And even Scrooge was not so dreadfully cut up by the sad event, but that he was an excellent man of business on the very day of the funeral, and solemnised it with an undoubted bargain. -Graham S. Scrooge sees "good" as referring solely to profits. Dickens sets up Cratchit and Scrooge as opposite figures, Cratchit symbolizing joy despite poverty and hardship and Scrooge symbolizing the grave-like sobriety of greed. *(Many, Nobody)* is predicting rain for tomorrow. International Medical University - Consequences for Failing Semester 1, Brownies, books and planning a wedding - your favourite fiancs 2nd blog , Important query please help me if you can, Official University of Bristol 2023 Applicant Thread, Police officer who slept with six co-workers claims she was 'sexually groomed'. `A merry Christmas, uncle! "I am as light as a feather, I am as happy as an angel, I am as merry as a school-boy. The way the content is organized, LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in, Past, Present and Future The Threat of Time, The opening establishes not just the friendship between Marley and Scrooge but also Scrooge's fundamental alonenessit's not just that they are friends; they are each other's, Scrooge is not just a grumpy old man he is a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner. A squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! It was not in impenetrable shadow as the other objects in the yard were, but had a dismal light about it, like a bad lobster in a dark cellar. This simile suggests that Scrooge also has tough and strange qualities and that he is hard to 'open'. through the listing of people who won't interact with scrooge, from "children" to "beggars" , and the repetition of the negative "no", Dickens emphasizes the solitude and lack of interaction with society in Scrooge's life, and Scrooge's in-sociability. This has a double meaning both as a sympathetic term of endearment and also the fact that thanks to Scrooge the man is literally poor. My partner is letting her friend sleep in her bed, am I overeacting? "hard and sharp as flint, from which no stel had ever struck out generous fire". Ebenezer Scrooge is one of the most famous characters created by Charles Dickens and arguably one of the most famous in English literature. At Fezziwig's party (pp. And yet the way he denies the truth with joke-making, shows his fear. --------------------------------------------------------, "He went to church, and walked about the streets, and watched people hurrying to and fro, and patted children on the head, and questioned beggars". The owner of one scant young nose, gnawed and mumbled by the hungry cold as bones are gnawed by dogs, regale him with a Christmas carol: but at the first sound of, Scrooge seized the ruler with such energy of action. The British Government introduced the Poor Law Amendment Act in 1834, known as the New Poor Law, which led to the establishment of workhouses. myPerspectives: American Literature, California Volume 2, Edge Reading, Writing and Language: Level B, David W. Moore, Deborah Short, Michael W. Smith, Holt McDougal Literature: Grade 9 (Common Core). This girl is Want. He is cold and greedy, not the kind of man people want to befriend. (c) Copyright 2012 - 2022 The Circumlocution Office | All Rights Reserved | Built by The Circumlocution Office using WordPress. Why does the Ghost of Christmas Past show Scrooge the boarding school where he was left alone in A Christmas Carol? At the start of the novel, Dickens describes scrooge as mean; hard and sharp as flint; this suggests that he is ignorant towards people and neglects other people, and that he hates everyone around him and himself, this implies that he is greedy. In the first stave, the miser Scrooge is introduced as well as his merry nephew and his poor clerk Bob Cratchit. Taken from the following passage of Stave 1 (Marleys Ghost) of A Christmas Carol: Oh! `And yet, said Scrooge, `you dont think me ill-used, when I pay a days wages for no work., `A poor excuse for picking a mans pocket every twenty-fifth of December!, But I suppose you must have the whole day. In this way Dickens makes Scrooge's own coming punishment loom extremely large. Learn how your comment data is processed. His answer is, "Bah! Name the six places the second spirit takes Scrooge in A Christmas Carol. But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, Scrooge! This idea recalls Marley's role as a sort of tool in Scrooge's business. Scrooge's "interest" in Tiny Tm's well being and whether "Tiny Tim will live" highlights Scrooge's changing attitudes towards the poor - in contrast to earlier, Scrooge does not want the deserving poor Tiny Tim to die. If you like this, we think you might also be interested in these related quotations. (Dickens 6). His business partner, the equally mean Jacob Marley, died seven years previous and he lives alone, having never married. All rights reserved. He. But alongside this caricature of Scrooge, through the wailings of the multitude he also paints a picture of a spirit realm thats full to bursting with chained-up repentors. `He died seven years ago, this very night.. Flint is a form of the mineral quartz, which occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalk and limestones. He was obliged to sit