S1: Scrooge

Question 1

‘tight-fisted hand at the grindstone’

Answer 1

• Scrooge is an avaricious person who is selfish with his money and keeps it for himself and is greedy with it.
  (use next quote to evident this point)

Question 2

‘squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner!’

Answer 2

• Scrooge is described as these adjectives to build up the evidence of how much of a miser and avaricious he is.
• Scrooge is covetous as he wants what others have but can’t accept the fact to himself but as readers we can tell this so it’s irony.
• 7 negative adjectives which could also parallels to 7 deadly sins and the Victorian Era everyone was religious, so showing how miserable Scrooge has gotten and detached himself from society.

Question 3

‘solitary as an oyster’

Answer 3

• Simile to justify how on the surface Scrooge wants to be left alone and isolated, BUT has the potential to change on the inside and is too afraid to show that. On the surface, Scrooge is an enigmatic, private and lonely person this can be backed up with the quotation ‘secret, and self-contained’.
• pathetic fallacy is used later on in the text ‘the fog and darkness thickened’ to be symbolic of Scrooge and show how cold he is.

Question 4

‘old features’

Answer 4

• it’s not going to be easy to change him as he is set in his ways.
• use this quote to back up the last quotation to continue it on…

Question 5

‘What right have you to be merry? What reason have you to be merry? You’re poor enough.’

Answer 5

• Scrooge sees the worst in Christmas and does not embrace it, he is very cynical of Christmas.
• This is a contrast to Fred who embraces Christmas when he says ‘A merry Christmas, uncle!’ He radiates positivity and embraces!
• ‘Bah! Humbug!’ Dismissive to Christmas.

Question 6

‘Good Afternoon’

Answer 6

• Scrooge has the repetition of ‘Good Afternoon’ as it shows how dismissive of Fred’s positivity and Christmas spirit.
  (use to back up last quote)

Question 7

‘Are there no prisons?’ ‘And the Union workhouses?’ ‘They had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.’

Answer 7

• Scrooge says this as he believes the poor are worthless and useless who should be dehumanised.
• Scrooge refers to the New Poor Law that was introduced in 1834 Scrooge has the same views as Malthus which is a contrast to Dickens as he believes that the poor deserved better and we’re worth something.