Lecture Notes: A Christmas Carol Overview

Introduction

• Story set on a snowy Christmas Eve in London.
• Main character: Ebenezer Scrooge, a greedy and grouchy old man.
• Setting: Scrooge's cold Counting House where financial books are kept.

Scrooge's Relationships

• Scrooge keeps a close watch on his clerk, Bob Cratchit, who works by a small fire.
• Scrooge's nephew visits to wish him Merry Christmas and invites him to dinner - Scrooge declines with 'bah humbug.'
• Two charity workers request a donation, but Scrooge refuses, suggesting the poor should die to reduce population.

Marley's Ghost

• Scrooge returns home and sees a vision of his late business partner, Jacob Marley, on the door knocker.
• Marley's ghost visits, bound in chains, and warns Scrooge to change his ways or suffer the same fate.
• Marley informs Scrooge that three spirits will visit him.

The Three Spirits

Ghost of Christmas Past

• Scrooge is taken on a journey through his past.
• Key memories:
  • Christmas at boarding school.
  • Working as an apprentice for Fezziwig, who threw parties and was generous.
  • Loses his fiancée due to his obsession with money.
• Scrooge struggles with the spirit and returns to bed.

Ghost of Christmas Present

• Appears as a large, jolly spirit with Christmas food and decorations.
• Visits the Cratchit household, showing their joy despite poverty.
• Scrooge touched by Tiny Tim, Bob's frail but joyful son.
• Witnesses a Christmas party at his nephew's home and becomes engaged in festivities.
• The spirit reveals two children, Ignorance and Want, as products of man's greed.

Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come

• A silent, hooded figure.
• Shows Scrooge a future where:
  • Businessmen discuss an unremarkable death.
  • Workers steal from the deceased.
  • A couple rejoices over a creditor's death.
  • Tiny Tim has died.
• Scrooge discovers a grave with his own name, realizing his lonely death.
• Begs for a second chance.

Scrooge's Transformation

• Awakes in bed, realizing it's Christmas Day.
• Sends a prize goose to the Cratchits and donates to charity.
• Visits his nephew, spreading Christmas cheer.
• Raises Bob Cratchit's salary and becomes a father figure to Tiny Tim.
• Scrooge becomes known as a kind, generous man who embodies the spirit of Christmas all year round.

Conclusion

• Story of redemption and the impact of generosity and kindness.
• Teaches the importance of changing one's ways and valuing relationships over money.