William Marley grew up in London. The celebrated writer Charles Dickens often visited William's father, a renowned and wealthy doctor with a shared interest in child welfare. Dickens loved unusual names. He decorated his writings with them. At a party at the Marley home in 1843 he promised to make his host's then uncommon surname a household word. In 'A Christmas Carol', published that December, he named the main protagonist in the story for his friend. By New Years Eve, the book had sold fifteen thousand copies, and Dickens had honoured his promise. Throughout the United Kingdom, people spoke the names Scrooge, Cratchit, Fezziwig... and Marley.
Dickens believed that if all children, whatever their circumstance, could attend school, society would benefit. The social message of 'A Christmas Carol' inspired widespread enthusiasm for universal education; enthusiasm which gained momentum throughout the Victorian era, even in far distant corners of the Her Majesty's Realm.
William Marley followed his father into medicine, but never achieved the same success. By 1884 he toiled far from the culture and learning of London in a remote corner of the Empire. He had little time to ponder social welfare or literary interests. At fifty years of age, guilt and worry clouded his days. In Stanthorpe, where he first lived in Queensland, and then here in Port Douglas, he and his wife had led active social lives. That lifestyle cost money. Now ill, and convinced he would
The book was first published in 1843, a time when many of the wealthy people neglected the old Christmas spirit of charity. In addition, the Industrial Revolution had further done away with the simple pleasures of the season. Dickens’ intentions in writing ‘A Christmas Carol’ were not only linked to his childhood and sympathy for the poor, but he was also acting as a philanthropist by making an appeal to the rich people of society to mend their selfish ways.
Imagine a staged production of A Christmas Carol set in 1843. See the stage set in the exact time it was written by Charles Dickens. The foggy, crowded streets abuzz with carolers and shoppers, the children staring wide eyed into the shops and bakeries. Hear the bells ringing as a round of “Hark the Herald Angels Sing” fills the gaslit streets with joy. As a child, going to see A Christmas Carol was one of my fondest Christmas memories. To witness Scrooge 's’ transformation from a mean, greedy old man to a joyous, loving benefactor always left me smiling and filled me with hope.
Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol was first published in London on the 19th of December 1843, the novella was instantly popular and still is to this day. Dickens inspiration for the short story seems to come from his childhood experiences and his sympathy for the poor. In the story a miserable old man, Ebenezer Scrooge, is shown the error of his ways and what will come of it if he doesn’t make drastic changes. Various ghosts and spirits slowly transform him into a kinder more pleasant man. A Christmas Carol is a powerful novella that uses symbolism like the children Ignorance and Want, Scrooge’s transformation, and Scrooges nephew Fred, to reinforce significant themes like social isolation, rebirth, and family.
Charles Dickens own experiences of growing up in poverty in Victorian Era London, are likely to have pushed him to pursue the themes in his novel A Christmas Carol. His father was sent to prison for not paying his debts, which left Dickens the job of producing the family income at the age of 12, giving him a firsthand view of poverty and the struggles that come with it. These events seemingly effected Dickens greatly, and Dickens novels were likely his form of charitable work, as the messages scribed within, brought to light the vast disparity between the rich and poor in this era. Dickens shows clearly that there is a definite class distinction between the poor and the rich through the uses of his characters and their characteristic throughout
Bob Marley is a name most people know but his accomplishments and dedication to music is often overlooked. Bob was more than just a reggae artist, he was an inspiration to the country of Jamaica. He was a role model to the poverty stricken island and gave hope to many people. Bob was born on February 6, 1945 in his grandfather's house. He was the son of a poor farm girl and a British naval Captain. Soon after his birth Bob's father, Norval Marley, left his mother. He remained responsible and provided financial support and occasionally came back to see them. In the 50's a depression hit Jamaica and Bob followed his mother to West Kingston also known as Trenchtown. It was in Trenchtown were Bob's love for music began.
