Tsang Pik Shan Secondary School

Ho Wai Kwan (6S)

4010S-2

Title: A Christmas Carol

Author: Charles Dickens

Publisher: Stewart, Tabori and Chang, New York

A Christmas Carol is more a Christmas carol. Christmas Carols are deemed to be an indispensable component for Christmas to spread joy and hope in general. However, does anyone ever imagine that there is such a powerful Christmas carol in the world that can radically alter a callous man from loathing the world to enjoying the world, from ignoring people to loving people? The Christmas Carol written by Charles Dickens will give an attestation to show that it is not a whim.

This book revolves around a nonchalant and stern businessman called Ebenezer Scrooge who was regarded as a formidable creature in people’s eyes.Such being the case, nobody dared to greet him; no beggars dared to implore him to bestow a trifle; even the blind men’s dogs were panicked and tried to shun whenever and wherever they came across him. Nevertheless, there were two passionate men who were dauntless enough to approach him. One of them was his nephew called Fred who kept inviting him to his Christmas party every year despite rejections while the other was his clerk called Robert Cratchit who eked out a meager existence but was submissive to him in spite of his stinginess and harshness.

Miraculously, the unbreakable “ice” eventually “melted” due to the apparition of Mr Scrooge’s dead old friend, Jacob Marley, who brought him 3 Spirits one night on Christmas Eve: the Ghost of Christmas Past, the Ghost of Christmas Present and the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come. Each Spirit taught him a different lesson: the Ghost of Christmas Past brought him back to the place where he was born to remind him of his lonely childhood, which made him miserable. Then he was brought to Fezziwig’s warehouse in where he used to be apprenticed and found out how nice Fezziwig had treated his apprentices. He felt ashamed having been ill-using poor Mr. Cratchit. The Ghost of Christmas Present showed him the way the Cratchit felt content and grateful with what they had despite poverty. The Spirit also brought him to Fed’s house which was full of fun and merriment. It told him that Christmas was such a festive moment for enjoyment. The Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come presented the impassive attitude of people towards his death and the fact about his property being despoiled by wicked people after his death. He was petrified and besought the Spirit to give him a chance to a new life when he found a grave with his name craved on. He was penitent having fully focused on his work instead of admiring the things and people around him when he was alive.

The Christmas Carol came to an end once Mr Scrooge woke up. The dream had given him a hard whack that mellowed him. The brand new Mr. Scrooge now was full of gay, love, mercy, benevolence and forbearance: he sent a big turkey to the Cratchit; donated money to the needy; patted children on their heads tenderly; questioned beggars heartily; admired whatever he saw; visited his nephew and promised to raise poor Cratchit’s salary as well as concern about Mr. Cratchit’s plight.

The story is engrossing due to the presence of the specters that helps to create a mysterious atmosphere, together with a series of unexpected upshots, which succeed in arousing readers’ interest and curiosity. Besides, the theme of the story is meaningful and inspiring. There are two characters in the story, Mr. Scrooge and Mr. Cratchit. Their attitude towards life impresses me deeply because it causes me to meditate the meaning of life and the way to deal with life.

First of all, from Mr. Scrooge, the meaning of life is made clearer to me. He used to build an invisible “wall” round him to defend himself against the intrusion of people. Meanwhile, he didn’t think it is necessary to care about others. He only concentrated on his own business and making a living. Still, he could hardly be satisfied no matter how much he earned since hatred seemed to have a strong affinity with his face and could hardly be erased. What a pathetic wretch! A person without communication and interaction with others makes no difference from a robot! Undoubtedly, work enables our survival, but it is not all life. Life means to love and to share; otherwise, I will wonder why we have been gifted with thoughts, feelings, and love since the day we were born, and why we are created to live with a group of people of different races and cultures. It is such a sad phenomenon that people are becoming more and more self-protected nowadays. It is quite sarcastic that the more education people receive, the higher the defensive wall they build, and the more incredulous people become. For instance, neighbors seldom give a glimpse to each other, not to mention greeting each other whenever they are waiting for the lift or coming across each other, lest their privacy might be invaded. This phenomenon occurs not only in the neighborhood, but also in the workplace. Unlike in the past, people were simple-minded and were obliged to each other as if they were kin. Many people have become slaves of work. They cram themselves with loads of work and always find excuses to neglect others; for example, they are too busy to make a caring phone call to friends in need or have a dinner with their family. “Time is money” is the motto of those busy people and they think dealing with tasks other than work is a waste of time. Nevertheless, have they ever tried to stop for a while to take a look at the adorable world they live in and that their petty love and concern can contribute to a better world? Business can sometimes blind people from seeing others’ needs and widening the gap between people. A life without love and enjoyment is like a steak without sauce, dull and tasteless. Work helps people to earn money and money helps them to earn fame and satisfy their wants. However, will it be worthwhile to exchange one’s youth and friends for money? Once both youth and friends are gone, everything will be irretrievable. One will end up with endless remorse and a haggard body because they get no one to share with. How woeful it will be! Do people want to be a master of work or a slave of work? What is more, if Mr. Marley had not appeared to point out Mr Scrooge’s improper mode of life, he would not have realized his problems and rebuilt a blithe life. Does it show the nature of human beings? It seems that our shrouded eyes can be uncovered to realize our misdeed only when there is a catastrophe, like the overwhelming tsunami in Southeast Asian countries that caused many deaths and so we were made “conscious” to learn to cherish life and people around. We are using countless lives and indelible grief in exchange for “consciousness”! What a high cost! Love is a free gift from God who is heartwarming and comforting. We should not be stingy to send out our love and care to others. Only a world with love is a beautiful world!

On the other hand, Mr. Cratchit’s positive attitude reminds me of the way to deal with life. He was a father of five children. They lived a poor life; they only had a small goose and pudding for Christmas. However, they never groused.They were content with the insufficient food they had and the time when they were together. It gives me a reflection on my life. It is really worrying to see many people exhausting themselves these days. The poor struggle for a better life while the rich want to be richer. Actually, they are not totally wrong, but they seem too besotted by their unlimited desire to remember who they are. They crave for material enjoyment rather than spiritual satisfaction! Therefore, they try all means both lawful and unlawful to achieve their goals such as doing as many part-times as possible; being crazy about shares and stuff; taking part in lottery like the Mark Six and horse betting; or even smuggling.Not only adults, but also youngsters indulge themselves in playing computer games; lingering in shopping malls; fooling around in karaoke; and buying luxuries.Only a few of the teenagers are committed to voluntary service. From my point of view, being abundant or not depends on our mind not how much we own. We are very lucky because we have shelter; enough clothes for warmth or at least we do not need to worry about our meals when compared with people living in the deprived areas in China as well as the African countries struck by starvation, wars and natural disasters every day. Material enjoyment is temporary and it means nothing after one dies, whereas spiritual satisfaction is long-lasting and it is rooted in one’s heart. Spiritual satisfaction is made reachable as long as we can think about ourselves less and concern about others more!

What makes me appreciate Mr. Cratchit so much is that he rendered good for devil.He was meek and he wished Mr. Scrooge with best wishes though Mr. Scrooge paid him pittance and were unfriendly to him. In reality, it is quite impossible to happen as people did not know the word “toleration”, but “revenge”, or else, the USA would not have started fire with Iraq after the 911 Incident. One is deemed to be coward if not to fight back when assaulted. As a result, hatred will be transmitted from generation to generation disturbing world peace. We love our world, don’t we? And the best solution to all these problems are lenience and forgiveness, not wrath.

To conclude, this book is a real “chicken soup” to teach people about life and love. It’s worth reading not only for the teenagers but also for the adults.