General knowledge

• When 'A Christmas Carol' was published

  1843
• The Poor Law was introduced in 1834
• Why the Workhouses were deliberately harsh places

  To stop the poor relying on society to help them
• What happened in Dickens' childhood that made him interested in helping the poor
• Effect of the Industrial Revolution on Victorian society

  • It made businessmen and factory owners rich but many of their workers lived in poverty
• 6 Victorian Christmas traditions


  • Christmas dinner
  • Presents
  • Carols
  • Decorations
  • Crackers
  • Cards
• Ragged Schools


  Schools that offered free education, clothing and food to children from poor families
• In Stave 1, how Dickens links the weather and Scrooge's character

  The cold reflects his cold-hearted nature. The fog symbolises his ignorance
• In Stave 2, what the Ghost of Christmas Past represents


  • Scrooge's memories and the truth he has to face
• In Stave 3, what the Ghost of Christmas Present teaches Scrooge


  • The true meaning of Christmas and the importance of family
• In Stave 3, why Scrooge is shown the boy and girl ignorance and Want

  They symbolise the problems caused by poverty. Ignoring the problems will lead to society's 'Doom'
• In Stave 4, how the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come is different

  • It's more sinister, completely silent and personifies death
• In Stave 4, who is the dead man and who also dies

  • Scrooge. Tiny Tim
• In Stave 5, to which families Scrooge becomes close


  • The Cratchit family and his nephew, Fred's
• In Stave 5, how Dickens shows Scrooge has become selfless
• Who 'should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart'

  Scrooge. He has a tough exterior but there may be something good inside him
• Who said 'I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year'
• Why the Ghost of Christmas Present sprinkles 'incense' on homes of the poor and anyone who is arguing

  The incense symbolises the Christmas Spirit and has a transforming effect on people. Their good humour's restored directly
• What is suggested by the quotation 'Tim quite a baby at the end of Stave 5'

  Scrooge has been re-born. It's the start of a new era for him
• What Scrooge's 'very small fire' symbolises

  The lack of warmth in his life. His lack of joy and companionship
• How Dickens changes the mood in 'A Christmas Carol'

  Jolly and festive mood around the idea of Christmas, Darker when highlighting poverty
• How Dickens uses the Cratchits to explore the theme of poverty


  Small Christmas dinner, threadbare clothes, death of Tiny Tim if they continue to be poor
• What leads to Scrooge's redemption at the end of the novella
• What was Dickens' attitude towards religion
• How Dickens presents the theme of charity at the end of the novella
• Which characters Dickens uses to explore ideas about greed

  • Scrooge, Joe and the thieves, the wealthy London businessmen