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Introduction

These materials provide exam-focused guidance and activities on A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens in the context of the AQA GCSE English Literature qualification (for first assessment in the summer of 2017).

Contents

The exam paper 1

Plot and structure 2

Context 4

Character 9

Language 15

Themes 21

Sample exam questions and sample answers 25

The exam paper

A Christmas Carol comes under Section B of Paper 1.

• The exam paper lasts 1 hour and forty-five minutes.

• 30 marks are for Section B where you can answer on A Christmas Carol.

• This means that you will have about 50 minutes to write on A Christmas Carol.

In the exam, you will have to answer the question set on A Christmas Carol. This part of the exam is marked out of 30.

You will have to answer a question on an extract printed from the play and then write on the play as a whole.

Plot and structure

|Activity 1 | |

|A stave is the five lines on which music is written and so the five staves represent the five lines on which the story is written |

|and at the same time suggest the five verses of a carol. The first four staves are all divided by the appearance of a ghost but the|

|last one is called ‘The End of It’, leaving the reader to work out what he or she thinks it is the end of. |

|For each of the first four staves explain: |

|a the main focus of the stave |

|b how Dickens uses ghosts |

|c how Dickens drives the story forwards. |

|Activity 2 | |

|For the last stave explain: |

|a how Dickens creates a resolution to the story |

|b how Dickens ties up threads in the first four staves |

|c why Dickens chooses not to feature a ghost. |

|Each Stave is also given a title: |

|Marley’s Ghost |

|The First the Three Spirits |

|The Second of the Three Spirits |

|The Last of the Spirits |

|The End of It. |

|Activity 3 | |

|Explain: |

|a why you think Dickens chose each of these titles |

|b why you think Dickens distinguishes between ‘ghost’ and ‘spirit’ |

|c why you think the story begins with Marley’s ghost |

|d why you think there are no ghosts or spirits in the last stave. |

|Activity 4 | |

|At the same time as creating the story in five stages, Dickens uses a three part structure in the story of Scrooge consisting of: |

|a triggering event |

|the climax |

|the resolution. |

|For each of these three explain: |

|a how Scrooge is important |

|b how he develops |

|c how the ghosts are used to show his development. |

|Dickens uses a dual structure for his story. He: |

|shows the physical action taking place in a single night but shows a metaphorical journey over a lifetime |

|sets the story in London but it spreads across the country |

|takes Scrooge on actual journeys but also on metaphorical ones. |

|Activity 5 | |

|Make a list of: |

|a the different points in the metaphorical journey |

|b the London settings |

|c the settings outside London |

|d the stages in the actual journey |

|e the stages of Scrooge’s metaphorical journey of a lifetime. |

|Activity 6 | |

|For each of these explain: |

|a how Dickens makes them significant to the story |

|b how Dickens uses them to show something about Scrooge |

|c how the setting is appropriate for the events which take place in it. |

|Activity 7 | |

|Explain how Dickens: |

|a uses the action of a single night |

|b uses various points in Scrooge’s lifetime |

|c uses the setting of London |

|d uses other settings |

|e uses the journeys |

|f the aspects of Scrooge’s metaphorical journey |

|e uses actual journeys |

|f uses the idea of a metaphorical journey. |

Context

There are several ways of thinking about contexts. Context means the situation and circumstances around something. It might be a historical context (what was going on at the time the text was set, for example, and in this case how that compares with what was going on at the time the text was written). It might be a social context (what was going on in society either when the text was set or when it was written) or a literary context (how a text relates to other texts written at the same time or in the same genre). These are all what could be called external contexts, relating what is in the text to what is outside the text.

There are also internal contexts. The Cratchits, Ignorance and Want could be considered in terms of Victorian poverty. Bob Cratchit could be seen as evidence of the ways employees were treated. The various houses could be seen in terms of Victorian living conditions. The importance of Christmas could be seen in terms of Victorian ideas about Christian festivals. The novella could be seen as a significant contribution to a debate about Victorian morality.

Victorian Society

|Activity 1 | |

|Find evidence in the text to explain how the following are used in the novella: |

|a Victorian working conditions |

|b Victorian living conditions |

|c child labour |

|d education |

|e the need for charity |

|f urban poverty |

|g the importance of family |

|h the role of women |

|i Victorian ideas about money |

|j the importance of religion |

|k social inequality |

|l class inequality. |

Victorian ideas

|Activity 2 | |

|Find evidence in the text to explain how the following ideas are used in the novella and how Dickens presents them: |

|a the survival of the fittest |

|b the responsibilities of the state |

|c the need for philanthropy |

|d optimism and pessimism |

|e ideas about growth and psychological development |

|f attitudes to death |

|g belief in ghosts |

|h attitudes to spiritualism. |

Victorian virtues

|Activity 3 | |

|Find evidence in the text to explain the use Dickens makes of commonly held Victorian virtues: |

