This quote is from a paragraph describing Ebenezer Scrooge at the beginning of A Christmas Carol. The cold within him froze his old features, nipped his. `How it is that I appear before you in a shape that you can see, I may not tell. "I am as light as a feather, I am as happy as an angel, I am as merry as a school-boy. "Oh! clause and each adverb clause adv. This is a great quote for highlighting the sort of character that Scrooge was in A Christmas Carol. If they would rather die, theyd better do it, and decrease the surplus population. This boy is Ignorance. Whether these creatures faded into mist, or mist enshrouded them, he could not tell. "Spirit," said Scrooge with an interest he had never felt before, "tell me if Tiny Tim will live.". Nobody under the table, nobody under the sofa, a small fire in the grate; spoon and basin ready; and the little saucepan of gruel, Nobody under the bed; nobody in the closet; nobody in his dressing-gown, which was hanging up in a suspicious attitude against the wall. Scrooge never painted out Old Marleys name. The misery with them all was, clearly, that they sought to interfere, for good, in human matters, and had lost the power for ever. `What do you want with me?. Note the use of the adjective poor to describe Bob Cratchit. Indeed, Scrooge has become a new man. What reason have you to be merry? At the very least, this alone would make him an outsider. Complete your free account to request a guide. Though it seems threatening, he is offering Scrooge a very tangible way to improve his fate. Explain. "Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster." See in text (Stave One) These two similes define Scrooge in three ways: First, he is portrayed as inflexible through the comparison to flint (a hard gray rock). Hot and Cold Extensive imagery describes Scrooge as cold because of his cold heart; in contrast, his nephew is described as warm because he is merry and loving. 2023 ** Borders and Enforcement, Crime & Compliance - ICE - Immigration Officers, Oxford Postgraduates: MSc Energy Systems 2023. Scrooge had often heard it said that Marley had no bowels, but he had never believed it until now. The power of light and music to shine through the winter gloom is a visual way of showing the moral of this story. Humbug! but stopped at the first syllable, A Christmas Carol in Prose, Being a Ghost-Story of Christmas, commonly known as A Christmas. he was all in a glow; his face was ruddy and handsome; his eyes sparkled, and his breath smoked again. Scrooge has already, Would not have made it through AP Literature without the printable PDFs. ", "If they would rather die.they had better do it and decrease the surplus population." A squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! What to expect as an older masters student? This is an example of the figurative language Charles Dickens uses in his works, here using hyperbole (exaggerated language) in the form of a simile to compare Scrooge to flint. It swung so softly in the outset that it scarcely made a sound; but soon it rang out loudly, and so did every bell in the house. Yet such was I! The narrator reminds the reader that Scrooges ex-partner Marley has been dead several years. It is through your support of visiting Book Analysis that we can support charities, such as Teenage Cancer Trust. This gives the perception of Scrooge being a very cold character, a word also associated with being mean. Teachers and parents! Whereas the line about being solitary as an oyster suggests that Scrooge refuses to let anybody into his life. The exclamation mark in "Oh!" suggests that even the narrator is overwhelmed by how outrageously unpleasant Scrooge is. You have laboured on it, since. Discipline was harsh and. A Christmas Carol in Prose, Being a Ghost-Story of Christmas, commonly known as A Christmas Carol. ragged men and boys were gathered: warming their hands and winking their eyes before the blaze in rapture. Privacy Policy, https://bookanalysis.com/charles-dickens/a-christmas-carol/quotes/. He is cold and greedy, not the kind of man people want to befriend. Download the entire A Christmas Carol study guide as a printable PDF! such was I! This has a double meaning both as a sympathetic term of endearment and also the fact that thanks to Scrooge the man is literally poor. 