christmas carol context

• Context


  The background information about a literary text that can provide important clues about the meaning of the text
• A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens was written

  1843
• Victorian era


  • Time of transformation in Britain
  • Industrial revolution had forced many to move to the cities for employment causing overcrowding, disease and crime
• Dickens' personal experiences


  Influenced his writing about the treatment of vulnerable children and the effects of poverty, as seen in novels like Oliver Twist, David Copperfield and Great Expectations
• Theme of family


  Constant in A Christmas Carol, showing the effect of loneliness on the spirit
• In 1834, a new Poor Law was introduced in England which ensured the poor were housed in workhouses</b>
• Workhouses


  • Conditions were deliberately harsh so only those desperately needing help would ask for it
  • Families were split up
  • Inmates had to wear uniforms and follow strict rules
  • Inmates had to do unpleasant jobs like picking oakum or breaking stones
  • Children could be hired out to work in factories or mines
• Threat of workhouses


  Allowed bosses to treat workers inhumanely, as seen with Scrooge's treatment of Cratchit
• At the time of A Christmas Carol's publication, about 25% of England's population was living in poverty
• Malthusian trap


  Idea that population growth leads to more poverty, as proposed by economist Thomas Malthus
• Scrooge was a Malthusian, as seen when he refuses to donate to charity saying the poor should "decrease the surplus population"
• Lifestyles of the rich vs poor

  • Rich lived in opulent mansions, privately educated their children, travelled, hired servants and threw lavish parties
  • Poor lived in poverty, with the workhouse as a constant threat
• Scrooge lived a frugal, tight-fisted lifestyle, eating gruel on Christmas Eve, despite being able to afford more
• Christmas traditions in 1840s


  • Most businesses remained open on Christmas Day
  • First Christmas cards with handwritten greetings were being delivered
  • Christmas crackers and decorations began appearing in homes
  • Queen Victoria and Prince Albert celebrated around a decorated Christmas tree
• Ghost stories on Christmas Eve

  Pagan tradition of believing spirits returned to earth during the winter solstice
• Marley's ghost


  Represents being trapped in purgatory and the "incessant torture of remorse" if one does not change their ways in life
• Dickens is challenging Victorian behaviour and culture, trying to instill a more humane way forward
• Themes of the novella A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens


  • Family and isolation
  • Poverty, charity and greed
  • Redemption
  • Time
  • Christmas
  • Supernatural
• Theme 1: Family and isolation

  Dickens valued family, but the character of Scrooge has chosen isolation over family to make more money, leaving him lonely, mean-spirited and disliked
• Scrooge visits the Cratchits with the Ghost of Christmas Present


  He sees a family without wealth but filled with love and joy
• Theme 2: Poverty, charity and greed


  The poverty of the working class is contrasted with Scrooge's greed, but there are many references to charity in the story
• Scrooge dismisses the men asking for charity donations for the poor and destitute with cruelty created by greed
• By the end of the novella


  Scrooge becomes charitable and acknowledges the needs of the poor
• Theme 3: Redemption


  Scrooge's transformation from sinner to benefactor completes his redemption, as Dickens suggests those who see the error of their ways should be forgiven if their change is genuine
• Theme 4: Time


  Time is running out for Scrooge and Tiny Tim, and the past can influence our behavior, so we should live our lives to the full in the present
• Theme 5: Christmas


  Christmas is represented positively throughout the story, with the idea of lifting the spirits of the poor, and the warm spirit of the holiday contrasting the harsh weather
• Theme 6: Supernatural


  Ghost stories were part of the Christmas tradition, and the supernatural elements in the novella allow Dickens to explore themes and move between time and locations with ease
• The ghosts are catalysts for change in Scrooge, providing dramatic tension and urgency for his transformation
• The Victorian audience would have been familiar with the concept of Marley being in purgatory due to his lack of charity in life