|a church attendance |

|b good manners |

|c academic achievement |

|d professional employment |

|e family values |

|f charity |

|g the highest moral values. |

Childhood

|Activity 4 | |

|Dickens included many scenes involving children, including: |

|the carol-singing child outside Scrooge’s office |

|Scrooge himself as a child |

|the Cratchit children |

|Ignorance and Want |

|the children of the couple owing money to the dying Scrooge |

|the child Scrooge sends to buy the turkey. |

|For each of these explain: |

|a how Dickens presents childhood |

|b the responsibilities of children |

|c the aspirations of children |

|e how children are treated in the family |

|f relationships between children and adults. |

Wealth and Poverty

|Activity 5 | |

|Use evidence from the text to explain what use Dickens makes of: |

|a Scrooge’s acquisition of wealth |

|b the living conditions of working people like the Cratchits |

|c living conditions in the slums |

|d the life of the poor and sick |

|e the way the poor are dependent on the charity of the rich |

|f urban squalor and deprivation |

|g the need for workhouses |

|h the effects of the Poor Law |

|i how the poor might end up in prison |

|j the fear of being sacked |

|k the effect of poverty on people like the charwoman and laundress |

|l the lack of education for the poor. |

Victorian Society

Dickens presents a detailed picture of life in London, particularly for the poor.

|Activity 6 | |

|Find evidence in the text to explain what Dickens shows about: |

|a the conditions in London’s streets |

|b living conditions |

|c diet |

|d how poor people get their food cooked |

|e conditions in the slums |

|f the underclass of criminals, prostitutes and slum dwellers |

|g the place of religion and the church |

|h sanitation and cleanliness |

|i London’s weather and its effects. |

Christmas

Partly as a result of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert’s interest in Christmas, Christmas became a much more popular celebration as the Victorian period proceeded and by the time of the novella the custom of celebrating Christmas was well established.

|Activity 7 | |

|Find evidence in the text to explain the way Dickens presents the following aspects of Christmas: |

|a a time off work |

|b a time for family celebrations |

|c the importance of Christmas dinner |

|d the giving of presents |

|e church attendance |

|f a time for charity giving. |

Genre

A Christmas Carol has been described as:

• a ghost story

• a parable

• an allegory

• a fairy tale

• a symbolic tale.

|Activity 8 | |

|Explain what elements of the novella you would comment on to show that it is: |

|a a ghost story |

|b a parable |

|c an allegory |

|d a fairy tale |

|e a symbolic tale. |

Satire

|Activity 8 | |

|Find evidence in the text to find examples of Dickens satirising the following: |

|a attitudes to poverty |

|b education |

|c the government |

|d religion |

|e common ideas about childhood |

|f attitudes to social responsibility |

|g Malthus’s idea that an increase in population would lead to starvation and resources becoming scarce |

|h the acquisitiveness of Scrooge’s city acquaintances |

|i friendship based only on money |

|j hypocrisy |

|k the moral failings of society. |

Character

When you are writing about a character you are being asked more than about what the character does. The question is most likely going to be about Dickens’s presentation of character and/or ideas. The character named in the question may be linked to a theme so you need to make sure that you are equally well prepared to write about themes as about characters.

When you are thinking about how Dickens presents a character you should think about the choices the writer has made. It is useful to consider:

• what Dickens chooses to have the character do

• how Dickens uses one character to describe another

• what kind of speech the character uses

• how and why the character reacts in the way he or she does to other characters

• how and why other characters react to the character

• how Dickens shows what the character’s attitudes are

• how Dickens show what the character’s values are

• how the character conveys ideas important in the novella

• what you think the character’s role is in the novella

• what functions the character fulfils

• what the character might represent or symbolise.

When you are thinking about the roles, purposes or functions of the character, it is useful to consider these possible uses:

• to give information

• to receive information

• to develop the plot

• to comment on or represent specific themes

• to act as a contrast to other characters

• to change the mood or atmosphere

• to bring about change in the plot

• to act as a mouthpiece for Dickens’s views

.

The Humans

Scrooge

|Activity 1 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that Scrooge: |

|a has frozen emotions |

|b is without humanity |

|c is ruthless in business |

|d is heartless and cruel |

|e has a savage sense of humour |

|f was an imaginative child |

|g lacks social responsibility |

|h undergoes a slow transformation |

|i is the antithesis of Fezziwig |

|j learns the importance of things other than money |

|k becomes aware of the needs of others |

|l begins to understand what it means to be happy |

|m becomes fearful of dying unredeemed |

|n becomes childlike |

|o becomes a generous benefactor |

|p becomes the model of a good person. |

| |

|Exam practice question 1 |

|Find the paragraphs five to seven of Stave 2, ‘The First of the Three Spirits’. |

|This is the description of Scrooge after the departure of Marley’s Ghost as he awaits the arrival of the Ghost of Christmas Past. |