'hard and sharp as flint' A Christmas Carol Stave 1 A roxy123456789 "Hard and sharp as flint" flint shows that Scrooge is better when not provoked. Explanation and AnalysisAs Dead as a Door-Nail: Explanation and AnalysisScrooge's Transformation: Would not have made it through AP Literature without the printable PDFs. _____Why did the puppy hide when Sebastian appeared? Quite satisfied, he closed his door, and locked himself in; double-locked himself in, which was not his custom. I have got a paragraph here from the book Christmas Carol explaining what scrooge was like. As the day passes, the fog and cold become more severe. A squeezing, wrenching, grasping,scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner!" - Narrator. In other words, Scrooge is not alone; many people, while perhaps less obviously awful than Scrooge, share his sinful failings. The mention of Marleys funeral brings me back to the point I started from. Marley's questions and Scrooge's answers about the senses are important. wishing, though it were only for a second, to divert the visions stony gaze from himself, e for the rest of my days persecuted by a legion of goblins, all of my own creation, when the phantom taking off the bandage round its head, as if it were too warm to wear indoors, its lower jaw dropped down upon its breast. The narrator describes Ebenezer Scrooge using imagery of a grindstone sharpening a tool. Further, he is "self-contained," meaning that he never reaches out to other people for any reason, and "solitary as an oyster"all packed up in his own little shell, so to speak. (interrogative), or exc. Click the card to flip . "Hard and sharp as flint." BEFORE CHANGE Shows his personality. Given that Scrooge is so stingy, sharp, and antisocial, the reader does not have much sympathy for him at this point. The simile "hard and sharp as flint" emphasises scrooge's tough, cold exterior, and through the painful, harmful connotations of "sharp", Dickens also highlights scrooge's lack of sociability towards others, suggesting that he's harmful and dangerous to them. Finally, he is not only isolated from others, but he also keeps to himself in his own world, contained within his own shell. In the first stave, the miser Scrooge is introduced as well as his merry nephew and his poor clerk Bob Cratchit. Once upon a time -- of all the good days in the year, on Christmas Eve -- old Scrooge sat busy in his counting-house. Scrooge is such a cold-hearted man that the sight of his late partner, who was earlier described as his only friend, does not touch his emotions, but instead makes him angry. `I am sorry, with all my heart, to find you so resolute. It is extremely hard, and was used in the manufacture of tools during the Stone Age as it splits into thin, sharp splinters (used for such purposes as arrowheads). What have recent studies shown about a spirit of cooperation in nature? On this page, readers can explore the quotes, they are broadly separated into a few sub-categories. Youre rich enough., Scrooge having no better answer ready on the spur of the moment. Why does the Ghost of Christmas Past show Scrooge the boarding school where he was left alone in A Christmas Carol? Find related themes, quotes, symbols, characters, and more. This might have lasted half a minute, or a minute, but it seemed an hour. Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! That, and its livid colour, made it horrible; but its horror seemed to be in spite of the face and beyond its control, rather than a part or its own expression. My students love how organized the handouts are and enjoy tracking the themes as a class., Requesting a new guide requires a free LitCharts account. Hes comparing Cratchits actual body temperature to Scrooges personality. (meaning rubbish or nonsense) suggesting that scrooge is dismissive of Christmas and the values that come with it, and the animalistic onomatopoeia of "bah!" In this way, Dickens universalizes his message. Marley is a figure of both terror and kindness it will become clear that instead of wanting revenge on Scrooge, he has come to protect him. A frosty rime was on his head, and on his eyebrows, and his wiry chin. You'll also get updates on new titles we publish and the ability to save highlights and notes. You'll also get updates on new titles we publish and the ability to save highlights and notes. There was a boy singing a Christmas carol at my door last night. Scrooge was not much in the habit of cracking jokes, nor did he feel, in his heart, by any means waggish then. Its the only way to make a boy sharp, sir. Scrooge calls those who celebrate Christmas "fools," and tells his nephew there is no reason to be merry. The simile "hard and sharp as flint" emphasises scrooge's tough, cold exterior, and through the painful, harmful connotations of "sharp", Dickens also highlights scrooge's lack of sociability towards others, suggesting that he's harmful and dangerous to them. Here in this quote, one can see Dickens playing with literal and figurative meanings to great effect. Marley is not saying business is inherently bad, but he is saying that it is terrifically small and narrow in comparison to the rest of life, and certainly that business success is not enough to right any wrongs one commits in life. Of course he did. The Spirits of all three shall strive within me. clause. If we were not perfectly convinced that Hamlets Father 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 Pauls Churchyard for instance -- literally to astonish his sons weak mind. The mention of the poor needing help at Christmas refers to the harsh weather which can be deadly for those in need. 