The Daughters of the Late Colonel: IX, 184. He regards Cratchit merely as an expense and resents having to pay his miserable wages. If these shadows remain unaltered by the Future, the child will die., No, no, said Scrooge. To a poor one most., Spirit? said Scrooge, after a moments thought, I wonder you, of all the beings in the many worlds about us, should desire to cramp these peoples opportunities of innocent enjoyment., You would deprive them of their means of dining every seventh day[6], often the only day on which they can be said to dine at all, said Scrooge. Stave 3: The Second of the Three Spirits - Page By Page Books Lesson Transcript. He hasnt the satisfaction of thinkingha, ha, ha!that he is ever going to benefit us with it.. MA 97, Page 40 | Charles Dickens's Christmas Carol | The Morgan Library Topper had clearly got his eye upon one of Scrooges nieces sisters, for he answered that a bachelor was a wretched outcast, who had no right to express an opinion on the subject. great, round, pot-bellied baskets of chestnuts, shaped like the waistcoats of jolly old gentlemen, lolling at the doors, and tumbling out into the street in their apoplectic opulence, ruddy, brown-faced, broad-girthed Spanish Onions, shining in the fatness of their growth like Spanish Friars, slow potatoes bubbling up, knocked loudly at the saucepan-lid to be let out and peeled, compounded some hot mixture in a jug with gin and lemons, and stirred it round and round and put it on the hob to simmer, pudding, like a speckled cannon-ball, so hard and firm, blazing in half of half-a-quartern of ignited brandy, and bedight with Christmas holly stuck into the top, at Bob Cratchits elbow stood the family display of glass. Scrooge was the ogre of the family. Man, said the Ghost, if man you be in heart, not adamant, forbear that wicked cant until you have discovered What the surplus is, and Where it is. But now, the plates being changed by Miss Belinda, Mrs. Cratchit left the room alonetoo nervous to bear witnessesto take the pudding up and bring it in. Oh, a wonderful pudding! Will you decide what men shall live, what men shall die? Somehow he gets thoughtful, sitting by himself so much, and thinks the strangest things you ever heard. English Literature: Victorians and Moderns, Self-ignition. Lauren has taught English at the university level and has a master's degree in literature. After it had passed away, they were ten times merrier than before, from the mere relief of Scrooge the Baleful being done with. At the beginning of the novel, Scrooge is described as "the Ogre of the family", this image allows the reader to understand that Scrooge is unloved and, furthermore, that his family are scared of him as he is seen to be monsterous. So Martha hid herself, and in came little Bob, the father, with at least three feet of comforter exclusive of the fringe, hanging down before him; and his threadbare clothes darned up and brushed, to look seasonable; and Tiny Tim upon his shoulder. Passing through the wall of mud and stone, they found a cheerful company assembled round a glowing fire. look here. And at the same time there emerged from scores of bye-streets, lanes, and nameless turnings, innumerable people, carrying their dinners to the bakers shops[5]. Holly, mistletoe, red berries, ivy, turkeys, geese, game, poultry, brawn, meat, pigs, sausages, oysters, pies, puddings, fruit, and punch, all vanished instantly. He dont make himself comfortable with it. 7. The Barnacles were a very high family, and a very large family. Learn how your comment data is processed. say he will be spared., If these shadows remain unaltered by the Future, none other of my race, returned the Ghost, will find him here. Admit it for your factious purposes, and make it worse. Again the Ghost sped on, above the black and heaving seaon, onuntil, being far away, as he told Scrooge, from any shore, they lighted on a ship. Explain how the theme of family is used throughout 'A Christmas Carol Here Scrooge sees how despite the family's poverty, they enjoy celebrating Christmas as best they can with joy and love for one another. Tiny Tim drank it last of all, but he didnt care twopence for it. Mrs. Cratchit calls Mr. Scrooge an "odious, stingy, hard, unfeeling man," and if Bob hadn't reminded her that it was Christmas Day and to calm herself in front of the children, she would never. She was very pretty: exceedingly pretty. Study Questions, Activities, and Resources, 156. Mrs. Cratchit in A Christmas Carol - Study.com Here is a glass of mulled wine ready to our hand at the moment; and I say,Uncle Scrooge! , A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to the old man, whatever he is. said Scrooges nephew. Likewise at the game of How, When, and Where, she was very great, and to the secret joy of Scrooges nephew, beat her sisters hollow: though they were sharp girls too, as Topper could have told you. Then all the Cratchit family drew round the hearth, in what Bob Cratchit called a circle, meaning half a one; and at Bob Cratchits elbow stood the family display of glass. If it only puts him in the vein to leave his poor clerk fifty pounds, thats something; and I think I shook him yesterday.. The compound in the jug being tasted, and considered perfect, apples and oranges were put upon the table, and a shovel-full of chestnuts on the fire. In his pamphlet, Sunday Under Three Heads, Dickens opposed attempts to pass a Sunday Observance Bill, which would have limited peoples right to enjoy leisure activities and to buy bread on Sundays. But, finding that he