|Starting with this extract explore how Dickens presents Scrooge. |

|Write about: |

|• how Dickens presents Scrooge in this extract |

|• how Dickens presents Scrooge differently in the novella as a whole. |

| |

Bob Cratchit

|Activity 2 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that Bob Cratchit: |

|a is exploited by Scrooge |

|b is still in touch with his child-like side |

|c is an optimist |

|d is a good father |

|e is a good husband |

|e displays an open nature |

|f represents good people living in poverty |

|g forms a contrast with Scrooge. |

Tiny Tim

|Activity 3 | |

|Find evidence can in the text to support the idea that Tiny Tim: |

|a is precious to his family |

|b is optimistic |

|c is presented as a means of Scrooge’s reform |

|d is presented in an overly sentimental way. |

Fred

|Activity 4 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that Fred: |

|a is happy and good-natured |

|b is generous |

|c acts as a foil to Scrooge |

|d represents the real spirit of Christmas |

|e is a link to Scrooge’s past. |

Fezziwig

|Activity 5 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that Fezziwig: |

|a is presented as a role model of how an employer should behave |

|b is the antithesis of Marley and Scrooge |

|c represents enjoyment of life |

|d signifies that families can be functional. |

| |

|Exam practice question 2 |

|Find the passage in the middle of Stave 2, ‘The First of the Three Spirits’, from ‘”Why, it’s old Fezziwig”’ to ‘before a man can |

|say Jack Robinson!’ |

|This is when the Ghost of Christmas Past has taken Scrooge to witness Christmas at the Fezziwigs’. |

|Starting with this paragraph explore how Dickens presents Fezziwig. |

|Write about: |

|• how Dickens presents Fezziwig in this extract |

|• how he presents Fezziwig as a contrast to Scrooge and Marley in the novella as a whole. |

| |

The Cratchit Family

|Activity 6 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that: |

|a families can be functional |

|b Mrs Cratchit is the ideal wife and mother |

|c Mrs Cratchit is a proud housekeeper |

|d Mrs Cratchit shows loyalty and affection |

|e despite being poor, families can have fun |

|f members of a family can be supportive |

|g members of a family can be caring |

|h despite provocation, there is no need for bitterness |

|i represent the deserving poor. |

| |

|Exam practice question 3 |

|Find the two paragraphs in the middle of Stave 3, ‘The Second of the Three Spirits’ beginning at ‘After it has passed away, they |

|were ten times merrier than before’ to |

|‘Scrooge had his eye upon them, and especially on Tiny Tim, until the last.’ |

|This is where the Ghost of Christmas Present takes Scrooge to the Cratchits’ house. |

|Starting with this extract explain how Dickens presents poverty in A Christmas Carol. |

|Write about: |

|• how Dickens presents the Cratchits as the deserving poor in this extract |

|• how he presents poverty in the novella as a whole. |

| |

Minor characters

Dickens peoples his novella with minor characters who are not developed but who have important functions:

• The two portly gentlemen

• Scrooge’s sister Fan

• Fezziwig

• Mrs Fezziwig

• Belle

• Scrooge’s niece

|Activity 7 | |

|For each of these characters find evidence in the text to explain: |

|a their role |

|b their function in the novella |

|c what they reveal about Victorian society |

|d what they reveal about Victorian ideas. |

The Ghosts

Jacob Marley

|Activity 8 | |

|Find evidence in the text to explain the idea that Jacob Marley: |

|a in life was as isolated as Scrooge |

|b is used to warn Scrooge to change |

|c represents a person’s misdeeds in life being replicated in the afterlife. |

The Ghost of Christmas Past

|Activity 9 | |

|Find evidence in the text to explain the idea that The Ghost of Christmas Past: |

|a is full of contradictions |

|b represents memory |

|c is used to show the reader the reason Scrooge doesn’t like Christmas |

|d selects memories most likely to affect Scrooge |

|e provokes Scrooge into thinking in a different way |

|f brings Scrooge’s long-buried memories to the surface. |

The Ghost of Christmas Present

|Activity 10 | |

|Find evidence in the text to explain the idea that The Ghost of Christmas Present: |

|a represents knowledge |

|b personifies everything good about Christmas |

|c represents peace |

|d represents the light of goodwill |

|e is used to criticise narrow-minded religious people |

|f represents some of Dickens’s views. |

The Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come

|Activity 11 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that The Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come: |

|a is the ghost most like a traditional ‘spook’ |

|b resembles the figure of the Grim Reaper |

|c is used to show Scrooge misery and death |

|d represents the fear humans have of death |

|e reveals the awfulness of what Scrooge can expect in the future and after death |

|f seems relentless |

|g seems immoveable |

|h forces Scrooge into realisation of his behaviour. |

| |

|Exam practice question 4 |

|Find the passage near the beginning of Stave 4, ‘The Last of the Spirits’, from ‘Although well used to ghostly company by this |

|time’ to ‘and carried him along’. |

|This is taken from the arrival of the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. |

|How does Dickens present the effects of the ghosts on Scrooge? |

|Write about: |

|• how Dickens presents the effect of the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come on Scrooge in this extract |

|• how Dickens presents the effects of ghosts and spirits on Scrooge in the novella as a whole. |

| |

Language

Description

There are many vivid and detailed passages of description in the novella.

