Another description of Scrooge is shown by the weather, “no warmth could warm, nor wintry weather chill him.” Also the weather reflects Scrooges personality, “the fog and the darkness thickened,” this shows a dim and dark view in to Scrooge’s sombre, character.
Scrooge lives in a gloomy suite of rooms, which is so old and dreary that Scrooge is the only one who lives there. This is where Scrooge encountered Marley, on Christmas Eve seven years to the date when he passed away. Marley firsts appears on the door where the knocker sits, “but looked at scrooge as Marley used to look: with ghostly spectacles turned up upon is ghostly forehead. Scrooge is not an easily frightened man, but from the sight of the ghostly face, he becomes slightly unnerved, and double looks himself in as an attempt to dismiss the ghostly face. “I won’t believe it,” once again is presented with a ghostly figure, “ I know him! Marley’s ghost!” Marley, “The chain he drew wrapped was clasped about his middle. It was long, and wound round him like a tail.” The significance of the chain was what it holds: cash boxes keys, padlocks, ledgers, deeds and heavy purses wrought in steel. Marley was Scrooge’s partner and he just like scrooge was an unpleasant man, Scrooge learns that he himself and society could end up like Marley, if he doesn’t learn from the warning. “You will be haunted,” by three sprits.”
Scrooge is first visited by the ghost of Christmas past, “it was a strange figure – like a child: yet not so like a child as like an old man.” The ghost of Christmas past takes Scrooge back to his childhood, when he was a schoolboy at this point Scrooge emotion changes to a slight glimpse of happiness, as hundreds of memories float back to him. Dickens shows us a small insight as to why Scrooge has such hostility towards Christmas. We see a small boy neglected on Christmas for a number of years, until his sister who takes him home visits him.
The ghost takes Scrooge back to his first job and a happy Christmas, “why its old Fezziwig! Bless his heart; its fezziwig alive again!” Scrooge emotions change from being once cold and heartless to being warm and happy before becoming conscious that the ghost was there. Also there is a change in his character as he remembers Fezziwig he begins to feel remorse towards the way he has treated his clerk. Also at the party scrooge met the former love of his life, Belle. As the ghost moves scrooge on through time he sees him self in different light one, which brings pain to him, “may you be happy in the life you have chosen. Scrooge of today, because he chose the riches over Belle. This is where Scrooge first begins to really change in to the man he is today.
The second ghost who visits Scrooge is the ghost of Christmas present. “There sat a jolly Giant, glorious to see: Scrooge was taken to Christmas morning, where he saw the people of London wrapped up in the happy hustle of Christmas day. He visited a house, which he didn’t know until he entered and found that it was his clerks, he watched as they came together and even though they had little money they were happy. This brings around another changed in Scrooge’s emotion as he watched Tiny Tim, “If he be like to die, he had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.” the words that Scrooge had said to the charity workers earlier that day. “Scrooge hung his head to hear his words quoted by the sprit, and was overcome with penitence and grief.”
Scrooge is taken to his nephew Fred’s house, he experiences the joy and feels he wants to be there he is shown his ignorance. Scrooge is shown the true meaning of Christmas day, he feels compassion towards the poor, and realised his actions after the experiences with the first ghost, Scrooge has become a changed man.
The lasts of the sprits, “the Phantom slowly, gravely, silently, approached. “Ghost of Christmas future I fear you more than any Spectre I have seen.” With out a word the ghost leads Scrooge to a place that he is confused by. Scrooge focus on the people talking, “this is the end of it you see! He frightened every one away from him when he was alive, to profit us when he was dead ha ha ha.” Scrooge doesn’t understand that they are talking about him at this moment. The sprit lead Scrooge on, “This is a fearful place. In leaving it, I shall not leave its lesson, trust me, let’s go.” Even thought they leave Scrooge soon learns who they where talking about. The sprit leads Scrooge to a familiar place where he has been once before but no in person, Bob Cratchit’s house, “my little, little child cried bob. “My little child!” Scrooge sees that with out change what will happen to Bob Cratchit’s family, and the fate of tiny Tim lies with Scrooges actions. Scrooge is lead to a gravestone and only till he reads the writing does he understand the conversation the two people where having earlier, the gravestone was Scrooges he had died and no one was sorry.
As the Sprit and scenery around Scrooge changes, he realises that he is back in his bedroom, “I am as giddy as a drunken man. A merry Christmas to everybody.” We can see that Scrooge is a changed man as from the language dickens is using to describe Scrooges mood, “Whoop! Hallo!” words which scrooge never used in the beginning, also its not just the language which Dickens has changed to represent a new Scrooge but also the weather, its no longer foggy and dim but the sun is shining. Also Scrooge sends the biggest turkey to Bob’s family and spends the day with his nephew, and true to his word he changes and gives, bob a pay raise and helps out his family, so that Tiny Tim lives! “I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.”
I think that Dickens has been very successful in showing the evil in his society. Using a character like Ebenezer Scrooge, who is shown to be the most unpleasant employer there is, really emphasises the fact that how if small actions are changed the major differences it can make in people’s lives. By showing it through one-person shows if everyone was to change their actions for the better the greater things would be come. I think that the most effective way Dickens has shown this, is where he shows scrooge looking at his own gravestone. As it makes people think would people care if they had died? If the answer was no then they had to change for the better as no one wants to be that person. Also using the death of tiny Tim of scrooge didn’t help the poor really showed if you gave a little you can save a lot. Dickens really involves the reader through out the novel, which is where the effectiveness is emphasised as it carries the reader through a variety of emotions from sympathy and sadness to joy.
