Death Theme Flashcards
How is death used
1) As a catalyst to provoke Scrooge to change.
2) used as a vehicle to show how character’s impacted others and whether they were moral or not.
3) Didactic purposes
“Mankind was my business. The common welfare was my business; charity, mercy, forbearance, and benevolence, were all my business.” - Jacob Marley
- This quote highlights how Marley regrets not doing more to help others during his lifetime, and how his selfish focus on business led to his spiritual torment after death.
- Marley’s words emphasise the importance of living a life focused on the greater good, rather than solely on personal gain and material wealth.
- This acts as a catalyst for change for Scrooge through viewing Marley’s regret due to living a similar life to Scrooge
‘He frightened everyone away from him when he was alive, to profit us when he was dead! Ha, ha, ha!’
- death is used as a catalyst for change through the use of onomatopoeia in ‘ha, ha ha!’ Showing joy around Scrooge’s death. This is used to encourage reformation from him to prevent disrespect after his passing.
- ‘Frightened everyone away’ and ‘profit us when he was dead’ —> verb ‘profit’ —> shows people’s abuse of his items and exploitation of him. This demonstrates people’s dislike and lack of emotional attachment to him. This can attempt to make Scrooge improve to avoid such apathy.
“Scrooge was better than his word. He did it all, and infinitely more; and to Tiny Tim, who did not die, he was a second father.”
- This quote shows how Scrooge’s transformation allowed Tiny Tim, who was ill and at risk of dying, to live.
- Scrooge’s newfound generosity and compassion not only saved Tiny Tim’s life but also allowed him to become a loving father figure, demonstrating the power of redemption and the positive impact one person can have.
- The reference to Tiny Tim’s death not occurring as was shown to Scrooge’s in the proleptic style of writing of him seeing shadows of the future demonstrates how death acted as a catalyst for change. The idea of Tiny Tim and his own death encouraged him to do better and reform his character.
‘If he had been, he’d have had somebody to look after him when he was struck with Death, instead of lying gasping out his last there, alone by himself’
- ‘if he had been’ —> refers to if Scrooge had been better and more caring during his lifetime. This portrays how death is used to demonstrate others opinions on the character and whether they had a positive or negative impact throughout their life.
- ‘Struck with death’ and ‘gasping out his last’ —> verbs ‘gasping’ and ‘struck’ are both harsh and dysphemistic showing a lack of sympathy or care for his character. Also, this is disrespectful towards the death showing an apathetic nature.
- ‘Alone by himself’ —> provides an insight into people’s apathy and lack of care for Scrooge portraying him as a dislikable character.
‘Not a man, a Woman, or a child to say he was kind…gnawing rats beneath the hearthstone. What they wanted in the room of death, and why they were so restless and disturbed’
- ‘not a man, a woman, or a child’ —> uses an asyndetic listing style to emphasis to what extent not people had sympathy for Scrooge’s death and found him to be good nature as the adjective ‘kind’ refers to. This demonstrates how no people found him to be benevolent or good showing the lack of care for him.
- ‘Gnawing rats’ —> uses rodent imagery to evoke ideas of decay and dysphemism surrounding death. This shows the lack of care for Scrooge due to his character since the reference to ‘gnawing’ implies their hunger and eating of his decaying flesh. This desacralises the process of death portraying a lack of care or respect to Scrooge after his death. Also, the adjectives ‘restless’ and ‘disturbed’ further anchor the inhumane treatment of Scrooge after his death.
‘Mrs Cratchit kissed him, his daughters kissed him, the two young Cratchit’s kissed him, and Peter and himself shook hands. Spirit of Tiny Tim, thy childish essence was from God’
- ‘Mrs cratchit kissed him, his daughter kissed him’ —> use of epistrophe in ‘kissed him’ —> this is an act of affection showing a genuine care between the Cratchit family after Tiny Tim’s death. The use of epistrophe anchors the unity of the Cratchit’s since all engage in acts of care with one another to show their support and extreme sorrow after Tiny Tim’s death. This grief after Tiny Tim’s death shows their care for him.
- Didactic and can link to the idea that caring for others results in a person receiving care such as after their death.
- ‘Tiny Tim, thy childish essence was from God’ —> ‘god’ —> uses biblical imagery to make his death appear ritualistic unlike Scrooge’s death. This comparison portrays how death is used as a vehicle to portray whether a person had a positive or negative impact on others.
‘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 quotes by the Spirit, and was overcome with penitence and grief’
- This callous quote from Scrooge demonstrates his complete lack of empathy for the poor and his willingness to let them die rather than provide any assistance.
- Scrooge’s disregard for human life reflects the harsh attitudes of the Victorian era towards the poor, who were often seen as a burden on society.
- the theme of death is used to further contribute to Scrooge’s reformation since his harsh words and lack of care for life makes him reflect on his previous actions. The harshness of death makes him reflect on the severity of his misanthropic attitudes.
‘This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want, beware of them both…most of all beware of the boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom’
- The Ghost of Christmas Present warns Scrooge about the dangers of Ignorance and Want, which can lead to the death and suffering of the poor.
- The personification of Ignorance and Want as children highlights the vulnerability of the underprivileged and the need for compassion and action to address these societal ills.
- ‘Doom’ —> creates resonance with the day of judgement where humanity is said to suffer. This is demonstrated through the term ‘doom’ showing pain and suffering from humanity. This can refer to death hence linking it to the didactic purpose of the play where the theme of ‘doom’ is used to encourage people to do better.
- This can be shown by the association of ‘ignorance’ to the character of the boy and ‘want’ to the girl where ideas of death are used to show that the sins of ignorance can cause death and suffering for all humanity.