|Activity 1 | |

|Choose some of these and explain how Dickens creates atmosphere by using some or all of the following: |

|a adjectives |

|b metaphor |

|c light and dark |

|d sight |

|e sound |

|f time of day |

|g colour |

|h simile |

|i details to create suspense |

|j dramatic irony |

|k pathetic fallacy |

|l personification |

|m repetition |

|n repeated phrase and sentence structures. |

Humour

|Activity 2 | |

|Although A Christmas Carol is a ghost story, Dickens infuses it with many moments of humour. Make a list of occasions when he uses |

|the following to create humour: |

|a wordplay |

|b puns |

|c humorous comparisons |

|d hyperbole |

|e digression |

|f verbal irony |

|g situational irony |

|h dramatic irony |

|i the use of vivid, unexpected phrases |

|j the piling on of adjectives |

|k bathos. |

|Activity 3 | |

|For each of your examples explain: |

|a the nature of the humour |

|b the effect of the example of the reader |

|c why you think Dickens has used humour at this particular point. |

Recurring motifs

|Activity 4 | |

|Make a list of the occasions when Dickens uses the following in A Christmas Carol: |

|a light |

|b darkness |

|c food |

|d the weather |

|e fog |

|e the cold |

|f religion |

|g music. |

|Activity 5 | |

|Explain how Dickens uses each of these to: |

|a create atmosphere |

|b create suspense |

|c suggest ideas |

|d suggest characters’ feelings. |

Weather

Dickens uses the weather a great deal in the novella. Often it establishes the mood and the atmosphere of the scene that is taking place. Sometimes it acts as pathetic fallacy, where human emotions and sympathies are attributed to nature or reflected in the weather.

|Activity 6 | |

|Here are some examples: |

|The paragraph beginning ‘Once upon a time’ near the beginning of Stave 1 |

|The fog, darkness and cold in the middle of Stave 1 |

|The first paragraph of Stave 2 |

|The paragraph beginning ‘The house-fronts looked black enough’, about four pages into Stave 3 |

|The paragraph beginning ‘By this time it was getting dark, and snowing pretty heavily’ in the middle of Stave 3 |

|The paragraph beginning ‘Running to the window, he opened it, and put out his head’ on the second page of Stave 5 |

|For each of these instances explain: |

|a how the weather is appropriate for the events taking place |

|b any aspects of metaphor in the description |

|c any aspects of symbolism in the description |

|d how Dickens establishes suspense. |

First person

Although the novella is primary told by using a third person omniscient narrator, there are several occasions where the first person is used, the writer or narrative persona often addressing the reader directly.

|Activity 7 | |

|Here are some examples: |

|The first page of Stave 1 |

|‘You may talk vaguely about driving a coach-and-six up a good old flight of stairs, or through a bad young Act of Parliament; but I|

|mean to say you might have got a hearse up that staircase, and taken it broadwise, with the splinter-bar towards the wall, and the |

|door towards the balustrades: and done it easy’ just before the middle of Stave 1 |

|‘the fiddler (an artful dog, mind! The sort of man who knew his business better than you or I could have told it him!) struck up |

|“Sir Roger de Coverley.”’ (at the Fezziwigs’ in Stave 2) |

|‘If that’s not high praise, tell me higher and I’ll use it’ in the next paragraph of Stave 2 |

|Parts of the paragraph beginning ‘They were in another scene and place’ about two pages before the end of Stave 2 |

|The second paragraph of Stave 3 |

|The second half of the third paragraph of Stave 3 |

|The short paragraph in Stave 3: ‘If you should happen, by any unlikely chance, to know a man more blest in a laugh then Scrooge’s |

|nephew, all I can say is, I should like to know him too’ Introduce him to me, and I’ll cultivate his acquaintance.’ |

|‘And I no more believe Topper was really blind than I believe he had eyes in his boots. My opinion is, that it was a done thing |

|between him and Scrooge’s nephew; and that the Ghost of Christmas Present know it’ about four pages before the end of Stave 3. |

|For each of these explain: |

|a why you think Dickens chooses to write this in the first person |

|b what effect it has on the reader |

|c how Dickens creates satire |

|d how Dickens creates social criticism |

|e the kind of relationship Dickens establishes between the narrator and the reader. |

Direct Speech

Dickens creates and develops character not only by means of description but also by the use of direct speech.

