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Analyzing A Christmas Carol
How Charles Dicken shows Poverty and Disparity between the Rich and Poor 文学分析essay代写
Charles Dickens felt that the Victorian society ignored the problems of the underclass, and the rich looked down upon the poor. The evidence of this can be found in his book, A Christmas Carol, the inspiration of which he got from the plight of the poor people, especially the children he witnessed in the industrial towns and cities of Northern England.
The theme of poverty and the disparity that can be seen between the rich and the poor is extremely apparent in A Christmas Carol, in which on one hand rich people can be seen enjoying their wealth and having fun at Christmas from the comforts of their homes, whereas the poor can be seen rummaging for food, and living in dreadful conditions, just to survive. He uses impressive words like “not well dressed”, “surplus population”, frightful, abject, etc. to describe the poor people, which shows how the poor people were seen by the rich during that time.
Charles Dickens had a very clear perception of the manner in which the rich viewed the poor, which is evident by the description he uses for the Carchit family. 文学分析essay代写
They are shown as destitute and dirty, and all these things are shown to have a great impact on how the rich view the poor during that time. The Cratchit family is described in the following manner, “They were not well dressed; their shoes were far from being water-proof; their clothes were scanty,” (Third Stave). From the language that has been used, it is clear that the poor are referred by the material belongings they possess.
“Not well dressed”, shows the emphasis that is put on clothing and how a person can be seen instead of their personality. On the other hand, “far from being water proof”, shows the emphasis that is put on having good quality shoes, which the Cratchit family does not possess. And “their clothes were scanty”, shows that the family was being frowned upon based on their looks and their material belongings, and thus, looked down upon because they were poor. Thus, the disparity between the rich and the poor can be understood by the way they are being referred to. While the Cratchit family may enjoy their Christmas, and be a merry bunch during the holiday season, they are still classified as paupers because of their poverty.
The theme begins from the first stave in which Scrooge is requested to give donation to a charity that helps the poor. 文学分析essay代写
His response to this is “The Treadmill and the Poor Law are in full vigour, then?” Scrooge is shown to look down upon the poor, and a man who has immense pride at having been born rich. In this manner Charles Dickens has tried to express how people who had the means to make a difference during that time, didn’t because they were too selfish and egoistic. The conversation shows that the poor people have to work in prisons and workhouses, and are forced to live in shabby and run down places, and must forgo many of the necessities of life, simply because they cannot afford them.
He refuses to donate which showed that the rich were extremely selfish and wanted to keep their wealth to themselves, and thus, indicates another selfish side of the Victorian society. Instead of developing a community in which wealth is evenly distributed and enjoyed by everybody, the vulgar side of the society is shown in which the wealth distribution is great with the poor being in greater number and the wealth being in the hands of the few. This can be gleaned with the words Scrooge uses as “Decrease the surplus population”. The economic term is used to describe the poor who are in larger quantities as compared to the rich.
However, Charles Dickens has also tried to show that even with lack of resources and limited access to the basic necessities of life. 文学分析essay代写
This can be gleaned from when the Ghost of Christmas Present, takes Scrooge to a family of miners where he sees that they are all happy but still living in a small house, which is described as being in the “bowels of the earth”. The use of words is quite interesting because it shows that the way the poor are depicted in the book is as they are living in decrepit, deepest parts of the earth, where people like scrooge do not belong and thus shows a very negative image of the poor people. Yes, it is shown that they are happy with what they have, but it also shows the marked differences between the Christmas spent by a poor family and that of a rich one.
It is fascinating to notice how the words are being used to describe the poor.
When Ignorance and Want, two children who are represented by these two expressions, are introduced, they words used for them are, “wretched, abject, frightful, hideous, and miserable.” Let’s focus on the words used to describe these two children who have grown up in poverty and continue to do so. The use of the word wretched shows that they are seen as nothing but inferior beings, who cannot do anything about their fate. “Abject”, on the other hand depicts their powerlessness, and how they are seen by the richer people in society, as something dirty that should be kept at bay. Charles Dickens also uses the words “frightful” and “hideous” which is used to show how the wealthy people of the Victorian society viewed the poor.
Their dirty and shabby looking clothes, and their overall appearance was viewed as something scary, something that the rich were frightened of and at the same time was thought to be ugly. Again, the focus can be seen on outward appearance, and how people tend to judge others, especially the rich people judge the poor people based on their clothes, their appearance, how shabby they look, and make an impression based on all of these factors, instead of factors that should matter, like personality, humbleness, talent, etc.
