Liashenko Caleb Liashenko Mr.

Price English 11 Period 1 12/2/12 Summary for A Christmas Carol The book I read is A Christmas Carol. Charles Dickens wrote it in 1 !". The genre o# the book is #antas$. The book tells the stor$ o# an old miser named Ebene%er &crooge and his trans#ormation #rom a greed$ and miserable old miser into a caregi'ing( genero)s and *oll$ man. It is one o# the most belo'ed Christmas stories e'er told ne+t to the birth o# ,es)s. A Christmas Carol starts o## with an old miser named Ebene%er &crooge working at his co)nting ho)se on a cold Christmas E'e night. -e gets a 'isit #rom his ne.hew( /red( who in'ites him o'er #or Christmas dinner at his home with his #amil$. &crooge re#)ses and sends his ne.hew awa$. &hortl$ a#ter( two men working #or a local charit$ come to see &crooge looking #or a .ossible donation #or the .oor and the homeless. 0eca)se &crooge is a greed$ old man( he sends them awa$ as well. As it is time to close ). sho.( &crooge and his clerk( 0ob Cratchit( are getting read$ to go home. 0ob asks &crooge i# he can ha'e the ne+t da$ o## #or it is Christmas Da$. &crooge rel)ctantl$ lets him take the da$ o## #or Christmas. -e then heads #or home. 1hen &crooge arri'es at his doorste. and is abo)t to o.en the door( he reali%es that he sees the #ace o# his old b)siness .artner( ,acob Marle$( whom has been dead #or e+actl$ 2 $ears. &crooge is terri#ied( b)t dismisses it as i# his mind is .la$ing tricks on him. -e enters the ho)se and walks ).stairs to his bedroom. 1hile inside the bedroom(

Liashenko he is getting read$ to ha'e a 3)iet little dinner be#ore going to slee.. 1hile eating( he notices that his doorbell is ringing. 4ot a doorbell to let one know that someone is on

someone5s doorste.( b)t a doorbell to let one know that someone has entered their home. Abo)t a min)te a#ter the bell has rang( the 6host o# ,acob Marle$ has entered &crooge5s bedroom. The 6host warns &crooge o# the terrible #ate that is waiting #or him a#ter his death d)e to his greed$ wa$s( which is to walk the Earth in torment. -e lets him know that three &.irits that will ho.e#)ll$ trans#orm him will 'isit him. The 6host o# Marle$ then lea'es &crooge. 7ne o# the s.irits that Marle$5s 6host .romised will show ). in #act did. It takes &crooge to see his .ast da$s. It shows &crooge three cr)cial .oints in his li#e. The #irst being &crooge going home a#ter his #ather wished him to come home a#ter he has been disowned b$ him #or a good .ortion o# his earl$ li#e. The second moment is when he is working at his #irst *ob. -ere is where he meets his #ianc8( 0elle. The last moment is when 0elle breaks ). with &crooge a#ter he has .)t his .assion o# mone$ and work in #ront o# his own #ianc8. &crooge then demands that the 6host lea'es him at .eace d)e to him not being able to bear watching what he has become. The second o# the ghosts shows ). and shows &crooge the .resent o# what is going on with the .eo.le close to him( and when I sa$ 9close to him(: this term is being )sed 'er$ lightl$. It is here that we learn that &crooge5s clerk 0ob Cratchit has a cri..led son named Tim( who is 'er$ ill and ma$ not li'e )nder the Cratchit5s .oor conditions. This ca)ses &crooge to #eel g)ilt$ #or .a$ing 0ob s)ch a small amo)nt o# mone$. The ghost then takes &crooge to see his ne.hew /red. -ere the$ see that /red and his #amil$ are being 'er$ 'ocal abo)t their o.inions abo)t &crooge( and the$ are not #riendl$

Liashenko o.inions to sa$ the least. A#ter lea'ing them( &crooge notices that the ghost is abo)t to

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die. -e then notices that there is a hand )nderneath the ghost5s robe. The ghost .)lls the robe awa$ to re'eal two )gl$ children that are witho)t #ood and good health. The ghost then disa..ears. The last o# the ghosts comes to &crooge and )nlike the other two ghosts who were rather 'ocal; this one was m)te( onl$ .ointing to what it wants &crooge to see. It is here &crooge sees the #)t)re( and it is not a .leasant one. -e reali%es that his st)## has been gi'en awa$ to the )ndertaker and that Tim Cratchit has died. -e e'en re.eatedl$ hears abo)t a man who is dead( b)t when he hears .eo.le talking abo)t the man( it is alwa$s in a manner o# ha..iness and not remorse. The 6host then takes &crooge to a gra'e$ard. -e .oints to a gra'e that has &crooges name inscribed in it. This ).sets &crooge and he swears to the ghost that he will kee. Christmas in his heart and change his wa$s. The ghost then sends &crooge back to his bedroom on Christmas Morning. &crooge is now a changed man. -e b)$s the Cratchits a t)rke$ #or Christmas dinner( he has dinner with his ne.hew and his #amil$( he gi'es 0ob a raise and he becomes a second #ather to Tim Cratchit whom is now health$.