|Activity 8 | |

|Look at each of the following quotations of direct speech and attribute each speech to the character who said it. Then give as many|

|reasons as you can for your attribution by analysing the uses of language in the speech and how these details of language create |

|character. |

|a ‘I don’t know what to do! I am as light as a feather, I am as happy as an angel, I am as merry as a school-boy. I am as giddy as |

|a drunken man. A merry Christmas to everybody! A happy new year to all the world! Hallo there! Whoop! Hallo!’ |

|b ‘But I am sure I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come round - apart from the veneration due to its sacred name|

|and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that - as a good time: a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time: the |

|only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, |

|and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on|

|other journeys. And therefore, though it has never put a scrap of gold or silver in my pocket, I believe it has done me good, and |

|will do me good; and I say, God bless it!’ |

|c ‘Oh! Captive, bound, and double-ironed, not to know, that ages of incessant labour by immortal creatures, for this earth must |

|pass into eternity before the good of which it is susceptible is all developed. Not to know that any Christian spirit working |

|kindly in its little sphere, whatever it may be, will find its mortal life too short of its vast means of usefulness. Not to know |

|that no space of regret can make amends for one life’s opportunity misused! Yet such was I! Oh! Such was I!’ |

|d ‘I wish it was a little heavier one, and it should have been, you may depend on it, if I could have laid my hands on anything |

|else. Open that bundle, old Joe, and let me know the value of it. Speak out plain. I’m not afraid to be the first, nor afraid for |

|them to see it. We knew pretty well that we were helping ourselves, before we met here, I believe. It’s no sin. Open the bundle, |

|Joe.’ |

|e ‘They are Man’s. And they cling to me, appealing from their fathers. This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want. Beware them both, |

|and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom, unless the writing be |

|erased. Deny it! Slander those who tell ye! Admit it for your factious purposes, and make it worse. And bide the end!’ |

|h ‘As good as gold and better. Somehow he gets thoughtful sitting by himself so much, and thinks the strangest things you ever |

|heard. He told me, coming home, that he hopes the people saw him in the church, because he was a cripple, and it might be pleasant |

|to them to remember upon Christmas Day, who made lame beggars walk and blind men see,’ |

|i ‘Yo ho, my boys! No more work tonight. Christmas Eve, Dick. Christmas, Ebenezer! Let’s have the shutters up before a man can say |

|Jack Robinson!’ |

|j ‘What else can I be when I live in such a world of fools as this? Merry Christmas! Out upon Merry Christmas! What’s Christmas |

|time to you but a time for paying bills without money; a time for finding yourself a year older, and not an hour richer; a time for|

|balancing your books and having every item in ‘em through a round dozen of months presented dead against you? If I could work my |

|will, every idiot who goes about with ‘Merry Christmas,’ on his lips should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake|

|of holly through his heart. He should!’ |

Tension and Suspense

|Activity 9 | |

|Find evidence in the text to show how Dickens builds tension and suspense by using the following: |

|a accumulating description |

|b ghosts and the supernatural |

|c the sequence of the spirits |

|d the use of the weather |

|e dramatic irony |

|f manipulation of sentence structures |

|g accumulation of adjectives |

|h repeated phrases |

|i repeated sentence structures |

|j exclamations |

|k the use of the gothic |

|l undercutting the tension with humour |

|m undercutting the tension with bathos. |

Themes

Poverty and Wealth

|Activity 1 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that: |

|a Scrooge represents the acquisition of wealth for its own sake |

|b the wealthy exploit the poor |

|c poverty is wrong in a Christian society |

|d the government does little or nothing about poverty |

|e the Cratchits represent the deserving poor |

|f Dickens bemoans the need for workhouses and prisons for the poor |

|g poverty continues through lack of education |

|h poor people can turn to crime |

|i slums can be the breeding ground for crime and corruption |

|j Dickens makes the reader feel revolted by the results of poverty. |

| |

|Exam practice question 1 |

|Find the extract about four pages into Stave 4, ‘The Last of the Sprits’ beginning at ‘They left the busy scene and went into an |

|obscure part of the town’ to ‘After a short period of blank astonishment, in which the old man with the pipe had joined them, they|

|all three |

|burst into a laugh.’ |

|This is the point where the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come is taking Scrooge into the slums. |

|Starting with this extract, explore the ways in which Dickens presents poverty. |

|Write about: |

|• how Dickens presents poverty in this extract |

|• how he presents poverty in the novella as a whole. |

| |

Greed and Generosity

|Activity 2 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that: |

|a Scrooge represents greed |

|b greed can be transformed into generosity |

|c Dickens presents generosity as financial |

|d Dickens presents generosity as moral and spiritual |

|e Dickens presents greed and generosity by means of figurative language |

|f Dickens presents greed and generosity by means of symbolism |

|g Dickens uses characters to contrast greed and generosity |

|h Dickens unmasks the hypocrisy of the greedy. |

| |

|Exam practice question 2 |

|Find the long paragraph in the middle of Stave 2, ‘The First of the Spirits’ beginning at ‘In came a fiddler with a music book’. |

|This is the description of people arriving at Fezziwig’s Christmas ball and their behaviour once they have got there. |

