Marley
Cards (13)
- ‘chain’Metaphor and SymbolismRepresents his sins – he is chained to his mistakes for all eternity.
- ‘heavy’AdjectiveWeighed down by the many sins he committed in lifeHeaviness of his conscience
- ‘long’AdjectiveLong list of sins he has committed against humanityHow long he will be made to suffer in the afterlife
- 'clasped'VerbHe is tightly fastened to his guilt and can never escape from his sins
- ‘keys, padlocks…heavy purses’ListItems on the chain are money related, representing Marley’s obsession with wealth when he was alive. He locked away his money and did not share.
- ‘hot vapour of an oven’Imagery of HeatImagery of hell to show how Scrooge will be punished in the afterlife if he does not change his ways. Hellish imagery used to scare Victorian reader and question their own behaviour.
- ‘like a tail’SimileHis sins will always follow him. Trying to escape is futile – link to a dog chasing its tail. Animalistic imagery used to dehumanise Marley which makes his actions seem more inhumane.
- ‘wrought in steel’Cold ImageryHis chain is made of steel which links to Marley’s cold and hard attitude to life. ‘wrought’ – metal that is beaten out and shaped by hammering – represents his repeated sins.
- ‘doomed’AdjectiveGloomy and dismal adjective reveals his inescapable horror. He is forced to ‘wander’ the earth reflecting on his endless mistakes.
- ‘I wear the chain I forged in life’First person suggests culpability and acceptance of his wrong doing. Present tense – he wears it now and forever. ‘forged’ – make or shape metal by heating in a furnace.
- ‘Captive bound and double ironed’Connotations of imprisonment – can’t break free
- ‘mankind was my business’DialogueSummarises the key message of the novella. He forces Scrooge to re-evaluate the true meaning of the word ‘business’. We should spend our lives caring for mankind, not accumulating wealth.
- ‘cry’RepetitionEmphasises Marley’s sorrow and anguish. Remorse for wasting his life.