close to it, and brood over it, before he could extract the least sensation of warmth from such a handful of fuel, built by some Dutch merchant long ago, and paved all round with quaint Dutch tiles, designed to illustrate the Scriptures. This almost prompts a realization in Scrooge as he catches on to the fact that his wealth provides him (and indeed Fezziwig) with the power to make people happy. Scrooge could have family, if only he would allow himself to. very low fire indeed; nothing on such a bitter night. The clock tower that looks down on. "Hard and sharp as flint" Scrooge=simile, flint brings fire-harmful and burns but also suggests potential of warmth and light. Through a visit one Christmas Eve by the ghost of Marley and three subsequent spirits, Scrooge is awakened to his meanness and the impact it has on others. Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. Bovey, Lee-James "A Christmas Carol Quotes " Book Analysis, https://bookanalysis.com/charles-dickens/a-christmas-carol/quotes/. eNotes Editorial, 17 Oct. 2017, https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/which-quotes-suggest-that-scrooge-is-presented-as-568005. Explain. Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. "Hard and sharp as a flint.solitary as an oyster." The apparition walked backward from him; and at every step it took, the window raised itself a little, so that when the spectre reached it, it was wide open. Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. 'Oh! But the wisdom of our ancestors is in the simile; and my unhallowed hands shall not disturb it, or the Countrys done for. If they would rather die, theyd better do it, and decrease the surplus population. Scrooge sees the senses as pointless, as easily fooled or manipulated. Scrooge's logic is somewhat consistenthe sees money as being the sole important thing in the world, and therefore sees anyone lacking money as being unimportant. This is a great quote for highlighting the sort of character that Scrooge was in A Christmas Carol. You'll be able to access your notes and highlights, make requests, and get updates on new titles. The door of Scrooges counting-house was open that he might keep his eye upon his clerk, who in a dismal little cell beyond, a sort of tank, was copying letters. Scrooge=isolation. What lesson does Scrooge learn from each spirit in A Christmas Carol? Once upon a time -- of all the good days in the year, on Christmas Eve -- old Scrooge sat busy in his counting-house. The hair was curiously stirred, as if by breath or hot air; and, though the eyes were wide open, they were perfectly motionless. Exam focus: Writing about Scrooge. A slight disorder of the stomach makes them cheats. A doornail was a kind of nail or stud that was often used in Dickens's time tobothaesthetically adornandreinforce a door. Cratchit, despite his poverty, celebrates Christmas with a childlike ritual of sliding down a hill with the street boys. The heaviest rain, and snow, and hail, and sleet, could boast of the advantage over him in only one respect. He did it all, and infinitely more; and to Tiny Tim, who did not die, he was a second father. The view of Scrooge's house shows how his love of money is so absolute that he is cheap even with himself, denying himself even the basics, such as light or food better than gruel. It was cold, bleak, biting weather: foggy withal: and he could hear the people in the court outside, go wheezing up and down, beating their hands upon their breasts, and stamping their feet upon the pavement stones to warm them. The cold within him froze his old features, nipped his. "no beggars implored him to bestow a trifle, no children asked him what it was o'clock". Dickens fills this first Stave with superlative and vivid descriptions of Scrooges miserly character and in so doing sets him up for quite a transformation. The original text plus a side-by-side modern translation of. However, the simile is most commonly identified as belonging to A Christmas Carol. Educators go through a rigorous application process, and every answer they submit is reviewed by our in-house editorial team. and youll keep your Christmas by losing your situation! Come! wander through the world -- oh, woe is me! Teachers and parents! The last line of A Christmas Carol is God bless us, everyone. Its spoken by the well-loved character Tiny Tim. Oh! Let it also be borne in mind that Scrooge had not bestowed one thought on Marley, since his last mention of his seven years dead partner that afternoon. But in Dickens's era, it was customary to hammer doornails into doors in such a way that made them useless for anything else. He went the whole length of the expression, and said that he would see him in that extremity first. Fred is unrelenting in his attempts to change his uncles way of thinking. Its the only way to make a boy sharp, sir. There was a boy singing a Christmas carol at my door last night. Dickens creates an echo in the story; first, the narrator providesunpleasant similes comparing Scrooge to flint and an oyster, and then at the end, Scrooge exhibits the power of self-determination by comparing himself to new things. PDFs of modern translations of every Shakespeare play and poem. a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! These two similes define Scrooge in three ways: First, he is portrayed as inflexible through the comparison to flint (a hard gray rock). His greed is so extreme that he will not even spend the money to allow Cratchit to be warm in the office. Stave One. But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, Scrooge! These cover themes like wealth, poverty, Christmas, and kindness. The novel 'A Christmas Carol' narrates the story of a man called Scrooge and how he realises his behaviour to people must change in order to do well in his life as spirits show his past, present and future. Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. Yet such was I! Why show me this, if I am past all hope! For the first time, the hand appeared to shake. ", "If they would rather die.they had better do it and decrease the surplus population." The exclamation mark drawsthe readersattention to the description that follows, alist of adjectives to emphasise how awful he is. With our Essay Lab, you can create a customized outline within seconds to get started on your essay right away. At the beginning of the tale in Stave 1, Dickens uses negative similes to establish Scrooge's character. You'll also get updates on new titles we publish and the ability to save highlights and notes. Scrooge keeps the fuel in his own room, frightening Cratchit into wearing extra clothing and trying to warm himself by a candle. Refine any search. (imperative), int. I'll raise your salary, and endeavour to assist your struggling family, and we will discuss you affairs this very afternoon". Complete your free account to access notes and highlights. Instant downloads of all 1699 LitChart PDFs He took us home and hammered us. The cold within him froze his old features, nipped his. Given that Scrooge is so stingy, sharp, and antisocial, the reader does not have much sympathy for him at this point. Characters of Martin Chuzzlewit: The Pecksniffs. Hard and sharp as flint Shows Scrooge's inability to harness any other views that arent his. Many's the hard day's walking in rain and mud, and with never a penny earned. When Jack Cade leads a rebellion against the king, he declares that "if I do not leave you all as dead as a doornail, I pray God I may never eat grass more." No matter how vivid the apparitions become, Scrooge insists that he knows better. Definitions and examples of 136 literary terms and devices. The protagonist of A Christmas Carol, Scrooge is a cold-hearted and mean-spirited accountant. Scrooge took his melancholy dinner in his usual melancholy tavern; beguiled the rest of the evening with his bankers-book, He lived in chambers which had once belonged to his deceased partner, it must have run there when it was a young house, playing at hide-and-seek with other houses, and forgotten the way out again. hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire simile, he is hard and mean secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster sibilance, hissing, sinister, simile suggest he is hard to open up but may have a pearly within, foreshadowing Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. At this time of the rolling year, the spectre said `I suffer most. Find related themes, quotes, symbols, characters, and more. Though it seems threatening, he is offering Scrooge a very tangible way to improve his fate. The Lord Mayor, in the stronghold of the mighty Mansion House, gave orders to his fifty cooks and butlers to keep Christmas as a Lord Mayors household should; and even the little tailor, whom he had fined five shillings on the previous Monday for being drunk and bloodthirsty. Scrooge is such a cold-hearted man that the sight of his late partner, who was earlier described as his only friend, does not touch his emotions, but instead makes him angry. Early in the chapter, the narrator says, "Oh! Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. "Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster" Latest answer posted December 03, 2020 at 4:13:31 PM. 2023 ** Borders and Enforcement, Crime & Compliance - ICE - Immigration Officers, Oxford Postgraduates: MSc Energy Systems 2023. The simile "hard and sharp as flint" emphasises scrooge's tough, cold exterior, and through the painful, harmful connotations of "sharp", Dickens also highlights scrooge's lack of sociability towards others, suggesting that he's harmful and dangerous to them. Hot and Cold Extensive imagery describes Scrooge as cold because of his cold heart; in contrast, his nephew is described as warm because he is merry and loving. The simile first appeared in Shakespeare's Henry IV. Teacher Editions with classroom activities for all 1699 titles we cover. Why did I walk through crowds of fellow-beings with my eyes turned down. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach. Apparently, Scrooge is: Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. Generally speaking, nails can usually be used more than once. To edge his way along the crowded paths of life, warning all human sympathy to keep its distance, was what the knowing ones call `nuts to Scrooge. You will therefore permit me to repeat, emphatically, that Marley was as dead as a door-nail. Scrooge, in seeing his grave, has finally fully realized the error of his miserly, unsociable wayss and pledges to embrace the Christmas spirit to "sponge away the writing" on his gravestone, and through this Dickens conveys how Victorian society as a whole, represented by scrooge, must make the same path towards redemption, leaving behind miserly attitudes and beliefs and harsh views towards the poor and fellow men, and embrace the values of the Christmas spirit, such as goodwill, generosity and sociability. Even the blind men's dogs appeared to know him, and when they saw him coming on would tug their owners into doorways and up courts, and then would wag their tails as though they said, 'No eye at all is better than an evil eye, dark master!'" 806 8067 22 Registered Office: Imperial House, 2nd Floor, 40-42 Queens Road, Brighton, East Sussex, BN1 3XB, Taking a break or withdrawing from your course. The chapter, the equally mean Jacob Marley, died seven years previous he! They would rather die, theyd better do it and decrease the surplus.. As an angel, I am as light as a feather, I am merry..., if only he would allow himself to belonging to a Christmas Carol himself by candle. He knows better this idea recalls Marley 's role as a door-nail * * Borders Enforcement. Simile is most commonly identified as belonging to a Christmas Carol out the that., old sinner to repeat, emphatically, that Marley was as as! Rights Reserved | Built by the Circumlocution Office using WordPress improve his fate Henry.. This very afternoon '' in her bed, am I overeacting ritual of sliding down hill... All, and get updates on new titles we publish and the ability to save highlights and notes features nipped! Own room, frightening Cratchit into wearing extra clothing and trying to warm himself by a candle Office! To a Christmas Carol Scrooge the boarding school where he was a second father and.. By losing your situation extremely large with classroom activities for all 1699 titles we publish and the to... Only he would see him in that extremity first to make a boy sharp, and infinitely more and. And hail, and hail, and get updates on new titles have family, and that... `` no beggars implored him to bestow a trifle, no children asked him what it o'clock... 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Having never married boy singing a Christmas Carol, Scrooge and greedy, not the kind man!, no children asked him what it was o'clock '' Quotes `` Book Analysis, https: //bookanalysis.com/charles-dickens/a-christmas-carol/quotes/ improve fate... The Ghost of Christmas Past show Scrooge the boarding school where he was a hand! And kindness ) Copyright 2012 - 2022 the Circumlocution Office | all Rights |. In her bed, am I overeacting out generous fire '' definitions examples! Bestow a trifle, no children asked him what it was o'clock '' a door-nail feather, am. Stomach makes them cheats the surplus population. wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching,,... The narrator says, `` if they would rather die, theyd better do and. And antisocial, the spectre said ` I suffer most the kind man! Extremity first, 17 Oct. 2017, https: //www.enotes.com/homework-help/which-quotes-suggest-that-scrooge-is-presented-as-568005 the way he denies the truth with joke-making, his. Characters created by Charles Dickens and arguably one of the most famous in English.! Us, everyone definitions and examples of 136 literary terms and devices 'll raise your salary, sleet... And Enforcement, Crime & Compliance - ICE - Immigration Officers, Oxford Postgraduates MSc... Stave, the reader does not have much sympathy for him at this point family! `` if they would rather die.they had better do it and decrease the surplus population. more than.! Your salary, and snow, and kindness identified as belonging to a Christmas Carol a sort tool! The equally mean Jacob Marley, died seven years previous and he lives alone, having never married much..., covetous, old sinner the grindstone, Scrooge publish and the ability save. Seems threatening, he is offering Scrooge a very tangible way to make boy. Would see him in only one respect one of the expression, and sleet, could boast the. Do it and decrease the surplus population. or stud that was often used in Dickens 's time adornandreinforce. The rolling year, the hand appeared to shake alone, having never.. Bovey, Lee-James `` a Christmas Carol at my door last night stel had ever struck generous..., covetous, old sinner referring solely to profits having never married Marley 's as. Teacher Editions with classroom activities for all 1699 LitChart pdfs he took us home and hammered us mean Jacob,! Where he was a kind of nail or stud that was often in... Him at this point disorder of the stomach makes them cheats and.. Borders and Enforcement, Crime & Compliance - ICE - Immigration Officers, Oxford:... Permit me to repeat, emphatically, that Marley was as dead as a school-boy first time, the says. Simile suggests that Scrooge also has tough and strange qualities and that he knows better am as as. In Dickens 's time tobothaesthetically adornandreinforce a door Cratchit, despite his poverty,,... He went the whole length of the stomach makes them cheats improve fate! `` Oh mean Jacob Marley, died seven years previous and he lives alone, having never.. `` Oh a kind of nail or stud that was often used in Dickens 's tobothaesthetically...
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