Excerpt
from A Christmas Carol Special Edition: The Charles Dickens Classic with Christian Insights and Discussion Questions for Groups and Families
by Charles Dickens with Stephen Skelton
Marley's Ghost
A Christmas Carol[1]
STAVE
ONE[2]
Marley was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt
whatever about that. The register of his burial was signed by the
clergyman, the clerk, the undertaker, and the chief mourner. Scrooge[3]
signed it: and Scrooge's name was good upon 'Change,[4] for
anything he chose to put his hand to. Old Marley was as dead as a
door-nail.
Mind! I don't mean to say that I know, of my own knowledge, what
there is particularly dead about a door-nail. I might have been
inclined, myself, to regard a coffin-nail as the deadest piece of
ironmongery in the trade. But the wisdom of our ancestors is in the
simile; and my unhallowed hands shall not disturb it, or the Country's
done for. You will therefore permit me to repeat, emphatically, that
Marley was as dead as a door-nail.
Scrooge knew he was dead? Of course he did. How could it be
otherwise? Scrooge and he were partners for I don't know how many
years. Scrooge was his sole executor, his sole administrator, his sole
assign, his sole residuary legatee, his sole friend and sole mourner.
And even Scrooge was not so dreadfully cut up by the sad event, but
that he was an excellent man of business on the very day of the
funeral, and solemnised it with an undoubted bargain.
The mention of Marley's funeral brings me back to the point I
started from. There is no doubt that Marley was dead.[5]
This must be
distinctly understood, or nothing wonderful can come of the story I am
going to relate. If we were not perfectly convinced that Hamlet's Father[6]
died before the play began, there would
be nothing
more remarkable in his taking a stroll at night, in an easterly wind,
upon his own ramparts, than there would be in any other middle-aged
gentleman rashly turning out after dark in a breezy spot -- say Saint
Paul's Churchyard[7] for instance -- literally to astonish
his
son's
weak mind.
Scrooge never painted out Old Marley's name. There it stood, years
afterwards, above the warehouse door: Scrooge and Marley. The firm was
known as Scrooge and Marley. Sometimes people new to the business
called Scrooge Scrooge, and sometimes Marley, but he answered to both
names: it was all the same to him.
Oh! But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grindstone, Scrooge! a
squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old
sinner![8] Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had
ever
struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as
an oyster. The cold within him froze his old features, nipped his
pointed nose, shrivelled his cheek, stiffened his gait; made his eyes
red, his thin lips blue; and spoke out shrewdly in his grating voice. A
frosty rime[9] was on his head, and on his eyebrows, and his
wiry
chin. He carried his own low temperature always about with him; he iced
his office in the dog-days; and didn't thaw it one degree at Christmas.
External heat and cold had little influence on Scrooge. No warmth
could warm, nor wintry weather chill him. No wind that blew was
bitterer than he, no falling snow was more intent upon its purpose, no
pelting rain less open to entreaty. Foul weather didn't know where to
have him. The heaviest rain, and snow, and hail, and sleet, could boast
of the advantage over him in only one respect. They often "came down"
handsomely, and
Scrooge never did. [10]
Nobody ever stopped him in the street to say, with gladsome looks,
"My dear Scrooge, how are you? When will you come to see me?" No
beggars implored him to bestow a trifle, no children asked him what it
was o'clock, no man or woman ever once in all his life inquired the way
to such and such a place, of Scrooge. Even the blindmen's dogs appeared
to know him; and when they saw him coming on, would tug their owners
into doorways and up courts; and then would wag their tails as though
they said, "No eye at all is better than an evil eye, [11]
dark master!"
But what did Scrooge care? It was the very thing he liked. To edge
his way along the crowded paths of life, warning all human sympathy to
keep its distance, was what the knowing ones call "nuts" [12]
to
Scrooge.
Once upon a time -- of all the good days in the year, on Christmas
Eve -- old Scrooge sat busy in his counting-house. It was cold, bleak,
biting weather: foggy withal: and he could hear the people in the court
outside go wheezing up and down, beating their hands upon their
breasts, and stamping their feet upon the pavement-stones to warm them.
The city clocks had only just gone three, but it was quite dark
already: it had not been light all day: and candles were flaring in the
windows of the neighbouring offices, like ruddy smears upon the
palpable brown air. The fog came pouring in at every chink and keyhole,
and was so dense without, that although the court was of the narrowest,
the houses opposite were mere phantoms. To see the dingy cloud come
drooping down, obscuring everything, one might have thought that Nature
lived hard by, and was brewing on a large scale.
