Tthe Supernatural story Essay Example for Free

Tthe Supernatural story Essay Now that Scrooge has seen those children that are poor and need help he can see how much he could help. It is a shock to him to hear those words and to really see where the money could have donated would have helped. Scrooge is then left alone by the spirit of Christmas present. The bell strokes twelve and the Spirit of Christmas yet to come enters. This spirit is the one that looks the most frightening. This ghost looks like the Grim Reaper without his sickle. Scrooge is scared of this spirit the most. His face is never seen and it never speaks. It was shrouded in a deep black garment, which concealed its head, its face, its form and left nothing of it visible save one outstretched hand. This spirit takes Scrooge round London in the future on Christmas day. They first see some business men that Scrooge knows. They are talking about the death of Old Scratch the business men talk of him as though he was quite rich: What has he done with his money? asked a red faced gentleman with a pendulous excrescence on the end of his nose, that shook like the gills of a turkey cock Left it to the company perhaps. He hasnt left it to me thats all I know its likely to be a cheap funeral. I dont mind going if lunch is provided But I must be fed if I make one. Scrooge is then taken to the pawn brokers shop where he sees four people in the shop. Three of them have brought things with them to pay off their debt. These people have taken these things from Old Scratch and couldnt care less that they were his belongings. The first person was a man who did not have much but he did have a seal or two, a pencil case, a brooch and some sleeve buttons. The next person was a woman called Mrs. Dilber. She had some sheets and towels, some teaspoons, sugar tongues and some boots but not much. The third and final person was the laundress who was obviously a ruthless woman. She had taken the bed curtains of the dead person and even the very shirt he was wearing at the time she was there. She had also taken his blankets. These people remarked that if they hadnt have taken his things someone else would have done because he had no real family and he did not need them any longer. This is Dickenss way of showing that poor people will do anything to stay out of the workhouses and prisons. These people will do anything to stop there families and there lives been as badly affected as Dickenss was. This is almost an autobiographical part of this book because like these people Dickenss family would have done and did do anything they could to stay out of Debters prison and the workhouses. Scrooge asked the spirit to take him to a place where there are some people that are affected by this death and show some emotion. The spirit takes him to see a young couple who are in debt and are both happy and sad that he has died. They are happy because on the one hand their debt could now be erased due to his death and on the other hand the debt could have been passed on to someone else. Scrooge is taken to see the dead man but darent look at his face in case it is Scrooge. This also upsets Scrooge. The spirit then takes him to the Cratchitt house. The family are upset coping with a death but not the death of Old Scratch, Tiny Tim has died. The children take Tiny Tims death better than his parents. Mrs. Cratchitt is very upset and is crying when Scrooge sees her. The colour hurts my eyes, she said. The colour? Ah poor Tiny Tim! Theyre better now, said Cratchitts wife. It makes them weak by candlelight; and I wouldnt want to show weak eyes to your father when he comes home, for the world. Bob walks slower without Tiny Tim on his shoulders and he misses Tim the most. I have known him walk with Tiny Tim upon his shoulder, very fast indeed. But he was very light to carry. We know Tim is dead because of the past tense verbs used in these sentences. Tiny Tim is still in his bed and Bob who misses him the most often goes to see him. He left the room, and went upstairs into the room above, which was lighted cheerfully and hung with Christmas. There was a chair set close behind the child, and there were signs of someone having been there lately. Poor Bob sat down if and when he had thought a little and composed himself, he kissed the little face. This upsets Scrooge who then listens to them talk of Bob meeting his nephew Fred earlier on and saying that if they needed any help he would help them. Scrooge is then taken away by the spirit. Scrooge questions the spirit and asks him if these shadows can be changed. The spirit, as ever, does not reply. Scrooge is taken to a cemetery and is shown a grave stone that has his name on it Ebenezer Scrooge. Scrooge clings to the spirit and starts begging. The spirit, all of a sudden, turns into one of Scrooges bed posts. The final stave sums up the story. Scrooge asks a boy in the street what the day is to which scrooge is told that it is Christmas. He tells the boy to go and buy the biggest Turkey from the grocers and then sends it to Bob Cratchitts house. Scrooge takes up