Christmas Carol Quotes

• What phrase describes Scrooge's attitude towards money?


  “A tight-fisted hand at the grindstone.”
• How is Scrooge characterized in the text?


  As a “squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner!”
• What simile is used to describe Scrooge's nature?


  “Self-contained and solitary as an oyster.”
• What does Scrooge say about the poor and prisons?


  “Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?... If they would rather die they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.”
• What does Scrooge imply about Christmas with his remark on picking a man's pocket?


  He views Christmas as an excuse for greed and exploitation.
• What does Scrooge think about darkness?


  “Darkness was cheap and Scrooge liked it.”
• What does Marley say about the chains he wears?


  “I wear the chains I forged in life.”
• What does Marley say was his business in life?


  “Mankind was my business… charity, mercy were all my business.”
• How is the solitary child described in Stave 2?


  “A solitary child, neglected by his friends, is left there still.”
• What does Scrooge wish to do for the boy singing a Christmas Carol?


  He wishes he could have given him something.
• What is the description of Scrooge's hand in Stave 1?


  “a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone.”
• What does Scrooge learn about happiness in Stave 2?


  “The happiness he gives, is quite as great as if it cost a fortune.”
• How is Scrooge characterized in Stave 1?


  As a “squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner!”
• What does Scrooge mean by “Gain, engrosses you”?


  He suggests that the pursuit of wealth consumes a person.
• What metaphor is used to describe Scrooge's nature?


  “self-contained and solitary as an oyster.”
• How does Scrooge react to the vision of his past in Stave 2?


  “Remove me! Scrooge exclaimed. “I cannot bear it!”
• What does Scrooge say about prisons and workhouses?


  “Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?... If they would rather die they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.”
• What exclamation does Scrooge make about the pudding in Stave 3?


  “Oh, a wonderful pudding!”
• What does Scrooge imply about Christmas in Stave 1?


  It is “a poor excuse for picking a man’s pocket every twenty-fifth of December!”
• What does the family display in Stave 3 include?


  “The family display of glass… a custard cup without a handle.”
• How does Scrooge feel about darkness?


  “Darkness was cheap and Scrooge liked it.”
• What does Tiny Tim say at the end of Stave 3?


  “God bless us, every one!”
• What does Marley say about the chains he wears?


  “I wear the chains I forged in life.”
• What warning is given about Tiny Tim in Stave 3?


  “If these shadows remain unaltered by the Future, the child will die.”
• What does Marley say was his business in life?


  “Mankind was my business… charity, mercy were all my business.”
• What do the figures of Ignorance and Want represent in Stave 3?


  They symbolize societal neglect and the consequences of poverty.
• How is the child described in Stave 2?


  “A solitary child, neglected by his friends, is left there still.”
• How is the body of the man described in Stave 4?


  “Unwatched, unwept, uncared for, was the body of a man.”
• What does Scrooge wish to do for the boy singing a Christmas Carol?


  “I should have liked to have given him something.”
• How does the woman feel about the vision she sees in Stave 4?


  “She was thankful in her soul to hear it.”
• What does Scrooge learn about happiness in Stave 2?


  “The happiness he gives, is quite as great as if it cost a fortune.”
• What does Scrooge mean by “Gain, engrosses you”?


  That the pursuit of wealth consumes one's life.
• How does Scrooge react to the vision of the child in Stave 2?


  “Remove me! Scrooge exclaimed. “I cannot bear it!”
• What does the pudding symbolize in Stave 3?


  “Oh, a wonderful pudding!”
• What does Scrooge question about his fate in Stave 4?


  “Why show me this, if I am past all hope?”
• What resolution does Scrooge make in Stave 4?


  “I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.”
• What does Scrooge wish to do regarding the writing on the stone in Stave 4?


  “Oh, tell me I may sponge away the writing on this stone!”
• What is described about the family display in Stave 3?


  “the family display of glass…a custard cup without a handle.”
• What does Tiny Tim say in Stave 3?


  “God bless us, every one!"
• What does Scrooge declare about living in time in Stave 5?


  “I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future!”