The Last of the Spirits

• The third spirit is much more sinister

  1. The last ghost appears. It's completely silent, and the appearance terrifies Scrooge, who's filled with a "horror" and "solemn dread"

  2. Scrooge is afraid of the spirit, but he knows that he's going to learn something from it, so he's humble - he bends down on his knees in front of it, and says he'll go with it "with a thankful heart"

  3. Scrooge hopes to see himself in the future, having changed his life and become "another man". Scrooge seems to have rejected his old ways, and he believes that the future he'll see will show a more positive picture
• What is the reaction of the merchants to the death of the unknown man?

  They are uncaring and not upset.
• Why does one of the merchants say he will attend the funeral?

  He wants a free lunch.
• What do the people trying to sell the man's belongings imply about his life?

  He should have been less wicked to be cared for.
• How is the man's body described in the lonely room?

  Plundered and bereft; unwatched, unwept, uncared for.
• What does Scrooge see as the final consequence of leading a selfish life?

  The man's lonely death and lack of care.
• Why doesn't Scrooge lift the cover over the man's face?

  He does not want to see who he is.
• Who does Scrooge want to see in relation to the man's death?

  Someone who cares about the man's death.
• How do the young couple feel about the man's death?

  They feel delight about his death.
• Why do the young couple feel hope after the man's death?

  He was a merciless creditor.
• What literary technique does Dickens use to hint that Scrooge is the dead man?

  Dramatic irony.
• What does the reader know that Scrooge does not?

  That Scrooge is the dead man.
• How does Dickens build suspense in the story?

  • Hints that Scrooge is the dead man
  • Scrooge is missing from usual spots
  • The dead man is as hated as Scrooge
  • Creates dramatic irony for the reader
• What is dramatic irony?

  • When the reader knows something the character does not
  • Creates tension and engagement in the story
• Tiny Tim's death is a contrast to Scrooge's

  1. The spirit takes Scrooge to the Cratchit house after Scrooge asks to see "some tenderness connected with a death" - he's sick of seeing nobody mourning the dead man

  2. Tiny Tim has died, and the Cratchit house is "quiet". The family talk sadly until Bob breaks down crying and has to leave the room. This contrasts with the uncaring reactions we see in response to Scrooge's own death

  3. Tim will be buried somewhere "green", but the graveyard where Scrooge is buried is "worthy" of the "wretched man" whos' buried there - it's "overrun" by "weeds", and "choked up" with lots of graves

  4. Tim and Scrooge's burial places reflect the affection of the people they leave behind
• Seeing the future convinces Scrooge to change

  1. The future that the spirit shows to Scrooge is a frightening one - Scrooge doesn't want to die alone and unloved. Theme - Redemption - Scrooge is so scared by the visions of the future because he thinks they mean he's "past all hope". Dickens suggests that it's never too late to change

  2. The ghost isn't completely unfriendly - its "kind hand" trembles when Scrooge gets more upset. This reminds us that its purpose in showing Scrooge his fate is to help him

  3. Scrooge doesn't know if he can change the future, and the gravestone in the graveyard already has his name on it, which would seem to suggest his future is already set. He's willing to try anyway though - he's desperate to try to avoid his current fate, but he also genuinely wants to become a better man
• The dramatic tension comes to a peak - KEY EVENT

  1. Scrooge is determined to change his future but the phantom vanishes without reassuring him

  2. Scrooge gets more and more agitated towards the end of the chapter - he tries desperately to force the ghost to tell him what will happen, but the ghost says nothing

  3. As the drama builds, and Scrooge is holding his hands up "in a last prayer", the action suddenly stops, and the spirit changes into a bedpost. This puts a sudden end to the dramatic tension in the chapter, and leaves the reader wondering what's going to happen next

  Writer's Techniques - The chapter ends on a cliff-hanger - we don't know for certain if Scrooge will be able to change his future and sabe himself. This adds tension to the story