Regret

• “No rest, no peace. Incessant torture of remorse.”

  • Tricolon (“no rest, no peace… remorse”): Builds intensity, mirroring Marley’s endless suffering
  • “Incessant torture”: Suggests regret is not just a feeling, but an eternal punishment — regret becomes hellish
  • “Remorse”: Stronger than regret — implies guilt and a longing to undo past wrong
  • Effect: Dickens uses Marley’s torment as a warning — regret after death is too late, so change must happen now
• “Spirit!... Why do you delight to torture me?”

  • “Torture”: Shows how powerful regret is — emotional suffering feels like physical pain
  • Accusatory tone: Scrooge projects his pain onto the spirit, unable to take responsibility (yet)
  • Ellipsis: Suggests struggling to speak — overwhelmed by emotion
  • Effect: Dickens presents regret as a necessary but painful step toward personal growth and accountability
• “I should like to have given him something: that’s all.”

  • Simple sentence structure: Reflects a genuine, human moment of regret — soft and honest
  • “That’s all”: Understatement — suggests he’s trying to downplay his feelings, but the emotion still breaks through
  • First sign of change: Regret leads to the beginnings of empathy
  • Effect: Dickens shows how small moments of reflection can spark major inner change
• “He tried to say ‘Humbug!’ but stopped at the first syllable.”

  • “Tried” and “stopped”: Indicates internal conflict — regret is interfering with his old habits and cynicism
  • “Humbug!” interrupted: A symbol of his bitterness being broken down — regret softens him
  • Subtle turning point: This signals the emotional impact of kindness remembered and not maintained
  • Effect: Dickens shows how regret can begin to undo long-held attitudes and provoke emotional change