Set up against the rampant industrialization of the 18th century, Charles Dickens classic novella “A Christmas Carol” endorses the notion that all people have a responsibility to ensure the safety and welfare of every member of society. By taking his seemingly irredeemable protagonist Ebenezer Scrooge on an other worldly journey. Dickens intends to convey to the complacent classes of the age, the necessity of various traits that are essential in life, such as the responsibility for those whom are less fortunate and other vital traits such as charity, generosity and simply caring for others. Dickens warns the reader of the consequences that will follow if these lessons are not taken into consideration.
A Christmas Carol, by Charles Dickens is a compelling tale of greed, love and charity. Studying this short novel at school is necessary because it concedes the threats of holding and leading a selfish life and how acting greedy is notorious on your fate and your perspective of life. Through his representation of Scrooge, Dickens wants the reader to learn from his miserable personality and encourages others
A Christmas carol by Charles Dickens is a significant novella written in the Victorian era. The protagonist Ebenezer Scrooge is used to demonstrate the upper class society and their attitude towards the poor. Throughout this redemption story, Dickens combines a descriptions of hardships faced by the poor with a heart-felt sentimental celebration of the Christmas season. The novella contains a dramatic and comic element as well as a deep felt moral theme. The text promotes the values of Ebenezer Scrooge, delving into his past, present and supposed future as well as contrasting between the enriching and depressing story; specifically
Though he didn’t make much money at first and was plagiarized within the first year, he cemented the novel in both Christmas tradition and literary history by publishing it in such an extravagant way. While many of the London’s lower class may not have been able to afford it at first, one can assume that they were not necessarily his intended audience. After all, Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol to influence the higher class as well as legislators to do more to help the
1843 and was appalled by what he saw there. It was a school for the
Topic: ‘Charles Dickens presents a warning to society through his novella ‘A Christmas Carol’. Discuss.
Charles Dickens is one of the most renowned British writers with well-known and widespread work. Dickens was born in England in 1812 and died in 1870. During this time, Victorian England experienced an Industrial Revolution, which impacted his life tremendously. New factories and industrial machinery changed many lives of the lower class citizens. The family grew up impoverished and struggled to maintain a good lifestyle. The family’s financial situation was strained as John Dickens, Charles’s father, spent money that the family didn’t have. These societal factors were influential in Charles Dickens’s life, and the same themes present themselves in his works. When an author creates a work, frequently themes of their life events are incorporated into the theme of the book, consciously or unconsciously. Victorian Age industrial-influenced strife was a common theme in Dickens’s life and presented itself throughout Dickens’s books.
Charles Dickens’s novel Hard Times critiques the use of extreme utilitarianism as an acceptable means to governing a society in which citizens are able to lead happy, productive, flourishing lives. “Just the facts,”19th century English utilitarianism argued, are all one needs to flourish. Those answers that we can arrive at by way of mathematical, logical reasoning are all needed to live a full human life. Hard Times shows however that a “just the facts” philosophy creates a community inhospitable to the needs of one another, a society nearly void of human compassion, and one lacking in morality. Underlying the novel’s argument is the Aristotelian concept that the primary purpose of government is to
Charles Dickens is one of the most influential writers in history and was “born in Landport, now part of Portsmouth, on February 7th, 1812”(Priestly 5). Despite being the successful writer that he was in life, Dickens had very humble beginnings and because his Father, John Huffman Dickens, “lacked the money to support his family adequetly” , Dickens lived in poverty through out most of his childhood (Collins). Matters only got worse, however, when Dickens’s Father had to “spen[d] time in prison for debt” causing Dickens to have to “work in a London factory pasting labels on bottles of shoe polish” (Collins). It was a horrible experience for him, but it also helped him to no doubt feel pity for the poor, which is
Dickens through his books wanted people to realise that children have needs, they need loving homes, not to be hit, gets a education and be allowed to think for themselves. He thought that if he wrote about poor children’s problems then maybe wealthy readers will do something about it.