turned uncomfortably cold when he began to wonder which of his curtains this new spectre would draw back, he put them every one aside with his own hands, and lying down again, established a sharp look-out all round the bed. He looked down on every human being who did not share his own values. I know what it is!. Wed a deal of work to finish up last night, replied the girl, and had to clear away this morning, mother!, Well! Such a bustle ensued that you might have thought a goose the rarest of all birds; a feathered phenomenon, to which a black swan was a matter of courseand in truth it was something very like it in that house. However, his offences carry their own punishment, and I have nothing to say against him., Im sure he is very rich, Fred, hinted Scrooges niece. He dont do any good with it. How does Dickens present ideas about joy and happiness in chapter 2 of A Christmas Carol? They knelt down at its feet, and clung upon the outside of its garment. A great deal of steam! But it had undergone a surprising transformation. It was a great surprise to Scrooge, while listening to the moaning of the wind, and thinking what a solemn thing it was to move on through the lonely darkness over an unknown abyss, whose depths were secrets as profound as Death: it was a great surprise to Scrooge, while thus engaged, to hear a hearty laugh. A Christmas Carol | English Quiz - Quizizz Stave Three: The second of the three spirits I mean to give him the same chance every year, whether he likes it or not, for I pity him. What has ever got your precious father then? said Mrs. Cratchit. Then Bob proposed: A Merry Christmas to us all, my dears. This garment hung so loosely on the figure, that its capacious breast was bare, as if disdaining to be warded or concealed by any artifice. The very gold and silver fish, set forth among these choice fruits in a bowl, though members of a dull and stagnant-blooded race, appeared to know that there was something going on; and, to a fish, went gasping round and round their little world in slow and passionless excitement. Yet every one had had enough, and the youngest Cratchits in particular, were steeped in sage and onion to the eyebrows! Passing through the wall of mud and stone, they found a cheerful company assembled round a glowing fire. He asks the Ghost of Christmas Present if Tiny Tim will live. There were great, round, pot-bellied baskets of chestnuts, shaped like the waistcoats of jolly old gentlemen, lolling at the doors, and tumbling out into the street in their apoplectic opulence. Built upon a dismal reef of sunken rocks, some league or so from shore, on which the waters chafed and dashed, the wild year through, there stood a solitary lighthouse. Bless those women; they never do anything by halves. Cratchit is treated poorly by Scrooge and given a weekly salary that is insufficient to provide his family with a proper Christmas dinner. The mention of his name cast a dark shadow on the party, which was not dispelled for full five minutes. A tremendous family to provide for! muttered Scrooge. Altogether she was what you would have called provoking, you know; but satisfactory, too. Martha, who was a poor apprentice at a milliners, then told them what kind of work she had to do, and how many hours she worked at a stretch, and how she meant to lie abed to-morrow morning for a good long rest; to-morrow being a holiday she passed at home. Our summaries and analyses are written by experts, and your questions are answered by real teachers. I am the Ghost of Christmas Present, said the Spirit. But finding that he turned uncomfortably cold when he began to wonder which of his curtains this new spectre would draw back, he put them every one aside with his own hands; and lying down again, established a sharp look-out all round the bed. It is the Ghost of Christmas present who takes Scrooge to view how the Crachit family celebrates Christmas. A man who once expressed so much contempt and callous disregard for the welfare of the poorest members of society is now beginning to understand just how hard it is for those at the bottom rung of society's ladder. He always knew where the plump sister was. We are currently converting the 3,000+ pages within our WordPress site to make them more mobile friendly. He rejects all offerings of Christmas cheer and celebration as 'Humbug!'. Mrs Cratchit made the gravy (ready beforehand in a little saucepan) hissing hot; Master Peter mashed the potatoes with incredible vigour; Miss Belinda sweetened up the apple-sauce; Martha dusted the hot plates; Bob took Tiny Tim beside him in a tiny corner at the table; the two young Cratchits set chairs for everybody, not forgetting themselves, and mounting guard upon their posts, crammed spoons into their mouths, lest they should shriek for goose before their turn came to be helped. But when at last, he caught her; when, in spite of all her silken rustlings, and her rapid flutterings past him, he got her into a corner whence there was no escape; then his conduct was the most execrable. Oh God! Man, said the Ghost, if man you be in heart, not adamant, forbear that wicked cant until you have discovered What the surplus is, and Where it is. Mrs. Cratchit made the gravy (ready beforehand in a little saucepan) hissing hot; Master Peter mashed the potatoes with incredible vigour; Miss Belinda sweetened up the apple-sauce; Martha dusted the hot plates; Bob took Tiny Tim beside him in a tiny corner at the table; the two young Cratchits set chairs for everybody, not forgetting themselves, and mounting guard upon