|Starting with this extract, explain how Dickens presents generosity. |

|Write about: |

|• Dickens’s presentation of generosity in this paragraph |

|• Dickens’s presentation of generosity in the novella as a whole. |

| |

Women

|Activity 3 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that: |

|a women are presented as the backbone of the family |

|b women are sometimes wiser than men |

|c women are sometimes misused by men |

|d women are as likely to be as greedy as men |

|e women belong in the domestic sphere |

|f Dickens suggests that women have a good influence on men |

|g the absence of women highlights the men’s repressed desires. |

Good and Evil

|Activity 4 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that: |

|a evil is seen in terms of greed |

|b good is seen in terms of generosity |

|c Dickens is interested in social evils in the novella |

|d good is seen in terms of Christian values |

|e Dickens points out that not all Christians are good |

|f Dickens’s presentation of the transformation of Scrooge is sentimental. |

Youth

|Activity 5 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that: |

|a Scrooge’s character is shown by the carol singing boy being chased away |

|b Tiny Tim represents the sufferings of the young without money |

|c many young people suffer through ignorance and want |

|d Scrooge’s character is formed by his neglect as a child |

|e the Fezziwigs, Fred’s family and the Cratchits are presented as a contrast to the deprivation of youth |

|f good education is vital for young people |

|g Dickens satirises bad education. |

Age

|Activity 6 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that: |

|a age is represented by Marley and Scrooge |

|b the old grandfather in the mining family is the opposite of the miser |

|c it is never too late to change |

|d Scrooge learns to make the most of the rest of his life |

|e the threat of eternal punishment is represented by Marley |

|f it is never too late to adopt Christian virtues. |

Families

|Activity 7 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that: |

|a a strong society depends on a stable family |

|b Scrooge rejects his family |

|c Fred encourages family life |

|d Scrooge’s lack of functional family represents his dysfunctional isolation |

|e a strong family can make unhappiness bearable |

|f The Fezziwigs represent an important model for Scrooge |

|g families provide support, protection, nurturing, education and assistance with employment. |

Christmas

|Activity 8 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that: |

|a Christmas is a time for family celebration |

|b Christmas should be characterised by feasting, music, dancing and playing games |

|c Christmas is a time for forgiveness |

|d Christmas is a time for generosity |

|e Dickens contrasts young Scrooge in his schoolroom with the Fezziwig’s Christmas ball |

|f Belle signifies what Scrooge missed out on |

|g Christmas can be celebrated anywhere: in a lighthouse or at sea |

|h Christmas is a time for charity |

|i Christmas is a time of plenty |

|j religious observance is important at Christmas |

|k Scrooge’s refusal to accept Christmas is a metaphor for his lack of feelings |

|l the story of Scrooge is a parable for the idea of Christian redemption. |

| |

|Exam practice question 3 |

|Find the long paragraph about seven pages into Stave 1, ‘Marley’s Ghost’ beginning at ‘Meanwhile the fog and darkness thickened |

|so, that people ran about with flaring links’. |

|This is a description of London at Christmas time. |

|Starting with this extract, explain how Dickens presents people’s behaviour at Christmas. |

|Write about: |

|• Dickens’s presentation of people’s behaviour at Christmas in this paragraph |

|• Dickens’s presentation of other people’s behaviour at Christmas in the novella as a whole. |

| |

The Urban Landscape

|Activity 9 | |

|Find evidence in the text to support the idea that: |

|a Dickens uses the setting of urban London to combine the ordinary and the extraordinary |

|b the detail about London life roots the fable in reality for the reader |

|c Dickens uses a great deal of detail documenting Victorian Christmas |

|d the atmosphere of dimly-lit streets and night-time shadows complement the themes in the novella |

|e the squalor of the slums represents the squalor of the life of the poor |

|f A Christmas Carol documents Victorian social behaviour |

|g A Christmas Carol documents Victorian city living. |

Sample exam questions and sample answers

Sample Answer A

|Find the last two paragraphs of the novella’, from ‘Scrooge was better than his word. He did it all, and infinitely more’. |

|This is Dickens’s conclusion to the novella. |

|How does Dickens present Scrooge? |

|Write about: |

|how Dickens presents Scrooge in this extract |

|how Dickens presents Scrooge in the novella as a whole. |

Dickens generalises Scrooge in the last two paragraphs of the novella so that he becomes a symbol of goodness rather than a character the reader recognises. It is only the mention of his becoming a father to Tiny Tim which roots these generalisations in the details of the story. Dickens is hyperbolic in his description of Scrooge at the end: ‘He did it all, and infinitely more’, as if there could be infinitely more than ‘all’.

