So, in the spirit of the Christmas season, I read "Christmas Carol" the other day, which was a pretty good story. This well-known story has been around for over 170 years with many adaptions. So I thought to myself, why not join in on it? I honestly did not understand what the appeal of this simple
The story was, but after reading it, I enjoyed it for what it is worth.
So, I did feel like Charles Dickens could have gone deeper into 3why Scrooge was such a hard person to deal with, but I understand that Charles Dickens had a simple point. While more detail might have been excellent, I can see how it might obscure the one fact he was trying to make and its effects on the character. It seemed. to me that Scrooge was just a man focused on making money instead of family, but I think what’s lost is that Scrooge appears to be a guy who, deep down, was a pretty decent person. Overall, it seems that the only thing that made him cold and distant was most likely some hard times. For instance, the fact that his fiancée left him because she thought that money meant more to him than a loving relationship, and I believe his fiancée misunderstood him as a person. I also think that seeing how Jacob Marley was Scrooge’s only friend, that loss must have made him feel lonelier than ever.
I enjoyed the first two ghosts that visited Scrooge in his dream the most because it showed that Scrooge had not always been such a tough person to deal with. Like when he talks to the ghost of Christmas present, we see him recognize that his behavior might not be the best and that he should change it. It was just a succession of horrific events that turned him from a good-natured individual into the person we first met. I also think that certain aspects of Jacob Marley’s personality might have rubbed off on Scrooge over the years. In general, I know the whole ghost visitation sequence in the story was a dream, but it still bothers me that the servants stole Scrooge's bedsheets and other belongings because no matter what a person does, I think it's wrong to steal from the dearly departed. However, Scrooge’s servants didn’t seem to have that sense of respect in the dream--I feel that they saw Scrooge as some rich, eccentric, stubborn man and not as a human deserving of respect.
Some things weren't clear to me, which is, again, where I think there could've been more detail. For instance, I finally understand what Scrooge does for a living because, for the longest time, I couldn't figure out what he did, but now I know that he would be something close to a loan officer for the bank. That is the closest equivalent I can come to the position that Scrooge held, so I am not sure of that. Also, we are never told what Bob Cratchit’s youngest son suffers from, but if I had to take a guess, I would say it was a clubbed foot.
I did enjoy the ending. I am happy that Scrooge learned from his travels with the spirits. I am also pleased that, in the end, Scrooge can spend Christmas with his family and show them that he is not as coldhearted as they thought. I think the biggest thing I took away from the story is that it is better to give than to receive. At least, that is the lesson that Charles Dickens meant to convey with this story. To anyone who has read the story, what do you think Charles Dicken's point with this story was?