During the first stave Scrooge is visited by two charity collectors when he is at his place of work. This scene in the book is a key one because Scrooges actions during this scene are to some extent evil. The charity collector is asking whether Scrooge could donate some money to those who are not as wealthy as himself.
Scrooge becomes tense during this scene and quotes; “I wish to be left alone. Since you ask me what I wish, gentlemen, that is my answer. I don’t make merry myself at Christmas, and I can’t afford to make idle people merry. I help to support the establishments I have mentioned: they cost enough: and those who are badly off must go there.” This quote is showing the reader how shockingly tight Scrooge is with his money and how unkind he is during a festive season of the year. The charity collector says that “Many can’t go there, many would rather die.” This quote is supposed to make Scrooge feel a fragment of sympathy for these poor people but no Scrooge replies. “If they would rather die they had better do it and decrease the surplus population. Besides – excuse me – I don’t know that”. This is an example of an evil quote from Scrooge and this is probably as dreadful as it gets. This quote is a key quote as it describes exactly how cold Scrooge is but also later on in the novel is used against him successfully.
Also in the first stave Scrooge has a conversation with his nephew who is one of his only living relatives. The nephew is described as very warm and light an example of this is: “He has so heated himself with rapid walking in the fog and frost, this nephew of Scrooge’s, that he was all in glow; his face was ruddy and handsome; his eyes sparkled, and his breath smoked again”
The words ‘heated, glow and sparkled are key in this description as they work with the novel as the novel works through symbolism. Scrooge is associated with: Cold, Hard and Dark and his nephew is a contrast of this as he is described as Warm and Light. Dickens clearly uses symbolism to describe Scrooge, key words in his descriptions obviously relate to Scrooge being cold and hard. Examples of this are: “The cold within him froze” and “Hard and sharp as flint”. Both of these clearly state that Dickens intended for Scrooge to be seen had a Cold and Hard Person. The symbolism of cold and hard can be seen as uncaring and hard-hearted which is also clear in the conversation with the two charity collectors; “If they would rather die, they had better do it” this quote states that Scrooge is uncaring and hard-hearted, therefore cold and hard. The symbolism that includes Dark is not as comprehensible as the cold and hard symbols but it is recognizable as the symbol of dark can be associated with deliberate ignorance which Scrooge shows plenty of towards the end of the novel.
The title of the first stave is Marley’s ghost therefore it is inevitable that it is going to have something to do with Marley’s ghost. First of all Scrooge witnesses Marley’s face in place of his door knocker then in a second it was gone, with this Scrooge became slightly anxious but remained calm therefore when he went to bed he double locked himself in. Scrooge then let his imagination fly a bit until he did hear a bang a something coming up the stairs, it then passed through the door and Scrooge witnessed the same face as before Marley’s face. In this scene the reader witness’ the first sign of Scrooge changing because he is backing down to Marley. Scrooge says; “Mercy! Dreadful apparition, why do you trouble me?” this is evidence that Scrooge is scared and this is counted as a change because Scrooge has never shown fear before. Also in this scene Marley has a chain wound around him and attached to it are “Cashboxes, keys, padlocks, ledgers, deeds, and heavy purses wrought in steel.” This chain is worn by Marley because “I forged it in life. I made it link by link, yard by yard: I girded it on my own free will, and of my own free will I wore it.” Marley is saying here that he created the chain by himself in his mortal life and now he wears it because of this. Marley goes on to say that if Scrooge does not change he will also bear this “Ponderous Chain”. Marley’s next key quote is telling the reader that the chain is a sign of eternal punishment; “The whole time, No rest, No peace. Incessant torture of remorse.” He is telling Scrooge that he is in eternal punishment to try and make Scrooge understand that if he does not change then he too will bear this chain. He then explains to Scrooge why it is that he bears this chain; “Why did I walk through crowds of fellow-beings with my eyes turned down, and never raise them to that blessed Star which led the Wise Men to a poor abode? Were there no poor homes to which its light would have conducted me!” This is a key quote because Marley is telling Scrooge that the reason he is in eternal punishment is because that he treated everyone who was poor or not as wealthy as himself badly. This is the exact problem that Dickens is trying to put write and in his novel he has created an eternal punishment in the after life for people that do this during their mortal life. Dickens is therefore not subtle at all about the problem he is trying to solve in fact he is extremely obvious about it. The reader then witnesses’ a second change in Scrooge; “Thank’ee!” this is Scrooge showing that he is grateful for Marley giving him this information. This scene with Marley’s ghost is very important as it sets the storyline and it highlights the problem that Dickens is trying to solve. Also the reader witnesses’ the first two changes of Ebenezer Scrooge.