These last two paragraphs are more a self-conscious winding up of the story by the narrator than a portrayal of Scrooge. The endless repetition of ‘as good’ and the vagueness of ‘friend’, ‘master’ and ‘man’ seems to invite the reader not to take the tale too seriously. The transformation from Scrooge’s tetchiness at the beginning of the novella to his laissez-faire acceptance at the end is too good to be true, but it is in keeping with the polar opposites which Dickens presents throughout the novella and therefore no surprise that miserly evil man should turn into a paragon of goodness. It is interesting, though, that there is still a sense of smug self-satisfaction in ‘his own heart laughed: and that was quite enough for him.’ Perhaps Dickens is hinting here that Scrooge, even after his transformation, only really cares for himself.

Dickens continues his rather jokey treatment of Scrooge in the last paragraph with the pun on ‘Spirits’; he appears to become a teetotaller. Perhaps Dickens is suggesting that he is a Methodist. The link between Scrooge keeping Christmas as well as any man and the hope that the same can be said of ‘us’ is further confirmation that at the end Scrooge becomes the exemplar in a parable or moral fable, rather than a character.

Of course Scrooge is presented very differently in the rest of the novella. He is shown to be a neglected child whose miserly behaviour stemmed from a lack of love after his parents dumped him in a boarding school. He is selfish in his treatment of others; he is abusive to the carol singing boy; a kill-joy, he says ‘Bah, humbug’ to Christmas and is grudging to Bob Cratchit about having Christmas day off; his pessimism counteracts Fred’s optimism and bonhomie. Dickens has to present him as mean in order to set up the gradual path to transformation and redemption which is the key to the novella.

Dickens shows Scrooge mellowing and developing slowly through the course of the novella. By the end of Stave 1 the man of no feelings has begun to change. He acknowledges to Marley’s ghost that ‘You were always a good friend to me’ and Dickens notes at the end of the Stave that Scrooge slept from ‘the emotion he had undergone,’ although the reader has to wait to identify any particular change.

Cracks in his carapace quickly emerge as he remonstrates to the Ghost of Christmas Past ‘I am a mortal and liable to fall’. He sobs at the vision of himself as a neglected child. He is described as showing ‘pity for his former self’ and after seeing Fan he ‘seemed uneasy in his mind’ about mention of Fred. In a way his transformation is completely predicted by the middle of Stave 2 when, after seeing the Fezziwigs, ‘Scrooge had acted like a man out of his wits. His heart and soul were in the scene, and with his former self’. It is after seeing Belle that his emotions are fully aroused: ‘No more. I don’t wish to see it. Show me no more’.

The rest of the novella simply traces Scrooge’s transformation from emotionless to emotion filled. He realises the joy he is missing in Stave 3 and it is clear that seeing Tiny Tim was an important stage in his growing self-awareness as ‘Scrooge had his eye upon them, and especially on Tiny Tim, until the last.’ He learns to understand poverty through his encounter with Ignorance and Want and, despite some slowness in doing so, recognises that the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come is showing him his own fate if he does not change and at the end of Stave 4 acknowledges ‘I am not the man I was. I will not be the man I must have been but for this intercourse’. It is this that leads to the transformation shown by Dickens in the last two paragraphs of the novella.

Examiner Comments

There is some very effective close observation and analysis on the extract, with a range of appropriate textual reference. The question is kept firmly in mind throughout. Scrooge, Dickens’s presentation of his development and well-chosen textual reference are integrated throughout. The second half covers a wide range of material relevant to Dickens’s presentation of Scrooge’s development and transformation. There is some examination of the effects of the writer’s choices on the reader. There is a consistent and developing argument which runs through the response.

In terms of the AQA Specimen Mark Scheme this response is critical, exploratory and well-structured, thoughtful, detailed and developed. It takes a considered view of the whole task and places the extract clearly in terms of the whole novella. It is very well-illustrated with a wide range of well-chosen textual references. There is some analysis for form and structure and convincing and interesting interpretation of aspects of the text. It is in Band 6.

Sample exam questions and sample answers

Sample Answer B

|Find the two paragraphs in the middle of Stave 3, ‘The Second of the Three Spirits’ beginning with ‘After it had passed away, they |

|were ten times merrier than before’ to ‘Scrooge had his eye upon them, and especially on Tiny Tim, until the last.’ |

|This is from the time when the Ghost of Christmas Present takes Scrooge to the Cratchits’ house. |

|Explain how Dickens presents the importance of family in A Christmas Carol. |

|Write about: |

|how Dickens presents the importance of family in this extract |

|how he presents the importance of family in the novella as a whole. |

Dickens presents the Cratchit family in the extract as all having the same opinions. They are all happier now that the toast to Scrooge is over and they can now all begin to enjoy themselves. Bob thinks about his son Peter and has a job in mind for him which will bring him in some money which will be useful to the family as they are poor. Dickens shows how the Cratchits are excited about the prospect of Peter having a job and Peter himself is excited because he is thinking about what he will do with the money when he gets it. Dickens also describes the Cratchits’ daughter Martha who talks about her job as an apprentice hat maker. Even when she sees someone else, like the lord and like the lord and countess the day before, she is still thinking about her family and in particular her brother Peter so it shows how loving and united the family are and how their thoughts are always about each other. Even though Tiny Tim is crippled he still has talents which are recognised by the family because Dickens says that he sang his song ‘very well indeed’.

