Christmas Carol Flashcards
Give a description of poverty in Victorian Britain / Dickens time
What was Industrial Revolution
How did Dickens feel about it
Also who profited at same time
Poverty was huge problem in Dickens time
From mid 1700s start on Industrial Revolution (introduction of steam engines)- went from working in rural jobs to working in manufacturing.
Many new jobs created - especially making cloth
Many workers lived in extreme poverty
Industrial Revolution made many businessmen and factory owners rich
Describe living conditions in cities
in 19th century , millions moved to cities from countryside to find work in factories
Population grew rapidly between 1800 and 1900 ( roughly 1 million to 6 million)
Most ended up living in slums - cheap overcrowded housing . No proper drainage or sewage systems. Share 1 toilet / tap with many others
Overcrowding lead to hunger, disease and crime
Children often suffered the most - exploited by wealthy factory owners and forced to work long hours in dangerous
How does the living conditions/poverty in Victorian Britain link with Dickens experiences
How does he address poverty in Christmas Carol
Dickens was very interested in poverty
His own childhood experienced poverty, when family went into debt
Dickens had to work ina Blacking factory to help pay off debts
He wrote several novels and articles addressing poverty in Britain eg Hard Times & Oliver Twist
- Dickens contrasts wealth of Scrooge with poverty of Bob Cratchit - He lives in a large building with grand staircase, whilst Cratchits are crammed into four roomed house in suburbs
- chapter 4 - Scrooge visits part of London “reeked with crime,with filth and misery” - people living there described as “half naked,drunken,slipshod ,ugly”
- Death of Tiny Tim and appearance if doomed children ,ignorance and want, highlight the suffering of children who live in poverty
What were Thomas Malthus beliefs around the poor
How does this compare with Dickens
- he argued poverty inevitable
- in 1798 he wrote human population would always grow faster than food supplies
- overpopulation would lead to more people dying (usually poor) -nworse off would get less
- he believed people should have families later and not have lots of children to reduce population
Dickens thought Malthus was wrong. Plenty of food to go around, but only if rich were more generous. Thought rich too shellfish
In chapter 3 Ghost of Christmas Present takes Scrooge to bustling shops where it shows huge amount of food on display. This emphasise Dickens point that plenty of food to go around, but it wasn’t shared around
In Chapter 1 Scrooge tells charity collectors that it’s better if poor people would die and “decrease the surplus population” - this is a direct reference to Malthus’s theories. This highlights how cruel Malthus views seem to be
Helping poor made poverty worse
Key quotes
What was a key new legislation and what did it say
- Malthus and others thought existing poor laws were too charitable
They argued poverty relief made people lazy and reduced incentive to work hard and save
‘ if they would rather die …they had better do it”
Scrooge - Tells charity workers can’t afford to “make idle people merry” and he says that he supports the prisons and workhouses
Later when Scrooge expresses sympathy for Tiny Tim and ignorance and want , the spirit quotes Scrooges harsh comments from Chapter 1 about “surplus population” and sending poor to prisons and workhouses. Scrooge realises his beliefs are wrong
In 1834 a new Poor Law was introduced - aim to reduce financial help available to poor. All unemployed would have to go to a workhouse in order to receive food and shelter
What were Workhouses like?
