A CHRISTMAS CAROL | Money & Happiness, Work & Work life, Meanness & Unkindness

Question 1

‘a man of a worldly mind’
‘Even handled dealing of the world’
‘Hard as poverty’
‘Pursuit of wealth’

Answer 1

• Marley’s ghost insults Scrooge, referencing his materialistic attitude. ‘a man of a worldly mind’
• Dickens’ attempt to establish money as wrong is evident from the start of the novel.
• The ‘pursuit of wealth’ is something people ‘condemn’
• The paradoxical nature of wealth is used to criticize Victorian society.
• The industrial revolution led to major poverty and a lack of common necessities.
• Thomas Malthus’s ideas about population growth and poverty are cited as inspirations for Scrooge’s beliefs on the ‘surplus population’

Question 2

‘golden idol’
‘passion’
“called him father”

Answer 2

Scrooge’s Money-Driven Relationship and Family Emphasis

• Scrooge’s pursuit of money damages his opportunity to start a family.
• feels that a ‘golden idol’ has ‘replaced’ her
• Scrooge’s regret is reflected in his relationship with Belle, who leaves him due to his greedy attitude towards money.
• Belle tells Scrooge that she is leaving him due to his “eager” and “greedy” attitude towards money. She recognises that he no longer has any noble “aspirations” as “gain” is what “engrossed” him
• The deterioration of their relationship is a direct consequence of Scrooge’s fixation with wealth.
• magnitude of his loss is emphasised when they met again and Bella asks him what it would have been like to have children who ‘called him father’
• The novella explores the theme of ‘family’, a key element of Christmas, highlighting the importance of family.
• The Victorian era’s idealized family model, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, exemplifies the changing ideas about family.
• Scrooge’s greed is shown through Belle, proving that money is not equivalent to happiness.

Question 3

‘knocked loudly… to be let out’
‘there never was such a goose cooked’
‘unwatched, unwept, uncared for’

Answer 3

“The Cratchitt Family” by Dickens

• The Cratchitt family’s joy and excitement are portrayed through the ‘knocking loudly’ of potatoes.
• The family’s financial struggles, including the inability to afford turkey, are reflected in their preference for goose as they feel ‘there never was such a goose cooked’
• The family’s unity contrasts starkly with Scrooge’s unwatched, unwept uncared for body, highlighting that poverty isn’t a barrier to happiness.
• Scrooge dismisses the working class as the “surplus population,” a reference to economist Thomas Malthus.
• The cramped housing of the industrial revolution is exemplified by the Cratchit household.
• Close living conditions increased disease spread due to close proximity.

Question 4

‘Scrooge started back, appalled’
‘the words choked themselves’
‘they are Man’s’
‘Are there no prisons?… Are there no workhouses?’

Answer 4

P”Ignorance and Want: A Product of Negligent Capitalist Society”

• Scrooge’s reaction to seeing children reveals his deep disgust and horror - ‘startled back apalled’
• The words “Ignorance and Want” are personified to highlight the tragic nature of these actions.
• The phrase “they are Man’s” suggests that these actions are a result of mankind’s negligence.
• Author surrogate as he himself was split from his family at 12 and was forced to work in Warren’s Blacking factory
• The ghost uses Scrooge’s words to highlight the karma and epiphany that has occurred.
• The story also portrays the extent of poverty, with Dickens using the characters to symbolize the effects of a lack of education.