For instance, he can see what his Cousin Fred is doing and how the Cratchit family are enjoying their Christmas. This is the second of the three ghosts and shows Scrooge things that are currently going on that he is not privy to. The ghost shows Scrooge memories from his past, and this helps the reader start to understand Scrooge and therefore paints him in a slightly more sympathetic light. The descriptions of this ghost are very nebulous, and consequently, depictions in various media have been wide-ranging, including in one adaptation being represented by a living candle. It is described as being both blindingly light and dark at the same time, as being both young and old simultaneously. This is the first of three ghosts to visit Scrooge. He appears in the form of a ghost covered in chains. Marley acts as an early cautionary tale as he warns Scrooge not to become like him. Marley travelled a similar road to Scrooge and was similarly enamoured by money. Jacob Marley was Scrooge’s business partner who died around Christmastime, which is one of many reasons that Scrooge might dislike the time of year. In an alternative view of the future, Tiny Tim passes away, and this helps Scrooge to realize the effect that he is having on people. Despite his ailments, he is well-natured and positive. Tiny Tim bears the misfortune of having been born handicapped. It is partially characters like this, who are poor but likeable, that made Charles Dickens’s work so popular among the working classes.

His primary function in the story is to highlight the effects of poverty on the lower classes. Tiny Tim is an adorable character and the youngest son of Bob Cratchit. Despite how he is treated, he is often protective of his employer, citing the fact that Christmas is not the time for thoughts of ill will. He is married to Mrs Cratchit, who is kind and loving but not a fan of Scrooge as she sees the way that he treats her husband. At the start of the novel, he is the victim of Scrooge’s folly as Scrooge lambasts him for having the gall to ask to be paid on Christmas day despite not working. He is a wonderfully complex character that seems a little one-note at first, but thanks to the actions of the ghosts, readers see his past and the events that shaped him into the man he is.īob is the head of the Cratchit family and Scrooge’s long-suffering clerk. Scrooge had been hardened by events in his life but is shown the error of his ways and eventually receives his redemption. Charles Dickens used the phrase “stave” instead of “chapter” because it represents how a carol would be divided. Scrooge is a miserly old man, and Dickens does a wonderful job painting him as such with his beautiful descriptions. The book’s protagonist (or antagonist depending on one’s point of view).

Charles dickens the christmas carol