their posts, crammed spoons into their mouths, lest they should shriek for goose before their turn came to be helped. How does Dickens present Scrooge's character in stave 1? Then all the Cratchit family drew round the hearth, in what Bob Cratchit called a circle, meaning half a one; and at Bob Cratchits elbow stood the family display of glass. Also how she had seen a countess and a lord some days before, and how the lord was much about as tall as Peter; at which Peter pulled up his collars so high that you couldnt have seen his head if you had been there. Scrooge bent before the Ghosts rebuke, and trembling cast his eyes upon the ground. The Daughters of the Late Colonel: X, 185. Scrooge is saddened to hear this. The walls and ceiling were so hung with living green, that it looked a perfect grove; from every part of which, bright gleaming berries glistened. Mrs. Cratchit voices her dislikes, and refers to Scrooge as an "odious, stingy, hard, unfeeling man." The family feels this way toward Scrooge because Mr. Cratchit works hard as his employee but is paid little and treated poorly. Bob Cratchit told them how he had a situation in his eye for Master Peter, which would bring in, if obtained, full five-and-sixpence weekly. Spirit, said Scrooge, with an interest he had never felt before, tell me if Tiny Tim will live., I see a vacant seat, replied the Ghost, in the poor chimney-corner, and a crutch without an owner, carefully preserved. Ebenezer Scrooge - Wikipedia Oh, Man! You know he is, Robert! Of course there was. I was only going to say, said Scrooges nephew, that the consequence of his taking a dislike to us, and not making merry with us, is, as I think, that he loses some pleasant moments, which could do him no harm. Look here.. He was not the dogged Scrooge he had been; and though the Spirits eyes were clear and kind, he did not like to meet them. eNotes.com will help you with any book or any question. Again the Ghost sped on, above the black and heaving sea on, onuntil, being far away, as he told Scrooge, from any shore, they lighted on a ship. Any Cratchit would have blushed to hint at such a thing. How it bared its breadth of breast, and opened its capacious palm, and floated on, outpouring, with a generous hand, its bright and harmless mirth on everything within its reach! Scrooge reverently did so. Any Answers? But they know me. Eked out by apple-sauce and mashed potatoes, it was a sufficient dinner for the whole family; indeed, as Mrs Cratchit said with great delight (surveying one small atom of a bone upon the dish), they hadnt ate it all at last! I have no patience with him, observed Scrooges niece. All sorts of horrors were supposed. The Daughters of the Late Colonel: V, 180. She often cried out that it wasnt fair; and it really was not. This work (A Christmas Carol: Stave 3 by Charles Dickens) is free of known copyright restrictions. A Christmas Carol: Key Quote by character with detail It was his own room. The poulterers shops were still half open, and the fruiterers were radiant in their glory. Now, when Scrooge sees the Crachits in their own home, they start to become real people to him. To Scrooges horror, looking back, he saw the last of the land, a frightful range of rocks, behind them; and his ears were deafened by the thundering of water, as it rolled and roared, and raged among the dreadful caverns it had worn, and fiercely tried to undermine the earth. Uncle Scrooge!. But it had undergone a surprising transformation. He has given us plenty of merriment, I am sure, said Fred, and it would be ungrateful not to drink his health. Eked out by apple-sauce and mashed potatoes, it was a sufficient dinner for the whole family; indeed, as Mrs. Cratchit said with great delight (surveying one small atom of a bone upon the dish), they hadnt ate it all at last! I have no patience with him, observed Scrooges niece. They were not a handsome family; they were not well dressed; their shoes were far from being water-proof; their clothes were scanty; and Peter might have known, and very likely did, the inside of a pawnbrokers. Here is a glass of mulled wine ready to our hand at the moment; and I say, Uncle Scrooge! , A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to the old man, whatever he is! said Scrooges nephew. And bide the end!. The mention of his name cast a dark shadow on the party, which was not dispelled for full five minutes. Scrooges nephew revelled in another laugh, and as it was impossible to keep the infection off; though the plump sister tried hard to do it with aromatic vinegar; his example was unanimously followed. All this time, he lay upon his bed, the very core and centre of a blaze of ruddy light, which streamed upon it when the clock proclaimed the hour; and which, being only light, was more alarming than a dozen ghosts, as he was powerless to make out what it meant, or would be at; and was sometimes apprehensive that he might be at that very moment an interesting case of spontaneous combustion[1], without having the consolation of knowing it. But they didnt devote the whole evening to music. The narrator calls Dickens an Ogre of the Cratchit Family. Oh, no, kind Spirit! To-night, if you have aught to teach me, let me profit by it." "Touch my robe!" The Spirit did not tarry here, but bade Scrooge hold his robe, and passing on above the moor, sped whither. 'I see a vacant seat'replied the Ghost,'in the poor chimney-corner, and a crutch without an owner, carefully preserved. I wish I had him here. Tiny Tim drank it last of all, but he didn't care twopence for it.