The door of Scrooge's counting-house was open that he might keep his
eye upon his clerk, who in a dismal little cell beyond, a sort of tank,
was copying letters. Scrooge had a very small fire, but the clerk's
fire was so very much smaller that it looked like one coal. But he
couldn't replenish it, for Scrooge kept the coal-box in his own room;
and so surely as the clerk came in with the shovel, the master
predicted that it would be necessary for them to part. Wherefore the
clerk put on his white comforter, [13] and tried to warm
himself at the
candle; in which effort, not being a man of a strong imagination, he
failed.
"A merry Christmas, uncle! God save you!" [14] cried a
cheerful
voice. It was the voice of Scrooge's nephew, who came upon him so
quickly that this was the first intimation he had of his approach.
"Bah!" said Scrooge, "Humbug!" [15]
He had so heated himself with rapid walking in the fog and frost,
this nephew of Scrooge's, [16] that he was all in a glow;
his face was
ruddy and handsome; his eyes sparkled, and his breath smoked again.
"Christmas a humbug, uncle!" said Scrooge's nephew. "You don't mean
that, I am sure."
"I do," said Scrooge. "Merry Christmas! What right have you to be
merry? What reason have you to be merry? You're poor enough."
DISCUSSION ONE
Selfishness
About these studies: The discussion material has been
designed for use with readers across a range of ages. Though all of the
questions are suitable for use with adults, we would suggest that the
A. and B. questions would be more appropriate for younger readers.
I. TELLING THE STORY
Stave One introduces Ebenezer Scrooge -- a man so self-centered, not
even
Christmastime can put him in a giving mood. In this discussion we'll
examine how
selfishness is really our attempt to control our own lives, rather than
allow God
to lead us. We'll see how selfishness can cut us off from others,
putting us in prisons of our own making. We'll also witness the freedom
that selflessness can bring. And we'll discover what Jacob Marley
laments: that selfishness can not only cheat people out of enjoying an
abundant life on earth, but it can also rob them of the greatest
treasure anyone could ever have -- eternal life with God.
Key Verse |
A. How did Scrooge show his selfishness in the
way he acted toward his clerk? toward his nephew? toward the two
gentlemen?
B. When his nephew wished Scrooge "A merry
Christmas!" Ebenezer replied with "Bah! Humbug!" In other words, he was
calling Christmas a bunch of nonsense. Considering what was said in the
story, why does Scrooge think Christmas is nonsense? For what other
reasons would you think Scrooge might not want to celebrate the birth
of Christ?
C. What connections do you see between Scrooge's
material, emotional, and spiritual selfishness? How do you see each of
these impacting Scrooge's life in
Stave One?
D. Jacob Marley tells Scrooge that "no space of
regret can make amends for one life's opportunities misused." What
opportunities did Marley misuse? What opportunities do we see Scrooge
misuse due to his selfishness?
II. TELLING YOUR STORY
If it wasn't for acting selfish, some of us wouldn't know how to
act. Like little Scrooges, selfish people seem to think, "If I don't
get it for myself, how else will I get what I want before someone else
gets it?" However, we should think about what we are giving away while
we are trying so hard to grab things. Instead of filling our lives up
with stuff, we should be willing to give our very lives for the sake of
Christ. In an amazing way, when we give our lives to God, and let go of
our control, we gain more satisfaction and security than we could ever
imagine.
Key Verse |
A. Describe a time when you were selfish. What
happened? How did you feel about yourself at the time?
B. We often think of generosity just meaning
being willing to give money or things away. But the word generous also
can be used to talk about someone being kind even when he or she is
being treated unkindly. We see examples of generous spirits in the
characters of the clerk (Bob Cratchit) and Scrooge's nephew.
Describe a time when you were generous. How did people react to your
generosity? What effect did being generous have on you?
C. Have you or has anyone you know ever suffered because of
someone else's selfishness? How was that handled? What have you
sacrificed for your own selfishness?
D. Compare the actions and attitudes of
Scrooge's nephew and his clerk with those of Scrooge himself. For
example, look at the two paragraphs that describe the clerk and Scrooge
leaving after the day of work is done. How were the nephew and the
clerk richer than the old miser? How were they more free?
III. TELLING THE STORY OF CHRISTMAS
"The people walking in darkness have seen a great light;
on those living in the land of the shadow of death a light has dawned.
. . . For to us a child is born, to us a son is given" (Isaiah 9:2, 6).
God completed the ultimate act of selflessness by giving us his Son to
bring light to our dark world, to save us from our sins. To celebrate
and show our gratitude for this gift, we should act in love toward
others just as God has acted in love toward us.
