Symbols in A Christmas Carol

Themes shown throughout A Christmas Carol along with relevant quotes and context surrounding them :)

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  • Symbols in A Christmas Carol
    • Light
      • Symbol of Affection
      • Symbol of generosity
        • Fezziwig - "Fuel heaped on the fire"
          • He is warm, bright, generous and radiant
      • Symbol of warmth
      • Ghosts of past and present both has associations with light
      • Scrooge at the end is described with bright imagery to symbolise his rebirth and change
        • "Glowing"
    • Fire
      • Fire and brightness are symbols of emotional warmth
      • Conveys the message of unity and togetherness
        • Miners are "gathered around a glowing fire"
        • When scrooge travels thought the streets there are "roaring fires"
        • Belle sat by her fire when scrooge visited her - "Near to the winter fire sat a beautiful young girl"
      • Bob cratchit has a "feeble fire" at the start but at the end scrooge says, "Make up the fires"
        • Scrooge opens up his heart
      • Scrooges change is shown through the use of fire
    • Weather
      • Beginning of novella
        • "No warmth could warm, no wintery weather chill him"
          • Cold character internally and externally
          • Not even the cold has effect on him
          • unaffected by changes and events around him
        • "Foggier yet, and colder"
          • "Foggier" = Scrooges ignorance
            • he is unable to see the consequences of his selfish ways
              • Oblivious
            • He cannot see what he is doing or what he has done
              • Oblivious
          • "Fog" is metaphorically representing the barrier that divides the classes
      • End of novella
        • "Clear, bright, jovial"
          • Scrooge has almost been 'enlightened' by the ghosts who have allowed him to see clearly now
          • Clear juxtaposition from the start of the novella
            • Scrooge has now changed his ways and become a generous and glowing person
        • "Golden sunlight"
          • Clear juxtaposition from the start of the novella
            • Scrooge has now changed his ways and become a generous and glowing person
    • Darkness
      • Ghost of christmas yet to come
        • "Hooded and draped"
      • "Darkness was cheep and scrooge liked it"
        • Scrooges greedy and solitary nature
    • Ignorance and want
      • Symbolic of the poor
        • More specifically the industrial poor who had to withstand extreme conditions
          • Ignorance and want appear from the ghosts robes, this highlights how they have been neglected and forgotten by society
      • They are allegorical characters
        • This means that they highlight the messages to society that dickens was trying to convey
          • Dickens wanted to change the way the rich viewed the poor
            • Through this Dickens wanted to unite society and create an atmosphere with greater togetherness, compassion,  unity and charity.
              • Dickens wanted to highlight the hardship the poor had to withstand
          • Dickens wanted the decrease the gap between the rich and the poor
            • Through this Dickens wanted to unite society and create an atmosphere with greater togetherness, compassion,  unity and charity.
              • Dickens wanted to highlight the hardship the poor had to withstand
  • "Golden sunlight"

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