In the second paragraph of the extract Dickens writes more generally about the Cratchit family, explaining that they were poor, that they didn’t have enough money for decent shoes because theirs ‘were far from being waterproof’, that they didn’t have enough clothes and that they had to go to the pawnbrokers in order to get enough money to live on. Dickens shows that even though they were poor they were still ‘happy, grateful, pleased with one another, and contented with the time’. They don’t complain and make the best of what they’ve got.

The Fezziwigs have more money than the Cratchits but they, too, have a good time. Dickens presents a detailed picture of the excitement of the Christmas ball which Mr Fezziwig holds and doesn’t have anything bad to say about Fezziwig, Mrs Fezziwig or the two Fezziwig daughters. They have more money but they are generous, making sure that all their employees have a good time at Christmas and even inviting ‘the boy from over the way’ who didn’t have enough money and care from his employers to come and share Christmas with them. The Fezziwigs aren’t prejudiced either. They invite their cook and not only her brother but also her brother’s ‘particular friend’ which sounds like her brother is gay. They have huge amounts of food, a lot of good music and wish everyone a ‘Merry Christmas’ when they are going home.

The other family in ‘A Christmas Carol’ is the family of Scrooge’s nephew Fred. Unlike Scrooge Fred is generous and open-hearted and wants everyone to enjoy themselves at Christmas. Dickens spends quite a lot of space describing Christmas at Fred’s house in order to contrast Fred’s generosity with Scrooge’s meanness. They all speak pleasantly about Scrooge and even when Fred’s sister mentions that Scrooge must be very rich Fred doesn’t show any envy and doesn’t act as if he expects to inherit any of his money. All the women - Scrooge’s niece and her sisters and ‘all the other ladies’ - agree about Scrooge’s meanness but Fred says he is sorry for him. This shows that in this family Fred is kinder and more generous than the other members of the family. In this family people are seen as looking for a partner. Topper fancies one of Scrooge’s niece’s sisters but no one complains about it. Like the Cratchits and the Fezziwigs they have music, play games and generally have a good time.

Dickens presents all three of these families as united, happy and optimistic, regardless of their financial circumstances. They are important because they form a contrast with Scrooge and because they show Dickens’s ideas about the importance of family in Victorian life.

Examiner Comments

This response deals in some details with three of the families in A Christmas Carol, describing what they are like and providing some textual detail to support the points made. There is nothing about Scrooge’s early family life and nothing about the contrasts Dickens makes between those characters with families and those without. The main problem is that only in the last two sentences does it answer the question. The writer deals with ‘How Dickens presents families’ but the question was ‘How Dickens presents the importance of family’. The response needed to start from a list of ways in which family is important and then to show how Dickens presents each of these aspects of importance. There is some textual detail but it is not used effectively to answer the question.

In terms of the AQA Specimen Mark Scheme the candidate’s response is relevant to families but not to the importance of family. It covers all the descriptors in Level 1. There is focus on part of the task and there are supporting references from the text. There are some indications of deliberate choices made by the writer and some awareness of the context of Victorian Christmases. It is at the top of Band 2.

-----------------------

• Topper

• Ignorance and Want

• Mrs Dilber

• Joe

• Caroline and her husband.

Supported comment on methods, linking with Dickens’s purposes

Appropriate use of textual detail

Clear, direct, critical opening mentioning Dickens’s methods and purposes

Interesting interpretation based on textual detail and inference

Clear, consistent argument being Developed

Critical overview

Good use of textual detail to support developing argument

Method, detail and effect

Clear sense of Dickens’s purpose

Wide range of textual detail succinctly presented

Good use of textual detail with appropriate comment about Dickens’s structure

Scrooge’s transformation succinctly expressed and supported

Neat succinct conclusion tying the two parts of the answer together.

Wide range of detail to support consistent, developed argument

Some grasp of Dickens’s choices

Immediate focus on family and extract

Some grasp of Dickens’s choices

Relevant supporting detail

A possible interpretation, based on inference and close observation of detail

Rather random comments lumped together but not tied to how Dickens presents the importance of family

Awareness of some of Dickens’s purposes

Clear relevant point, although very general

The first mention of importance in the essay

Very general but relevant. Needs

detail and exploration

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AQA

GCSE

Unit 2: What does good writing consist of?

AQA GCSE

English Literature

19th Century prose

A Christmas Carol

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Plot and structure

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Plot and structure (continued)

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Context

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Context (continued)

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Character

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Character (continued)

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Character (continued)

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Language

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Language (continued)

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Themes

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Themes (continued)

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Sample Answer A

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Sample Answer A (continued)

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Sample Answer B

AQA GCSE

English Literature

A Christmas Carol Sample Answer B (continued)

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