scrooge stave 4

• futility of valuing finances over people topic sentende

  uses prolepsis to create Scrooge to have a prophetic death, Dickens resents ever-growing Victorian capitalist of business being central to society and particularly to an individual, hence uses economical language
• futility of valuing finances over individuals - “good man of business”

  • Scrooge’s death highlighted that Scrooge’s focus on being a “good man of business” has caused a solitary and sombre death
  • ironically, businessmen use economical language as they too do not understand consequences of being infatuated with money
• futility of valuing finances over people - economic language

  • “what has he done with his money? / cheap funeral / marketing the corpse”
  • ironic as in Scrooge’s life his money caused him to dehumanise the poor; however in death he is dehumanised - only referred to in an economic way
  • value as a human is lost with value as an emblem of money
• futility of valuing finances over people - mrs dilber

  • “to profit us when he was dead!”
  • she is metaphorically used to trivialise being enamoured with money
  • scrooges focus on materialism was futile
  • simple privacy of having “bed curtains” in death is stripped of him as nobody cared for his existence
• neglected death - “bare, uncurtained bed”


  • ghost reveals a “bare uncurtained bed” on a “ragged sheet”
  • image of exposure is highlighted through “bare”
  • scrooge is exposed in death
  • money is failing to protect his legacy
  • ”ragged” connotes neglect exacerbated through neglected grave being “overrun by grass and weeds”
  • image of neglect paired with image of death and decay highlights how scrooge in death has been deviated
  • un compassionate nature physically reflected in uncared for grace
  • overrun presents the “grass and weeds” as having greater vitality than him
  • mockery of materialistic driven life
  • now become more insignificant than decaying plants
• neglected death - “a worthy place”

  • exclamation sentence is a form of karmic retribution
  • scrooges frugal has been justly punished
  • victorian reader would seek comfort in scrooges just punishment due to strong religious beliefs
  • idea of eternal damnation and judgement from for was a fear which pervaded society
  • scrooge getting justly punished reinforced warning that being covetous will lead to eternal damnation from god
• desperation for redemption topic sentence

  understands his dire and bleak future is imminent as well as the bleak future the cratchits will be subject to if he fails to transform
• desperation for redemption

  • despaired at idea he is “past all hope” so commands “hear me ! i am not the man i was”
  • imperative phrase shoes desperation to be granted a chance at redemption and salvation
  • pleading at ghost
  • scrooge realisation marks the climax of the allegorical novella
  • “i will live in the past, the present and the futute. the spirits of all 3 shall strive within me“
  • personal pronoun ”i” reinforces personal accountability for injurious actions
  • concept of “three” alluded to holy trinity
  • the ghosts acted as incarnation of god
  • relays a moral and religious message penetrated deeply in scrooge