GCSE: A Christmas Carol
- Marked by Teachers essays 2
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Who or what is responsible for Scrooge's change of character in 'A Christmas Carol'?
Dickens uses onomatopoeia to describe Marley's dramatic entrance, "The cellar-door flew open with a booming sound." This experience with Jacob Marley is full of suspense and tension and the use of the word "flew" indicates that the involvement of Marley is dramatic. This helps to evoke fear because of its suddenness. The cellar door could also represent the opening to the changing of Scrooges character. Its opening could resemble Scrooges ability to revert his ways. When Marley's ghost appears, Dickens' varies the length of the sentences, 'Do it then', 'I don't' and 'I do. I must' to show his hesitation, and fear of the supernatural.
- Word count: 2085
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Who or what is responsible for Scrooge's change of character in 'A Christmas Carol'?
Dickens uses onomatopoeia to describe Marley's dramatic entrance, "The cellar-door flew open with a booming sound." This experience with Jacob Marley is full of suspense and tension and the use of the word "flew" indicates that the involvement of Marley is dramatic. This helps to evoke fear because of its suddenness. The cellar door could also represent the opening to the changing of Scrooges character. Its opening could resemble Scrooges ability to revert his ways. When Marley's ghost appears, Dickens' varies the length of the sentences, 'Do it then', 'I don't' and 'I do. I must' to show his hesitation, and fear of the supernatural.
- Word count: 2085
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How does Dickens use Scrooge to highlight injustice in Victorian society?
The phrase ?solitary as an oyster? could connote to several things. Firstly, an ?oyster? is a calcified shell that is extremely difficult to open, likewise, Scrooge is very emotionally difficult to converse with. This could refer to his oblivious attitude to the poor, and be the reason the rich upper-class dismiss the lower class. However, in time, the ?oyster? opens to reveal a pearl. This could implicitly infer that with force, he could become a better person. This imagery is used to show how Scrooge has become metaphorically emotionally frozen because of his actions and isolation.
- Word count: 1217
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How fitting is the title for the novella, A Christmas Carol? Explore the ideas of generosity of spirit/Christmas in the novel.
The phrase ?common necessities? implies that some people in society do not even have enough to provide materially to feed their families, let alone be able to celebrate Christmas. The fact that these ?necessities? are considered a ?want? rather than a desperation is rather ambiguous, and could infer that this deprivation has manifested into a desire, rather than a genuine need, as they have become so adapted to the ill treatment received, especially under the Poor Laws. Dickens reminds us of the inequality between Rich and Poor in the Victorian London, shown in the juxtaposition of Scrooge (representing the class of rich industrialists)
- Word count: 1997