A Christmas Carol Themes Flashcards
Belle and Scrooge family and greed
“Another idol has displaced me”
-greed leads to unhappiness and leads to loneliness
-“idol” symbolises Scrooges love for money because it connotes worshipping something. Conveys Scrooge has changed into his father because his father didn’t value family either. Idol also suggest greed can’t do you wrong because you look up to an idol positively. This juxtaposes hiw greed actually treats Scrooge
-links to when he sees belles new family because he realises he could have had that but he threw it away
-“displaced” wealth has taken residence in Scrooges heart because he’s lost his love for belle. This conveys scrooges wealth is his own fault because he has managed to overcome his childhood but by abandoning her, he’s no bette pr than his father because he abandoned Scrooge
Also shows belles strong morals because she broke with him suggesting if he didn’t want a family she couldn’t live with him.
By revisiting this it’s the start of scrooges journey because he realises money can’t give him a family
However it’s ironic because his money saves tiny Tim and they become like a family
Context: Dickens father, ragged schools,family unit
Scrooge greed
“His offences carry their own punishment”
-personification his greed is the crime because it’s made him cold and he won’t take responsibility for others
His punishment is his loneliness because his greed has made him incapable of love so it’s stripped him of his humanity. All this time he thought he was doing what he wanted but his decisions back fire against him
-“carry” implies Scrooges loneliness is a burden because he’s weighed down by what he’s done. It suggests he takes it everywhere he goes so it’s become the norm and Scrooge doesn’t think he can change - links to Marley always carrying around his chains
It’s ironic that Scrooge doesn’t realise why he needs the ghosts. because it’s him who has made the problems for himself
-Fred said this line implies he believes Scrooge can change, Dickens idea family changes society
Context: family, business men,
Greed towns people
“Why wasn’t he natural on his lifetime?”
Scrooges greed has turned others greedy, Dickens does it to show people can influence others so little things go a long way
He’s unnatural because he differs to the rest of society because he’s greedy
Lifetime suggests Scrooge has been greedy for so long he doesn’t remember normal, neither do the townspeople because Scrooge used to be good
The dialogue shows this is what people rly thought about him so it will cause him pain and want to change because he doesn’t want to be remembered in that negative way
The question implies the towns people don’t understand why anyone could be so greedy and choose to live a life of isolation. Greed has led him into the darkness
That fact their questioning his bad behaviour shows their trying to make allowances for what their doing, there going against their morals and juxtapose why Scrooge was greedy
Context industrialisation, family and Dickens
Want and ignorance responsibility, poverty
“Stale and shrivelled”
Conveys how society is going to end up because how well children were determined how society was doing
-both words in the lexical field of poverty, by seeing how society have hurt children makes people want to change
-“stale” connotates being out out of date juxtaposes how new generation should and suggests society needs to change to survive
Also children symbolise youth and hope but these children juxtapose that so Dickens may feel hope as gone for change and this book is his last resort
“Shrivelled” suggesting society is failing children because it connotates people dying and society’s getting worse
Context: poverty, family, child labour and children education and poor laws
Charitable Gentlemen responsibility, generosity and poverty
“… and many would rather die”
-emotive language to target audiences emotion and see their responsible for society failing
-charitable gentlemen have responsibility because they’re trying to help but can’t do it alone. Little things help but it’s lots of people who make change stick
“Many” symbolises how much poverty there is because it’s repeated and therefore shows how much change needs to happen
-“die” is a violent verb and shows how bad things were because Christians were religious and suicide was the ultimate sin but they were willing to go against god because of their suffering
Also conveys how lack of responsibility can take away life and how having even a little responsibility gives life, Scrooge and tiny Tim
Context: business men, poverty and education, poor needed to work harder
Isolation and Christmas, isolated places
“Struck up a sturdy song that was like a gale itself”
-Christmas spirit is widespread and it can give positivity in the harshest conditions. Shows how alone Scrooge is because everywhere else Christmas is celebrated
-symbolism of music was a way to enjoy Christmas links to being in staves
-alliteration of “sturdy song” implies music outweighs nature and is the most powerful thing on earth so could be used to combat industrialisation because sibilance creates a hissing sound like the gale
Personification implies Christmas spirit is strong and helps people get over hardships. This foreshadows scrooges change because the ghosts give him Christmas spirit and it should be used all year because there’s always hardships
Simile “like a gale” links to nature and music and by believing in Christmas people are giving themselves power because it creates happiness
Context: Christmas, family, industrialisation and class divide
Fezziwig generosity
“The happiness he gives, as quite as great as if it cost a fortune”
-Scrooge knows the value of happiness and what a great gift it is because he’d received it suggesting he’s grown
However the money reference suggests he’s still obsessed with money and still needs to learn because it’s still at the forefront of his mind
-fezziwig doesn’t care about class and wants everyone to be appreciated, Ghost reminds Scrooge because he wants Scrooge to do the same
-audience see a new side to scrooge, they wouldn’t be as sympathetic because he’d seen good examples and was a good person but then his love of money got in the way, this is his own fault
-fezziwig gives message that generosity is rewarding but Scrooge doesn’t see this, links with people being generous at Christmas because it’s a time for people to come together
Dickens message is if Scrooge can change and gave good will of year, so should everyone else
Context: business men, Christmas, Dickens childhood
Christmas Staves
A stave is the 5 lines music is written on
Staves remind people it’s a Christmas story and how Christmas virtues should be celebrated all year round
-story meant to be read aloud like a Christmas carol is sung, his message is of new life and possibilities linking to the birth of Jesus
-it’s a 5 lined piece linking to the 5 movements in the play and gives the play structure so Dickens can focus on the message rather than the plot, links to being an allegorical novella
Context: Dickens and Christmas
