scrooge icy and bad character

Question 1

Descriptions of Scrooge

Answer 1

• Sharp personality
• Misanthropic
• Selfish
• Depressing
• Cynical
• Indifferent
• Horrible nature
• Miserable
• Greedy

Described to build an image of a man like this to emphasize his personality before we see his stark change later on

Question 2

‘Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire’ (S1)

Answer 2

• Simile
• Blacksmithing image (used for weapons and fire, alludes to the time period of post INDR and its harsh environment)
• Flint is hard and brittle and when it reacts with steel, it creates a fire, which in the novella, symbolises christmas spirit and good will.
• The flint may imply that he has a sharp personality and is very tough, who can cause pain to others as his temper can spark easily
• However, it may also foreshadowing the ending of the novella, because the flint has the ability to cause a fire (the goodwill and xmas spirits), which indicates Scrooge having the potential to give and be a better and more generous person.

Question 3

‘External heat and cold had little influence on Scrooge. No warmth could warm, not wintry weather chill him.’ (S1)

Answer 3

• He lives an entirely self-contained life. Not even the cold weather affects him, because—metaphorically—he has a cold heart. Scrooge made the decision, over a lifetime, not to allow external forces to influence his feelings or behavior. If atmospheric conditions don’t alter him, mere people certainly won’t influence him. His coldness rebuffs people, which suits him fine.

Question 4

‘Scrooge had a very small fire, but the clerk’s fire was so very much smaller that it looked like one coal.’ (S1)

Answer 4

• Fire represents xmas spirit
• Scrooge has little and locks away all his xmas spirit and generosity
• Cold and icy
• No livliness in the count house

Question 5

‘Old Scratch.’ (S4)

Answer 5

• Archaic term for the devil
• Scrooge is taken to the obscure area in the city and is referred to as ‘Old Scratch’ by the people talking about the funeral
• If you live a life full of selfishness and greed, then your life would be ridiculed by others and you will be treated with no respect

Question 6

‘“A poor excuse for picking a man’s pocket every twenty-fifth of December”’ (S1)

Answer 6

• He prioritises money over the well-being of his employee
• Rather than seeing Bob Cratchit’s taking a day off as a positive thing, as a happy occasion for Bob and his family, Scrooge sees it as a robbery, focusing more on the financial implications than the festivity and joy Christmas brings

Question 7

‘darkness is cheap, and Scrooge liked it.’ (S1)

Answer 7

• burning candles oil used as they would have had an associated cost. Rather than light a candle or oil lamp, he would rather save money and walk through darkness
• Scrooge seems to be secure in the knowledge that has lots of money rather than using it to afford him a better quality of life
• He is a miser

Question 8

‘“Scrooge was the Ogre in the family.”’ (S3) mrs cratchit

Answer 8

• Comparing Scrooge to folkloric devil. A creature of immense evil, darkness, and power, but also presented as stupid and beatable
• The cratchit family dislike Scrooge but do not fear him because of his stupidity in which the way he hoards money rather than putting it to good use