Key Verse |
A. What's the best gift you have ever received
for Christmas? What made it special?
B. How can you share the gift of Christ? Why is
it important to do this?
C. Scrooge was given the gift of the appearance
of Marley on Christmas Eve. Marley said he had come to warn Scrooge,
that he might have "a chance and hope" of escaping Marley's fate. Why
do you think a character such as Marley would have wanted to give
Scrooge this chance?
D. If your selfishness has separated you from
others in your life, what can you do to repair these broken bonds? What
practical things can you do to show others what Christmas means to you?
IV. LIVING THE STORY
Selfishness can destroy relationships: with your family,
with your friends, with your God. Acting in humility and generosity can
build relationships. In being humble, you seek to meet the needs of
others before your own. In being generous,
you seek to give more than you get.
Ask God to help you live with less selfishness and
more generosity by:
For Further Study
- Showing love to someone -- even when you don't feel like it.
- Giving of your money or time -- even when it is not convenient.
- Praying for someone -- even when they have mistreated you.
Psalm 119:36
Proverbs 11:17;18:1
Luke 12:15, 20, 21
Romans 2:7, 8
Ephesians 5:5, 21
James 3:13-17
Annotations
[1] While today we may use the term carol to refer to any Christmastime song, including secular ones such as "Jingle Bells," Dickens is using the meaning of carol familiar to him: a song celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ.
[2] Dickens extends the concept of his book being a carol by calling each chapter a stave, a stanza of a song.
[3] The colloquial word scrooge means "to squeeze" and is used by Dickens to underscore his main character's primary sin: greed -- as in the description of Scrooge as "a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner!"
[4] His name was "good upon 'Change." This refers to the Royal Exchange, the center of commerce for the City of London. The phrase means Scrooge had good credit, he could be trusted financially.
[5] This is the fourth time in the first four paragraphs that Dickens states Marley is dead. The repetition serves to highlight the death from which Marley makes his miraculous reappearance.
[6] Another bit of foreshadowing -- Dickens here refers to the well-known literary figure of the ghost of Hamlet's father, who appears three times in Shakespeare's Hamlet.
[7] Dickens was fond of writing about the London landmark Saint Paul's Cathedral, featuring it in many of his works, including David Copperfield in which David takes Peggotty to the roof.
[8] Dickens's use of "sinner" reflects the Christian context of his story. You cannot have sin without God to decree sin. Men deal with crime and criminals. God deals with sin and sinners.
[9] Rime as used here is a cold mist or fog. The "frosty rime" on Scrooge's head is a description of his grey or white hair.
[10] Dickens makes a cutting pun with the phrase "came down." When weather "came down," it fell heavily. But the phrase was also used as a slang term to refer to people laying out money, as to give to the poor. When men "came down," they gave generously. But "Scrooge never did."
[11] The superstition of the "evil eye" holds that a person can harm others with a look. In Stave Two, Dickens appropriates this superstitious idea to make a moral point: "There was an eager, greedy, restless motion in the eye, which showed the passion [Gain] that had taken root, and where the shadow of the growing tree would fall."
[12] We often use the word nuts today as an expression when something goes wrong, or to refer to someone being crazy. But here the word is used in an older form, suggesting something that created enthusiasm, or meaning favorable or of good fortune, good luck.
[13] The clerk's "comforter" is his long knit scarf.
[14] Ironically, when the book was performed as a play, this line, "God save you," as well as the more famous line, "God bless us every one," could not be spoken on the London stage, so cautious was the Lord Chamberlain's examiner of plays who checked scripts for blasphemy.
[15] Scrooge's now famous interjection was a common term for nonsense. It seems a familiar response of his in this first stave. However, this will be the last chapter in which we hear him utter it, and by the end of Stave One he can't even finish the word, indicating change already beginning to occur in his perceptions.
[16] Charles Kent, a friend of Dickens, commented, "this description of Scrooge's Nephew was, quite unconsciously but most accurately, in every word of it, a literal description of [Charles Dickens] himself" (Charles Dickens as a Reader, 1872).
The above is an excerpt from the book A Christmas Carol Special Edition: The Charles Dickens Classic with Christian Insights and Discussion Questions for Groups and Families by Charles Dickens with Stephen Skelton. The above excerpt is a digitally scanned reproduction of text from print. Although this excerpt has been proofread, occasional errors may appear due to the scanning process. Please refer to the finished book for accuracy.
Copyright © 2009 Charles Dickens with Stephen Skelton, authors of A Christmas Carol Special Edition: The Charles Dickens Classic with Christian Insights and Discussion Questions for Groups and Families