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8 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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"Are there no prisons?" -Scrooge Stave 1 |
Scrooge uses a rhetorical question to sarcastically refuse to donate to charity. The poor law was a law that was set in place in 1834. It stopped money going to poor people unless they accepted a place in the horrific workhouses. Scrooge is implying that poverty is a crime and should be punished - a cruel lie that is told by selfish people to make themselves feel better. |
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"The treadmill and the Poor Law are in full vigour then?" -Scrooge Stave 1 |
Scrooge uses a rhetorical question to sarcastically refuse to donate to charity. Scrooge says the poor belong in "prisons" and "workhouses". This is where most of the poor population went in 1843 when A Christmas Carol was written. The treadmill was a punishment used to make life in prisons and workhouses even more unpleasant. |
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"Do you know whether they've sold the prize turkey?" -Scrooge Stave 5 |
Scrooge is asking questions in a courteous way - even though he is speaking to a common boy. This is a stark contrast to his rude and sarcastic manner earlier in the novel. He buys the largest turkey he can find and sends it to the Cratchit home without revealing who donated the gift. This shows that Scrooge has learnt to give to the poor and help them out. |
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"No more work to-night. Christmas Eve" -Fezziwig Stave 2 |
Here Scrooge remembers the charity and kindness Fezziwig treats his employees with. This sharply contrasts with Scrooge at the start of the novella where he shows no charity or kindness to his employees and family. Scrooge has been treated well by some, if not all, of the people in his past. |
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"Mankind was my business." -Ghost of Marley Stave 1 |
Marley is saying he should have looked after people - not his trade. In death, Marley has realised what truly matters. This would have made a powerful impression on Victorians, who believed in God, heaven and hell. The thought of being condemned to eternal torture would certainly have made them reflect on their own choices. |
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" I should have liked to have given him something that's all." -Scrooge Stave 2 |
This shows that Scrooge is gradually beginning to change and is starting to think about giving charity to people that need it. |
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"Lord bless me! My dear Mr. Scrooge, are you serious?" -Charity Collector - Stave 5 |
Scrooge has changed completely and is giving, as far as we can tell, a large amount of money to men just a short time earlier he had refused to give anything and asked them about the "prisons". He also seems to have understood that people in poverty are not "idle" but have very little choice about their situations. He has been given the choice that Marley has never had - to put right his own mistakes. |
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"And therefore I am about to raise your salary!" -Scrooge Stave 5 |
Once again it is clear to the reader that Scrooge has changed and is ready to give to charity and help those who need it most. Also the way Scrooge sets up to deliver this line (making Bob Cratchit think he is going to be fired) suggests he now has a sense of humour as well as being charitable. |