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. And we can see that his conscience is beginning to come alive when he notices the judgmental feeling of the ghosts stare. PDFs of modern translations of every Shakespeare play and poem. See in text(Stave One). Already, the poor townsfolk are elevated above Scrooge in moral standing he is a caricature of a lonely miser. Struggling with distance learning? "No warmth could warm, no wintry weather chill him", Dickens uses "warmth" as a metaphor for goodwill and inversely "cold" as a metaphor for ill will throughout the novella, so here it suggests that no good will or ill will from others in society are able to affect scrooge as he's become totally impervious to and disconnected from interactions with society, "The cold within him froze his old features, nipped his pointed nose, shriveled his cheek, stiffened his gait". You'll be able to access your notes and highlights, make requests, and get updates on new titles. Historical Context Who is Belle in A Christmas Carol, and why was she important to Scrooge? My students love how organized the handouts are and enjoy tracking the themes as a class., Requesting a new guide requires a free LitCharts account. wherefore the clerk put on his white comforter, and tried to warm himself at the candle; in which effort, not being a man of strong imagination, he failed". The fact that there are three spirits and that they will arrive at the same time for the next three nights creates a definite, easy structure for Scrooge, and the story, to follow. -, "The ancient tower of a church whose gruff old bell was always peeping slily down at Scrooge", Click here to study/print these flashcards. Instant downloads of all 1699 LitChart PDFs "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 way the content is organized. Be here all the earlier next morning. I might have been inclined, myself, to regard a coffin-nail as the deadest piece of ironmongery in the trade. Upon its coming in, the dying flame leaped up, as though it cried `I know him; Marleys Ghost! and fell again. His answer is, "Bah! The original text plus a side-by-side modern translation of. This poignant moment arrives when Scrooge is looking at Christmas yet to come. It is a dark, sad moment but Bob Cratchit handles the situation with grace and dignity. The clerk in the Tank involuntarily applauded. Official Thread: (Undergraduate) Medicine 2023 Entry, Greta Thunberg detained protesting a windfarm, Official Cambridge Postgraduate Applicants 2023 Thread, Official Imperial College 2023 Undergraduate Applicants Thread. Christmas Carol - Generosity Quotes. Which, you see, were a drawback on my learning. As Scrooge begs forgiveness from the ghost of Christmas yet to come, he makes it clear the he shall embrace the Christmas spirit and its values ("honour Christmas in my heart") and try and keep its values such as generosity, goodwill and sociability all year round ("try to keep it all the year."). And yet the way he denies the truth with joke-making, shows his fear. He becomes nearly inebriated with joy. Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. as if that were the only one thing in the world more ridiculous than a merry Christmas. Again, he's very much an outsider and is treated as an outcast as a result. | Find full texts with expert analysis in our extensive library. He is smug and condescending about the poor, and refuses to listen to the gentlemens reasoning. Cards. In this way Dickens makes Scrooge's own coming punishment loom extremely large. But Scrooge sees any such human sentimentanything that interferes with the accumulation of moneyas foolishness. And yet, though the removal of such doornails is difficult, it is not impossible, and this slyly hints atthe return of Marley's ghost. A Christmas Carol is a widely studied book filled with memorable quotes. The chain he drew was clasped about his middle. I am sure we shall none of us forget poor Tiny Timshall weor this first parting that there was among us? Apparently, Scrooge is: Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster. Marleys ghost is a terrifying figure - his huge clanking chain makes him look like an exaggeration of a typical Victorian prisoner. To sit, staring at those fixed glazed eyes, in silence for a moment, would play, Scrooge felt, the very deuce with him. Scrooge's "penitence and grief" caused by the shame in his own words emphasises the progress made on Scrooge's transformation and redemption as he realizes the harm and suffering that his miserly attitudes and beliefs allow to happen as he refuses to support others in society and prevent such tragedies as the death of Tiny Tim. I am not the man I was. Living conditions there were unpleasant and the work was tough such as 'picking out' old ropes.

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