Bob crachit

• Bob Cratchit

  Scrooge's clerk, introduced as a timid and nervous man
• Bob Cratchit

  • Remains unnamed for the first stave, only referred to as "the Clerk"
  • Represents the way the working class were defined by their positions in the workforce
• Bob Cratchit's role

  To represent the plight of the poor, as he is an immediate source of sympathy in the novella
• Bob Cratchit

  • Depicted as a loving father and husband when the Ghost of Christmas Present visits the Cratchit household
  • Presents the lower class in a positive light and as multi-faceted characters
• Importance and power of money over the lower classes

  Seen in the case of Tiny Tim who, without Scrooge's help, would have died
• The plight of the lower class is highlighted through Bob's character

  Dickens highlights Bob's maltreatment in the workplace by contrasting his fear towards and dependence on Scrooge
• Dickens explores this theme in a sympathetic way towards the poor, challenging many of the prejudices and misconceptions that contemporary readers (readers at the time of publication) may have had
• Instead of presenting the Cratchits as ungrateful and lazy, he repeatedly references their contentment ("nobody said or thought it was at all a small pudding for a large family") and the fact that both Bob and Martha are working
• He builds on this by revealing that Bob has a "situation (job) in his eye for Master Peter" too, which ultimately characterises the family as hardworking
• Dickens does this to challenge the misconceptions of his Victorian readers as many would have believed that people lived in poverty because they were lazy
• Religion

  Dickens explores the idea of religion through Bob
• After returning from church with Tiny Tim he "trembled" as he told the family that Tiny Tim had told him that he hoped when people saw him they would remember Jesus, the man who "made lame beggars walk"
• The verb "trembled" highlights his deep emotional connection with religion
• When his wife expressed her distaste for Scrooge during Bob's toast, he reminds her that it is "Christmas Day" highlighting the respect and honour he gives the celebration
• Dickens presents Bob as a morally righteous man, as readers are likely to associate religion with a strong moral standing
• Family

  Dickens highlights the theme of family through the characterisation of Bob by spotlighting the extent to which he values his family, presenting them as an essential part of his Christmas celebration
• The family are described as united as Dickens details how they all joined in with the preparation of dinner-"Mrs Cratchit made the gravy... Master Peter mashed the potatoes... Miss Belinda sweetened up the apple-sauce..."
• This unity is significant as Dickens had a greater agenda when writing the novella. He intended for it to teach and reform the way Christmas was celebrated
• Bob is presented as the ideal family figure who valued, loved and respected his family
• He appreciates their efforts (calling the meal "the greatest success achieved by Mrs Cratchit since their marriage") and worries when one of them is missing
• Dickens introduces the idea that family should be an essential focus of the festive time
• Bob begins the novella as an unnamed, poorly paid and maltreated Clerk, but, as Scrooge undergoes his own personal character development, Bob too undergoes a change
• The supernatural experience is not just an educational experience for Scrooge but also for the reader. They are able to view Bob in the intimate setting of his family home, exposing them to the loving and compassionate side of his personality which wasn't explored in the opening stave
• Scrooge announces he will "raise" Bob's "salary" and "discuss" his "affairs" over lunch


  Bob ends the novella significantly more well off than at the start
• Bob's character development is dependent on Scrooge. This is perhaps to symbolise the power and superiority of the upper class over the poorer members of society
• Bob does not develop in the drastic way that Scrooge does. Instead, he remains a compassionate and righteous character throughout the novela. This is significant as it contributes to the idea that Dickens carefully constructs Bob's character to act as an idealised representation of the lower class, and so limits his faults
• Scrooge is cruel and merciless towards Bob in the opening stave

  Scrooge makes him work in a "dismal little cell" and complains that he is "W-used" for paying "a day's wages for no work", using an accusatory and aggressive tone towards the helpless clerk
• The narrator is not sympathetic towards Scrooge but is sympathetic with regards to Bob, causing the reader to side with his character. This consequently characterises Scrooge as the villain
• Following Scrooge's transformation, Bob displays compassion as he forgives Scrooge for mistreating him, once again idealising his character
• Bob and Mrs Cratchit cultivate love and happiness between them

  This is emphasised when he remarks that she is a "good wife"
• When Bob proposes a toast to Scrooge, the "Founder of the Feast", Mrs Cratchit does not approve

  Bob replies in a "mild" way, simply reminding his wife of "the children" and that it is "Christmas Day", elevating his position
• Bob's behaviour presents him as remarkably patient and so heightens the righteousness of his character
• Tiny Tim

  Bob's youngest child, described as a "cripple"
• Tiny Tim's character

  Used by Dickens to showcase the loving aspect of Bob's character and cause the reader to sympathise with him more as we understand the intricate difficulties of his life
• Following Tiny Tim's death in Stave Four

  We witness Bob trying to remain peaceful despite his grief, reminding his family not to "quarrel easily" amongst each other in order to honour Tiny Tim's memory
• Tiny Tim's character

  Used by Dickens to foreground Bob's virtue, as seen when Dickens details how Bob returned from church with "Tiny Tim upon his shoulder", adding religious weight to his goodness and presenting his character as morally righteous
• Bob's relationship with his children

  Loving and endearing, as seen when he seems distraught when the children pretend that Martha cannot make it for Christmas Day, repeating "not coming!" with a sudden "declension in his high spirits"
• Bob's relationship with his children is presented by Dickens as an ideal quality for the reader to aspire to, like the Cratchit family