost of Christmas past shows a moral message: other people having a Merry Christmas. It reiterates the point that we should give money to charity and to the poor, as they need it most. It does not matter what sort of person you are you should go to Church and remember the reason why Christmas is celebrated in first place. The ghost takes Scrooge to the Cratchits and shows him how to be Merry at Christmas. The moral message was to have special treats at Christmas spend money freely but wisely and maintain a happy atmosphere. There was a moral message when Scrooge saw Tiny Tim you should be compassionate to less fortunate people. Scrooge was also showing compassion and showed that he cared when he said “Tell me if Tiny Tim will live." The Ghost repeated what Scrooge said earlier that we should decrease the surplus population. Scrooge also realised that he had made a mistake in the way he handled things with his nephew. Later in another scene the ghost said, “The boy is ignorance and the girl is Want". He was speaking of the realities in Victorian SOCIETY.

Other moral messages were to be thoughtful of others because they are your friends and neighbours even if you are not talking to them. This section is very entertaining as you are allowed to find out other people's true feelings towards you.

The third Spirit shows him what will happen if he continued in this manner the opinions of him. A man said, “I thought he'd never die" It shows if you are mean to others you will expect the same back. There are some people discussing the death of Scrooge and deciding what clothes to put on him. These choose some horrible one it showed nobody cared for him as he did not care for anybody else. The spirit showed Scrooge his grave and Tiny Tim. This was to shock Scrooge and show him the consequences if carries on the way he has. Scrooge shows hope when he said

“I yet may change these shadows you have shown me, by an altered life"  

This is the appearance of the ghost and the ways Scrooge could look into the future. Scrooge was given a chance and he does finally take. This is evident in the ways he behaves after the Ghost of the Future. He complimented a boy and said “What a delightful boy!" This was very rare for Scrooge to be kind to children. He also becomes in the Christmas Spirit as he asks a child to bring turkey. Scrooge also went to see Fred where he brought joy and happiness. He helped the struggling Cratchits and Tiny Tim did no die showing charity and compassion. These were all the qualities, which was not visible at the beginning of the novel. It showed that he had transformed into a kind and loving man. The moral message is to be inspired by Scrooge's transformation and try to transform you into the 'new' Scrooge. Dickens tries to encourage people to educate the poor; he is trying to show the effects if we do not help the poor.

'A Christmas Carol' is undoubtedly a moral novel. This was visible in many parts of the novel. There are both indirect and direct moral messages. The why many people find it moralistic. Many people in the world can relate to issues discussed in the novel. These include greed, not donating to charity, helping poor and needy, regret, compassion, Scrooge was given a chance but many in reality will not be given one The novel changes from telling how not to behave but also tells them how to behave through the character of Scrooge.

Alex Trofimov        Page

Document Details

• Word Count 1997
• Page Count 4
• Subject English

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