his invitation and goes for Christmas dinner at his nephews house. The next day Bob is late to work. Scrooge plays with Bob and gets angry but then tells him that he is getting a raise. Bob does not know how to react but then sees that Scrooge is serious and he is happy. The men who were asking for money for the poor house are given enough money for this year and back payments as well by Scrooge. And . of course, Tiny Tim lives. A Christmas Carol is a social problem novel wrapped up in the supernatural style. Of course it works very well as a supernatural story as it has all the criteria needed for one. Dickens has written this book very well and gets the message across that the image of the poor is completely wrong. The books true moral is a hidden one that is picked up sub consciously by the reader. You may think that the moral of this story is that if you share your love and fortune you will be happier than if you keep them locked away for no one to see. The true moral of this story is that the poor need help by those that can afford to help. It does not matter whether your next door neighbour thinks that it is their own fault that they are poor. You should always help. Although not as autobiographical as his other novels this one still mirrors some part of his life. This novel is not the only one of Dickenss that has a social view wrapped up into a different genre but it is one of his most memorable novels. Because of this novel you hear people calling their family and friends Scrooges because they try to save their money up rather than spending it. The word Scrooge is even in the dictionary. In the Oxford English dictionary the word Scrooge is defined as A mean or miserly person This obviously means that A Christmas Carol is a very memorable piece and that the character of Scrooge is quite a significant one. I do feel, however, that A Christmas Carol is not a great Social Problem novel. A Christmas Carol does have the elements of social problem novels but not as strongly as others. In conclusion I do agree that Dickens does use A Christmas Carol as a vehicle for his own social views. Many other people would have written a similar novel but not included the severe poverty of the Cratchitt family, for instance. I believe that A Christmas Carol fits into the supernatural genre completely. This is because it has all of the classic ingredients of supernatural tales. A Christmas Carol has a setting, which is the big dark building in London that Scrooge is alone in all through the dead of night and his past, present and future. Atmosphere, the atmosphere is built up by the entry of the spirits. And a plot, the plot of A Christmas Carol is about Scrooge changing from a man who is clearly immoral to a humane person. This happens because of a visit from the three spirits. A Christmas Carol also has the main types of Supernatural characters. These are something from the paranormal world, in this case Jacob Marley, The spirit of Christmas past, present and Christmas future. Also there needs to be a person, usually the protagonist, who does not believe in the paranormal. In A Christmas Carol not only does the protagonist, Scrooge, not believe in the paranormal but he does not believe in anything but being rich. This is why he is visited by the paranormal world. The language that Dickens has used seems to be the language of the period although some language from this particular genre can also be found. Many of the sentences in the book have a feel for the supernatural and of his own views, especially when talking about the poor: The spirit smiled, and stopped to bless Bob Cratchitts dwelling with a sprinkling from his torch. Think of that! Bob had but fifteen Bob a-week himself; he pocketed on Saturdays but fifteen copies of his Christian name; and yet the Ghost of Christmas Present blessed his four-roomed house! That sentence has mainly the language of the period but it also has a little bit of supernatural language. This just goes to show Dickens views once again. He is writing as though it is shocking for some one to bless a poor persons little four-roomed house. Therefore A Christmas Carol is a perfect supernatural story and acts as a vehicle for Dickens views, but rather than it being a large vehicle of his views, like a social problem novel, it is a small vehicle which only has room for a small amount of his social views whereas other Dickens novels such as Great Expectations, Oliver Twist, Nicholas Nickleby and Hard Times fit into the social problem genre better than A Christmas Carol does. Having said that A Christmas Carol still gets the message across about the Victorian peoples anti-social and idiotic views about the poor and how they need to be changed. A Christmas Carol also gets the message across to a wider audience which means that more people realise that their views about the poor are wrong and that it really isnt their own fault if they are poor. This is where A Christmas Carol really becomes a vehicle for Dickens social views because it transports the views to people that wouldnt normally read a social problem novel.