The First of the three spirits is described by dickens as; “a strange figure like a child: yet not so like a child as like an old man, its hair was white with age; yet the face had not a wrinkle in it. It wore a tunic of the purest white, But the strangers thing about it was that from the crown of its head there sprung a bright clear jet of light, by which all this was visible” This description that Dickens creates is again working with symbolism as the first spirit has a jet of light coming out from its head therefore the first spirit is associated with light. Scrooge however is a dark person therefore when this jet of light was put before him; “he had a special desire to see the spirit in his cap; and begged him to be covered.” This means that Scrooge disliked the light being shone on him. The ghost then quotes “Would you so soon put out, with worldly hands, the light I give?” The light that the ghost gives is an opposite to Scrooges darkness which is associated with deliberate ignorance therefore the light is relieving that deliberate ignorance and showing Scrooge the truth and he is trying to avoid it. The first spirit is known as the ghost of Christmas past, this is because he takes Scrooge into the past to witness moments in his life which may allow him to change. The spirit takes him back to his childhood where he grew up. Scrooge’s younger self is in a room. “A solitary child, neglected by his friends, is left there.” The ghost is taking scrooge back to his own past so that Scrooge can feel some emotions again to help him change into a nicer person. The First spirit showed Scrooge this part of his past because Scrooge showed a great amount of love for his little sister and the spirit wants Scrooge to revisit this feeling of love. Then the ghost starts to inquire what Scrooges thoughts are about his little sister. “Always a delicate creature, whom a breath might have withered, But she had a large heart!” now Scrooges feelings he had for her begin to come back as he says something nice about her. “So she had, you’re right. I’ll not gainsay it, Spirit. God Forbid.” This is the most pleasant thing that Scrooge has said about someone in a long time. The spirit realises this is because Scrooge loved his family, so the ghost starts to talk about the child that his little sister had. “She died a woman, and had, as I think, children.” This is when the ghost is hinting at Scrooges living relative that Scrooge should also show love to. Scrooge then becomes uneasy and Dickens using a style of writing known as Stichomythic this is due to the shortness of Scrooges reply because he is thinking of how he has mistreated his nephew. You can see changes of Scrooge during this scene as he compliments his dead sister and he starts to think about his nephew in a good way also Scrooge starts to feel sorry for the poor, you can see this when he quotes; “There was a boy singing a Christmas Carol at my door last night. I should have liked to have given him something that’s all.” This is the biggest change so far as it illustrates to the reader that Scrooge is beginning to feel sympathy which is a first for him in the novel.
