A Christmas Carol is a wonderful lesson in life. This beloved story tells the tale of Ebenezer Scrooge, a mean
spirited and greedy old business man in turn of the century England.
Like all his Christmas Eves, Scrooge spent this night alone, but unlike other Christmas Eves past, this one would prove to be a life changing experience.
After retiring for the evening, he was awoken as the clock struck midnight, by the ghost of his dead partner, Jacob Marley, who preceeded to tell him that the way he has chosen to live his life would be his downfall, and that for the sake of his soul, he would be visited by 3 spirits that night. Despite his protests, Scrooge was soon to find out that this was inevitable.
While he shook off the visit as a piece of bad food, or a hallucination, he was awoken at the strike of 1 AM by the ghost of Christmas past, who proceeded to show him what his life used to be like in childhood, and a dreary unhappy life it was. The memory of
people and love lost only added to his misery. He begged to be shown no more.
Believing he was done with this new hallucination, the
spirit returned him home and he went back to sleep.
The stroke of 2 AM arrived, waking him again by the 2nd spirit, who showed him the present day. Standing outside the home of his nephew with the current spirit, he looked on as his family talked about him in a negative fashion. He was also shown the family of Bob Crachet, his only employee, who he treated badly. For the first time he realised that Bob had a very sick child which they called Tiny Tim. As Bobs family sat around thier very measly Christmas Eve dinner, being all they could afford on Bobs piddance of a salary, he heard Bobs wife speak extremely negatively about him. Sadly, Scrooge had not been aware that he was that hated and ridiculed by others. He was beginning to get the point, and asked to please be shown no more.
Of course, this was not possible, because he had not yet learned his lesson. Hense the Spirit of the future awoke him precisely at 3 AM, a dark and ominous creature shrouded in a long dark hooded robe. To his shock, he witnessed the day he died, and watched and listened as the towns people looted his belongings and spoke ill of the dead. People rejoiced at his passing with much excitement and glee. "How could this be" he asked the silent spirit, who only proceeded to show him more.
Upon arriving for the second time that night, to the home of Bob Crachet, he finds the family in mourning at the death of Tiny Tim. By this time, Scrooge was so distraught by all these images that he begged the spirit to show him how his fate could be changed. Begging for his life, while clutching the robes of the dark spirit, he awoke to find himself alive, and clutching the curtain canopy of his bed.
He rejoiced, "I'm Alive, I am Alive" as he ran to the window and asked a young boy what day it was. "Why it's Christmas, Sir" the boy told him. Ebenezer danced around the room while shouting, "I haven't missed it". He threw down some money to the young boy, and asked him to run to the market and get the biggest turkey he could find and bring it to him.
He then brought the turkey to Mrs. Crachet, who was shocked to see the change in this miserable man. He also visited his nephew and family, and vowed to be a better and good man from here on out, and he was. When Bob Arrived to work the next day, he was shocked again by the first pay raise he had recieved since Marley had died years earlier. Scrooged also vowed to help get Tiny Tim the help he needed to prolong his life.
In conclusion, Scrooge had learned the biggest lesson in life, that money and power at the expense of family and friends, makes for a miserable lonely life, and only love and caring could change his faith.
This wonderful story has been made into numberous movies, from A Christmas Carol, to one of the newest remakes by comedian Bill Murray in "Scrooged". Among others, Patrick Stewart, and Henry Winkler have played this part. Each and every remake is an artistic expression in itself. It is a timeless story for all generations to come.