Scrooge

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  • Created by: logden
  • Created on: 19-05-18 16:55

Personality

Role

  • Selfish - 'a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner' repetition of action verbs in a list emphasises how much he takes and wants to take from others; will not give money to the charity men, saying 'it's not [his] business'
  • Ignorant - 'Are there no prisons?[...]And the Union workhouses?' - cannot see the problems with these facilities for the 'idle' poor and does not understand why he was to help them
  • Angry - 'a tight-fisted hand' - always ready to attack, volatile; 'his eyes red' - red is colour symbolism, showing Scrooge is infuriated
  • Cold - 'his thin lips blue' - blue lips often associated with being freezing, therefore everything he says is bitter; was not emotionally affected by Marley's funeral, instead 'he was an excellent man of business on the very day of the funeral, and solemnized it with an undoubted bargain', money has taken over his ability to love and care for other people
  • Represents wealthy citizen's attitudes in Victorian times - Thinks the poor are 'idle' (like many rich people); thinks that the poor should die to 'decrease the surplus population', a view pioneered by Thomas Malthus (an English scholar) and supported by many rich people; only care about making money
  • Represents all the values opposed to idea of Christmas - Greed, selfishness and lack of goodwill toward's one's fellow man - shows importance of Christmas, and more importantly the family time and friendship, that comes with it

Development (Growth & change)

Other information              

  • Becomes more emotional - When the Ghost of Christmas Past showed Scrooge himself as 'a solitary child, neglected by his friends', 'he sobbed' - immediate change from someone whom 'external heat and cold had little influence on' , could show his evil ways are due to anger surrounding childhood, reader feels sympathy towards him; by the end of the play he is as 'happy as an angel, [he is] as merry as a schoolboy. [He is] as giddy as a drunken-man' and found 'everything could yield him pleasure' - 'external heat' (the warmth and happiness of Christmas and joy of others is yielding him pleasure
  • Becomes more generous - 'There was a boy singing a Christmas Carol at my door last night. I should like to have given him something', gives a vast amount of money to charity workers - able to see further than himself, sees money as a means of helping people, sees purpose of helping others
  • Starts to enjoy Christmas - 'I will honour Christmas in my heart and try to keep it all the year' - sees importance of Christmas and the benefits it has on society, modal verb 'will' shows determination to participate in Christmas; repetition of 'merry Christmas' shows he now wants to spread Christmas cheer, instead of trying to destroy it; joins in family Christmas celebrations

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