Ebenezer Scrooge is a character in Charles Dickens' 1843 novel 'A Christmas Carol'. At the beginning of the novel, Scrooge is a cold-hearted miser who despises Christmas. The tale of his redemption by three spirits (the Ghost of Christmas Past, the Ghost of Christmas Present, and the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come) has become a defining tale of the Christmas holiday in the English-speaking world.
Dickens describes Scrooge like this early in the story: "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." Towards the end of the novella, the three spirits show Scrooge the error of his ways, and he becomes a better, more generous man.
Scrooge's last name has come into the English language as a byword for stinginess and misanthropy, while his catchphrase, "Bah! Humbug!" is often used to express disgust with many modern Christmas traditions.
These two shots show part of a display of 'A Christmas Carol' created in the Homestead Park for the Christmas holiday period. This is the first time they have created a Christmas display, although their regular summer displays are a well known feature of local life.
The shot on the left shows the unreformed Scrooge, while that on the right shows him dancing a jig after his reformation.
I tend to feel rather sorry for Scrooge. He is remembered as a miserable miser, but surely his reformation and transformation is a positive message for us all, in that even the most mean person can be transformed for the better.
I'm afraid that made me laugh. I didn't steal the idea from Radio 4, honestly! I do think we see Scrooge in a negative way, rather than his reformed character, probably because so much of the story is of him as an unreformed character.
Can see the story of Scrooge nearly every year on a TV channel.
Thank you all for your lovely comments and favs, they are very much appreciated.
Dickens has a wonderful way of creating word pictures. It is amazing how many of our Christmas traditions come from the pages of his books.
Ian
I'm afraid that made me laugh. I didn't steal the idea from Radio 4, honestly! I do think we see Scrooge in a negative way, rather than his reformed character, probably because so much of the story is of him as an unreformed character.
Ian
Thank you Mickey, I'm glad that you like them!
Ian