Stave Three

Question 1

“Let me profit by it” – Scrooge speaking to the Ghost of Christmas Present

Answer 1

• Willingness to embrace lessons of second spirit is antithetical to Scrooge’s reluctance to communicate with first spirit; reveals the progress of his transformation; he wants to change now.
• Metaphor of “profit” not meant in a monetary sense here; reveals that Scrooge now sees value in becoming a kinder and more compassionate person. The “pearl” in the oyster is beginning to show as Scrooge is prized open by the spirits; his value as a person lies not in his monetary wealth though, but in his readiness to change.
• Alternatively, “profit” has undeniable connotations of wealth; perhaps a subtle hint that Scrooge’s transformation is only halfway complete and he is yet to stop considering financial matters altogether.

Question 2

“Half-thawed, half-frozen” – Dickens describing the weather

Answer 2

• Pathetic fallacy used to suggest that Scrooge is transforming.
• “Half-thawed” has connotations of warmth; Scrooge’s heart of ice is melting as he begins to allow the spirits’ messages about caring for others in; alternatively, “thawed” could hint that Scrooge is becoming less fixed in his mindset; just as thawing ice undergoes radical transformations in shape, Scrooge is also fundamentally changing, as he begins to view the world through the lens of people and not finances.
• However, “half-frozen” suggests that Scrooge has not fully transformed; he must see the extent of harm that his cruelty will inflict on the Cratchits and others to ensure that he never repeats past mistakes.

Question 3

“I’ll give you Mr. Scrooge, the founder of the feast” – Bob Cratchit toasting Scrooge

Answer 3

• Bob’s jovial tone indicates his gratitude for all that his has; Scrooge may only pay him 15 shillings per week, but Bob still sees him as a benevolent employer; Dickens presents Bob in this way to make him even more appealing to the reader and generate greater sympathy for the working class; he is naïve to his own exploitation, just as many in Victorian times were.
• Noun “founder” used by Bob genuinely; he believes that Scrooge deserves thanks for providing the meal; Dickens uses this to inspire guilt in Scrooge; dramatic irony here, since reader is aware that Scrooge has only provided a meagre wage and that Bob can barely afford a Christmas meal for his family; Scrooge is meant to feel uncomfortable in this moment; Bob is almost childlike in his innocence.
• On a deeper level, “founder” has possible connotations of God the creator; Bob idolises his employer; perhaps Dickens is critical of how the working class blindly look up to their superiors, or perhaps suggesting that employers are not entitled to this status and they should earn the respect of their workers.

Question 4

“As good as gold… and better” – Bob Cratchit describing the behaviour of Tiny Tim

Answer 4

• Hyperbolic simile “good as gold” indicates Bob’s love of his son; “gold” has connotations of preciousness, so hints at the value he sees in the connection to his son; “gold” also has connotations of wealth and materialism, maybe hinting that Bob is rich, not monetarily, but in terms of his family. Antithesis to Scrooge who is “solitary” and impoverished in terms of love.
• Scrooge witnessing this scene is important so that the working class are humanised; previously, thought of the poor as “surplus population”; now he realises their warmth and compassion, driving him to assist them.
• Tiny Tim’s philanthropy is remarkable given his physical disability; Dickens uses him as a role model to signify the fundamental goodness of the working class and how vital it is to offer them charity.

Question 5

“Nobody thought or said it was at all a small pudding” (The Cratchits)

Answer 5

• “Small pudding” symbolises exploitation of the working class at the hand of the upper class, similar to Bob’s “smaller” fire in Stave One. Lack of food indicates that upper class greed leads to a lack of working class comfort.
• Dickens uses the scene to criticise Adam Smith, since wealth has not trickled down; “small pudding” illustrates that when laissez-faire capitalism is allowed to run rampant, the wealthy retain all of the wealth.
• “Nobody thought or said” symbolises the unity of the Cratchit family; not one person will criticise the meal; every member is grateful and finds happiness in their togetherness; antithesis to Scrooge, made miserable by being “as solitary as an oyster.” Dickens used to illustrate that the source of happiness is in friendship and family.

Question 6

“Bob held his withered little hand in his” (Bob holding Tiny Tim’s hand)

Answer 6

• Emotive imagery of “withered little hand” indicates working class suffering; caused largely by Scrooge only paying Bob 15 shillings per week; Dickens criticising how the negligent upper class sow misery and suffering by their avaricious ways.
• Due to previous characterisation of Tiny Tim as being “as good as gold,” Dickens evokes maximum sympathy from the reader; his suffering is poignant and personal. Scrooge was made to see the working class as human beings, not just “surplus population.”
• Adjective “withered” has connotations of old age and frailty; especially tragic given Tiny Tim is an innocent child who does not deserve to suffer; somewhat similar to gaunt appearance of Ignorance and Want, emphasising how damaging employers’ lack of charitability can be.

Question 7

“It might be a claw, for the flesh there is upon it” – The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come speaking to Scrooge

Answer 7

• Imagery of a “claw” sounds unhuman; children have lost their humanity due to their suffering; they have become monstrous. Children are often idealised as innocent and pure, so this transformation is haunting and intended to shock the Victorian audience by the harm inflicted upon them by an uncaring society.
• Alternatively, the noun “claw” suggests malnutrition and skeletal appearance; contrasts with the wealthy factory owners during the Industrial Revolution who had all they wanted; Dickens was critical of this disparity.
• Similarity to lost vitality of Tiny Tim, who is described as “withered”; emphasises the idea of suffering on a large scale.
• Dickens often ascribes angelic associations to children at other points in the novel (e.g. “Tiny Tim, thy childish essence was from God”); this moment creates an antithesis with this presentation and suggests that a lack of resources can strip a child of their innocent purity.

Question 8

“This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want” – The Ghost of Christmas Present speaking to Scrooge

Answer 8

• “Ignorance” symbolises Scrooge and by extension the upper classes; this group is naïve to the suffering of the poor and considers them to be “surplus population.”
• “Want” symbolises those who suffered during the Industrial Revolution due to a lack of financial income; they are living in a constant state of impoverishment.
• Collectively, children represent the downfall of humanity; the fact that there are two children, not one, helps to cement Dickens’s message that their suffering is widespread.
• Scrooge told to beware “Ignorance” most; this is because Dickens believes that it is upper class callousness which is at the root of all society’s problems; their philanthropy is the solution.