Caleb Liashenko Mr. Price English 11 Period 1

Liashenko 12/2/12 Christmas Carol Analysis The main ho.e going into this book was that the book wasn5t going to be terribl$ o)tdated d)e to it being written in the late 1 <<5s where books are )s)all$ .rett$ longwinded and not 'er$ com.elling b$ toda$5s standard. &)r.risingl$( the writing st$le holds ). 'er$ well. It is as com.elling as an$ great book that wo)ld be written nowada$s. It is still written in that 1 <<5s st$le English( b)t it5s written in a wa$ that an$one can )nderstand it. I en*o$ed reading this book greatl$. The main reason #or that is the main character( Ebene%er &crooge. -is de'elo.ment thro)gho)t the book is .robabl$ the best e+am.le o# character de'elo.ment in an$ stor$ e'er told. -e goes #rom being a mean and coldhearted miser to a ha..$ and #riendl$ gentleman. 1hat moti'ated me to read to the end was the wa$ that he de'elo.s thro)gho)t the stor$. &crooge5s character t)rns a com.lete 1 < b$ the time the stor$ is #inished. A Christmas Carol is a didactic. It teaches .eo.le that being a nice .erson will make $o) ha..$ and it will hel. $o) get res.ect #rom man$ .eo.le. Charles Dickens wrote the book d)ring a time when greed$ mone$ co)nters were .rominent and he wanted to tell a stor$ that .arallels this. Altho)gh it is a didactic work( it is not .reach$ in an$wa$. Charles Dickens set o)t #irst to tell a com.elling stor$( which he does 'er$ well( and a#ter one #inishes reading the book( it might make someone want to go o)t and hel. someone in need. A Christmas Carol is not di##ic)lt to read. I did not ha'e to look ). words in the

dictionar$ to )nderstood what the$ meant. E'en i# I ha'e not heard o# some o# the words

Liashenko in the book( the conte+t in which the$ are being )sed in make them eas$ to )nderstand. Des.ite the #act that this was written in nineteenth cent)r$ English( the old st$le o# the English lang)age did not become a b)rden to read.

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A Christmas Carol is a Prose /iction. It is written in the #ormat o# a no'ella. It is a short read that sho)ldn5t take longer than a da$ to read( which is one o# the reasons wh$ it has become a tradition in man$ .eo.le5s ho)seholds to read a Christmas Carol o)t lo)d to their #amil$( not onl$ #or the engrossing stor$( b)t d)e to it5s short length. Two literar$ techni3)es that are )sed 'er$ well are character and setting. &crooge5s de'elo.ment is asto)nding. It5s 'er$ rare that we get stories where the main character makes a com.lete 1 < thro)gho)t the stor$ and it doesn5t #eel #orced at all. It5s a grad)al de'elo.ment. &etting is also another techni3)e that is done 'er$ well. It is setting in the mid=1 <<5s in London( England and while one is reading the book( the$ reall$ get a #eel #or what London was like d)ring that time( which was )n.leasant and drear$. M$ reading has been enhanced beca)se I ha'e been #amiliar with this stor$ e'er since I was #i'e $ears old #rom the man$ #ilm ada.tations that were made and act)all$ reading the original book these man$ $ears later now that I5m older( I still lo'e this stor$( i# not a little more so. Des.ite m$ lo'e #or the stor$( m$ o.inions on the book are totall$ #air and )nbiased. I agree with other .eo.le5s o.inion on this book; which is that it is a classic that sho)ld be remembered #or cent)ries to come. I agree with the idea that hel.ing .eo.le in need is a necessit$ to be ha..$ in li#e. M$ a..reciation #or this book has not increased or decreased a#ter anal$%ing it. M$ o.inion has remained the same. I# I were writing a news.a.er re'iew #or this book( I wo)ld sa$( 9A Christmas Carol is one o#

Liashenko the greatest books $o) will e'er read and it ma$ e'en ha'e *)st as strong an im.act on $o)r li#e as it did mine.: The images and ideas o# A Christmas Carol do see 'i'id and ali'e. It does

.resent the images and ideas in a 'er$ mat)re manner. Most critics regarded A Christmas Carol when it was #irst .)blished as an instant classic. ?nowing what Charles Dickens li#e was like back in mid=1 <<5s @ictorian England can hel. $o) )nderstand the time .eriod in which the book takes .lace. I ha'e not read an$thing else b$ Charles Dickens( so I can not com.are this to his other works s)ch as A Tale o# Two Cities and 6reat E+.ectations( b)t I do .lan to do so in the #)t)re. 7'erall( this is .robabl$ the best .iece o# literat)re I ha'e e'er read.