And lastly, the use of the word, “miserable” shows that due to the kind of life they are living and the fact that even the basic necessities of life are not easily available for them, they lead miserable lives. However, it can also be said, that this is a perception of the richer and wealthier people of the society, who believe that material things truly make people happy. But, as can be seen from the book itself, that while the family of miners lived in a house in “the bowels of the earth”, they could still find happiness, even though all of them were gathered together in one room, where the fire was lit, they were still enjoying their Christmas.
Charles Dickens uses words in order to convey how the poor were being treated and looked upon by the wealthier people of the society. 文学分析essay代写
Another interesting description by the author about poverty is, “The ways were foul and narrow, the shops and houses wretched; the people half naked, drunken, slipshod, ugly. Alleys and archways, like so many cesspools, disgorged their offences of smell, and dirt, and life, upon the straggling streets; and the while quarter reeked with crime, with filth, and misery.” (Stave Four) This description is used to explain the surroundings and environment around Old Joe’s shops.
Scrooge imagines that this is where all his belongings will be taken after his imagined death, and the powerful manner in which Charles Dickens sketches the surroundings in the minds of the reader, makes you realize how desolate and sad the area is, where poor people are in larger numbers, and the neighborhood is of the poor and needy. He mentions that “the whole quarter reeked with crime, with filth, and misery,” which depicts that when a person does not have enough money or the means to earn, then he or she resorts to crime, and thievery. Thus, the surroundings are not kept clean, because such people do not have the means to keep their surroundings, clothes, and even their bodies clean, and thus the area has a sense of gloom that envelopes it!
The words he uses to describe the people as half naked, 文学分析essay代写
Because they do not have enough clothes to cover themselves, drunken; because they try to run away from the fate that has surrounded them instead of trying to change it, and slipshod; showing that they do not care about how they look, and ugly; showing that because they do not have the means to take care of themselves, their appearance becomes distorted and grotesque. These are extremely powerful words used to describe the poor, and shows a marked difference between the rich and the poor people, which the latter being in greater numbers. This shows the disparity between the extremes of the society and instead of trying to find a middle way, where all of the people in a society are able to lead a prosperous life, neither too rich, nor too poor, the wealthier people prefer to keep the wealth for themselves.
What can be learned from the manner in which Dickens describes the poor and the rich, their appearance, facilities available for them, beliefs and lifestyles, is that there was a marked difference in their descriptions, which shows all the kinds of people that exist in the world and shows all the facets of life. His explanation and use of specific words from the English language show not only the kind of houses that existed, but also the kind of impact poverty had on the physical appearance on the poor people. Not having access to the basic necessities of life, they were adversely affected due to malnutrition and lack of good food. Many poor people have to rummage in the garbage in order to salvage anything that can be salvage just so they could fill their stomachs.
All of this shows the evil side of the society, 文学分析essay代写
Which Dickens focuses on in this book, and tries to show the kind of desolate, sad and difficult lives poor people have to lead, simply because many of the richer people of the society are unable to see their plight. The one thing that is quite interesting is that throughout the book, and the language used to describe the poor, Charles Dickens does not belittle the poor, and neither does he state or give the message that they are to blame for their situation.
Rather it is more of an empathetic nature that he writes about the poor, hoping that the reader would feel sympathetic if not empathetic towards the poor people, and trying to show the kind of difficult life they have to lead, yet they are able to find joy at the significant moments of life. A Christmas carol is said to be the voice of the poor in London during the 1840s. The division among classes is apparent throughout the book, and Charles Dickens wrote it to highlight the huge gap that existed between the rich and the poor, during that time. 文学分析essay代写
In the first stave, Scrooge says, “I wish to be left alone. Since you ask me what I wish, gentlemen, that is my answer. I don’t make merry myself at Christmas and I can’t afford to make idle people merry. I help to support the establishments I have mentioned – they cost enough; and those who are badly off must go there.” This shows the willingness of a man who has it all to help those who are in need of support. His reaction is not supposed to generalize all the wealthy people of the Victorian society during that time, however, it was supposed to show that many people who have the power to help others, choose not to do so, simply because they feel that their efforts and investment should be made elsewhere.
References
Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol, accessed 20-11-18 from;
https://www.pagebypagebooks.com/Charles_Dickens/A_Christmas_Carol/
Poverty in A Christmas Carol, accessed 20-11-18 from;
https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/christmas-carol-where-does-dickens-portray-597627
How does the setting of A Christmas Carol portray the discrimination between the rich and poor? Accessed 20-11-18 from;
https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/how-setting-christmas-carol-portray-discrimination-697450
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