The second of the three spirits is described by what it wore and this was a green robe which is the original colour of Christmas, the spirit was very cheerful and warm as he has “Sparkling eyes” and “Cheery voice”. The spirit was also surrounded with items that are significantly related to Christmas, “Holly, mistletoe, red berries, ivy, and turkeys.” This is to try and help Scrooge relate to Christmas as he never has before. The ghost of Christmas present takes Scrooge to the Cratchit household so Scrooge can observe a happy family enjoying their annual Christmas dinner. Everything in the Cratchit family household is to do with the contrast symbolism of Scrooge therefore warmth and light. The first change during this scene is he feels sympathy and concern about the life of Tiny Tim. You can see this when Scrooge asks the spirit “Tell me if Tiny Tim will live.” Also when Scrooge quotes; “Oh no, kind spirit! Say he will be spared.” This is a major change as Scrooge is now starting to show care for others. The spirit replies to this; “If these shadows remain unaltered by the future, none other of my race will find him here. What then? If he be like to die, he had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.” Subsequent to hearing his own words quoted back to him Scrooge hangs is head in shame and realizes how harsh his own words had sounded, Scrooge now knows that if he does not change his ways Tiny Tim will die, Scrooge is now overcome with “Penitence and Grief.” This is also a change as this is a first for the reader to witness this. During this scene Scrooge also realizes how awful employer he is to Bob Cratchit, when Bob tries to raise a toast to Mr. Scrooge and Mrs. Cratchit replies; “It should be Christmas Day, I am sure, on which one drinks the health of such an odious, stingy, hard, unfeeling man as Mr. Scrooge. You know he is Robert! Nobody knows it better than you do, poor fellow!” This makes Scrooge think about how he treats Bob Crathit and how underpaid his clerk is for what he does. Dickens also describes Scrooge as the ‘Ogre of the family which cast a dark shadow over the party’ this is relating to the symbolism of Darkness that Scrooge possess.
The last of the three spirits is very dark and seems to symbolize death as it is described by dickens; “the Phantom slowly, gravely, silently, approached. It was shrouded in a deep black garment which concealed its head, its face. It would be difficult to detach this figure from the night or separate it from darkness” In this description the words gloom and gravely are related to death. The other words suggest mystery, fear and symbolism of darkness, which at the start of the novel was one symbol that was related to Scrooge. Scrooge shows a vast amount of terror in the presence of this spirit; “Filled him with a solemn dread”, “His legs trembled beneath him” also the fact that this Phantom is silent and communicates with Scrooge simply through hand gestures which is normally pointing. Scrooge is listening in on a conversation between a small group of business men about a death that has taken place some quotes from the conversation explain just how untouched everyone is about this death;
“I thought he’d never die.”
”What has he done with the money…He hasn’t left it to me.” This pleasantry was received with a general laugh.
“It’s likely to be a very cheap funeral.”
“For upon my life I don’t know of anybody to go to it.”
From these quotes the reader can immediately distinguish that these men are talking about the death of Mr. Scrooge, but as Dickens describes him Scrooge is ignorant therefore Scrooge will not accept or believe that these people are talking about himself. Due to this the Spirit guides Scrooge to a graveyard. When the spirit points to a particular grave before Scrooge lays his eyes upon it he begins to realize it was him that the people were talking about and this is clear from the question he asks the Phantom; “Before I draw nearer to that stone to which you point. Are these the shadows of the things that Will be, or are they the shadows of the things that May be, only?” Scrooge saw the name “EBENEZER SCROOGE” Scrooge now is made to believe that he was the man that when he died nobody was affected and suddenly the ignorance vanished and he swears to change; “I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. The spirits of all three shall strive within me. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach me.” This is Scrooges guarantee to change and never to change back to the ignorant, selfish, dreadful person that he once was.
Scrooge stuck to his word he had changed, he is a complete contrast of what he once was and from the start of the last stave this is lucid; “I am as light as a feather, I am as happy as an angel, I am as merry as a school-boy. I am as giddy as a drunken man.” In each one of these similes there is a contrast of symbolism to what Scrooge was at the start of the novel. ‘Feather’ is soft. ‘Angel’ is light. ‘Merry school boy’ or ‘Giddy drunken man’ is warm. It is also clear that he is kind as he increases the wage of his maid and his clerk Mr. Bob Cratchit. A key incident within the novel illustrates what Dickens wants to alleviate this is the scene when the two children immerge from the second spirits cloak; “This boy is ignorance. This girl is want. Beware of them both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware of this boy, for on his brow I see written which is Doom, unless the writing be erased.” This is saying that Dickens think that we need to educate the poor to stop their ignorance and that the poor can help themselves, but when the rich are wilfully ignorant we need to help them to stop so that they can help change things to create a better world for everyone. Dickens novel produced some immediate effects and the poor were treated better by those who read the novel. Due to Scrooge changing throughout the novel from one extreme (hard, cold and dark) to another (soft, warm and light) it persuaded people who could relate to Scrooge in some way that they could do the same.