Book Review: A Christmas Carol
By Rameesha Rashid
National University of Science and Technology
Title: A Christmas Carol
Author: Charles Dickens
A Christmas Carol dictates the story of a greedy, selfish, old man, Ebenezer Scrooge. His character is mean and grumpy, who hates interacting with or helping other individuals and has some sort of severe hatred for poor people in his heart.
He tends to always complain and find fault in everyone. The story starts on Christmas Eve, where on one freezing night, Scrooge is haunted by three ghosts of Christmas who change his perspective on life forever.
One important point to note is that Scrooge had a business partner, Jacob Marley, who as the narrator quotes, is as dead as a doornail, meaning he died seven years ago.
About the Author
This classic by Charles Dickens was published in December 1843. It is a tale that holds an important lesson. It holds a special spot, from having the most diverse characters of mean-hearted man, like Scrooge and a disabled but cheerful, Tiny Tim leading to an important lesson of being optimistic and content with whatever you have.
Born in 1812, in Portsmouth, England Charles Dickens belonged to a poor family. Being financially unstable, the family a husband and wife with eight children, was always on a move.
His father, John Dickens, was sent to prison which resulted in twelve years old Charles being sent to a boot polish factory for work.
His childhood influenced him a lot and we can see the repetition of topics like poverty, working at a young age, and prison throughout his work, especially in the novel David Copperfield and Great Expectations.
However, later he became a newspaper reporter and started writing humorous sketches that made him popular and were his motivation for writing. His popular books include A Christmas Carol, Oliver Twist, A Tale Of Two Cities, and David Copperfield. Dickens passed away in 1870 leaving his last novel incomplete. He is buried in London.
Content
The story begins on Christmas eve. When everyone is on their way home to spend time with their families. However, Scrooge is sitting in his office. His employee Bob Cratchit in his own room is copying letters in cold.
The door of Scrooge’s office is open to check that his clerk, Bob Cratchit, is not using the logs for fire to warm up his room. His nephew, Fred, visits him in his office to invite him for Christmas dinner which he declines.
Scrooge is so greedy that he refuses to pay his employee, Bob, for not working on Christmas day. Before he leaves, he is visited by two men, called, Portly fundraising to feed the hungry. He sets them off with harsh words and no donation.
When Scrooge opens the door to his home, he sees a reflection of the ghostly face of his business partner, Jacob Marley. Before coming to his senses and believing what he had just seen, it vanishes.
He enters his room and locks it firmly to be safe. But not much later he hears the sound of a bell ringing, followed by a clanking sound of chains dragging themselves. The cellar door up the stairs bursts open and in comes the ghost of Jacob Marley.
Startled by the presence of his dead friend, Scrooge asks him to want he wants. The ghost tells him to change his way of living or else he will end up wandering around restlessly. Scrooge comes to know that he will be visited b three ghosts. The Ghost of past, present and future.
By reading the first ghost visit we learn that Scrooge was not always mean, he was a genuine person who was always helping others and had a lot of Christmas spirit. He had a close friend, who he wanted to marry but the greedier he became the further she distant herself, ultimately leaving him.
During this, Scrooge sees how happy he was with his family, and this turns out to be the start of his transformation. The second ghost was the ghost of the present, he makes him visit his nephew and his family.
Despite being poor he is content and happy with his life. The third ghost takes Scrooge to his future where Scrooge had passed away and no one was mourning him. They only wanted to get hold of his money.
Scrooge became more and more merciful and charitable with each ghost’s visit. Scrooge begs for a second chance which he is given. Scrooge makes use of this and buys a turkey for the Cratchit family and visits his nephew as well. He meets the portly men and promises to make some donations.
Conclusion
A Christmas Carol holds a great lesson for us. To not only spend our lives working and earning but to find a balance. And be kind to the poor and spend quality time with our family and those who hold importance in our lives.
