Bob

• What Bob quote starts "clerk..." & what is the analysis for it?

  • Lack of identity in S1 -> symbolic of dehumanisation & marginalisation (treated insignificant) experienced by the working class during the Victorian era
  • Deliberate omission (removal) of his name shows the societal attitude that stripped the poor of their individuality, reducing them to mere cogs in the machinery of an industrialising society
  • Symbolism of Bob's anonymity -> motif of social inequality & power dynamics between upper & lower class -> he is under the oppressive thumb of S -> ruthless embodiment of capitalist greed
• What quote starts "I'll give you Mr..." & what is the analysis for it?

  • Connotation "Founder" -> B perceives S w/ a quasi-divine reverence (having features of being God-like) in S3 -> reinforced (gratitude to "goose"), superlative "rarest" despite irony this was cheap bird that replaced Turkey in the Victorian era -> disheartening reality where the destitute feel indebted (owing) & blindly grateful to those who exploit them
  • Exclamative sent -> B epitomises power of true wealth -> despite meagre possessions -> gratitude emphasised by ES -> challenges idea that material wealth = moral superiority
• What Bob quote starts "My little, little..." & what is the analysis for it?

  • Repeated adjective in S4 -> "little" -> fragility & innocence -> vulnerable e.g. Tiny Tim victim to cycle of poverty -> repetition allows D to emph. harsh realities & repeated exploitation faced by most defenceless members of society -> need for social reform
  • Alternative view -> D provides solution to perpetual cycle of poverty -> development of collective social conscience -> societal unity & empathy alleviates neglect of poor -> e.g. Scrooge's transformation into father figure for Tim
• What Bob quote starts "My little, little..." & what is the context for it?

  • Indicts Malthusian views -> T portrayed as angelic coupled w/ B's kindness -> exacerbates damaging effects of Malthusian views -> despite their morality -> deemed economic burdens & dismissed as "surplus population" -> subject to real & unjust hardships
  • Bob -> microcosm of exploited poor -> D crafts character as inherently benevolent -> yet subjected to immense unjust suffering -> humanises working class struggles -> prompts readers to reconsider societal misconceptions regarding poverty