A Christmas Carol was first published on December 19, 1843. The story was instantly successful, selling over six thousand copies in one week. Contemporaries noted that the story's popularity played a critical role in redefining the importance of Christmas and the major sentiments associated with the holiday.
    
     However, A Christmas Carol is not a story that appeals just to Christians. Actually, it is a Victorian morality tale about human values, change and redemption and I hope people of all religious orientations will enjoy reading it and have something to share about it here in the Group.
    
     Please, click here to read and download A Christmas Carol
    
     Looking forward to reading your comments.
     Happy Holidays!
     Chris

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The play’s subject is importance of celebrating Christmas. Religious people of that time objected to frolics and fun during celebrations of Jesus’ Birth. And the irreligious objected to waste of time and money involved in the merry-making.
     Dickens saw in Christmas a moral opportunity, a moment in time, occurring each year, when grinding pursuit of wealth and the ruthless competition to succeed is suspended in favour of kindness, charity, benevolence and generosity, specially towards the poor and underprivileged. Bonds of human solidarity, fellow feeling, and brotherhood are renewed under the auspices of Christ when the unfortunate in particular are allowed a day of rejoicing.
     Pleasures of the poor make them forget the miseries for that one day and the same time thanks giving to benefactors promotes solidarity. Thus the play awakens some loving and forbearing thoughts i.e. spirit of Christianity.
     Dickens successfully helped to create Christmas as a holiday of caroling, family feasting, gift giving and universal goodwill. Before that Christmas was just a religiously important day without much celebrations. He helped make it an emotional centerpiece.

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The story truly reveals the life man might have to lead after a sinful life. It is an eye-opener for children who find the lost moral values of today's world and might resolve to change their habits and lifestyle for good

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The Christmas Carol is a lovely little story which is truly universal both in the enduring values it projects and in its appeal to both children and adults. It's beyond caste or creed.( Though it was interesting to read that ,apparently ,Dickens changed the way in which Christmas was celebrated.)A lovely story to curl up with.
    
     Wealth per se is not evil; how one uses one's wealth is what is important. The wealthy cannot hope to be given a wake-up call like Srooge was given. But let Dickens' story give each of us the wake up call , whether rich or poor, and let him once again inspire us to contribute to the joy of this season and continue it for the rest of our stay on earth..

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it's like reading Dante's "A Comedia do Inferno" who through the hands of Virgilio entered the world of the yet unknown and delves into the past and depths of human behaviour. Scrooge travels in the same world in the hands of a ghost, and learned there was still more that he could learn, enjoy and make his life even more significant, though it seemed late. I love the travel into the past he was challenged to face (and even saw himself abandoned at school, where there would be a lot of sharing with friends), and found the picture of his lonely life unbearable at this stage.
    
     Thanks the facilitation team for this story comes when we'll soon be celebrating Christmas. it's really a Christmas Carol. And we must offer and welcome presents happily!
    
     Tanguene

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Hi Everyone
    
     A very warm welcome to Trimendiratta and Dolly! Great to have you with us.
     Indeed, it is a nice story and a moral tale. I suppose Dickens felt that such moral uplifting was necessary in the *hard times* of industrial Victorian England.
     I just wonder if such feelings are not just a sort of guilt trip we all take around the Season and which help us to feel good the rest of the year even though inequalities remain.
    
     Was Scrooge's change deep enough to reflect on his broad relationships and his understanding of the power/economic relations in his society as a whole?
    
     Looking forward to your views on it.
     Cheers - Chris

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Hi everyone,
    
     I think Xmas Carol is especially suited for this time of the year when good feelings are everywhere.
     But it is a very sentimental story - too good to be true in every other time of the year but right now it works well to create a nice atmosphere.
     It can be used to talk about the social situations at the moment of writing - the industrial revolution, the fact that many people have moved to the cities where they lead a poor life with very bad housing.
     Scrooge's change is rather sudden after his very strong anti-social behaviour - but so are many films that we see on television nowadays!

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I definitelyagree with what you wrote Rahel ... it's not so much the money itself that corrupts a person, but it's the way they use it ... or misuse it!

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Really had to puzzle this one out since this discussion took place so long ago. But feel delighted to receive this very very late response. How did you stumble on this discussion so late Borgoth?

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Dickens "Christmas Carol" has international appeal and particularly relevant is the caricaturing of Dickens characters ... they are larger than life and everyone likes Dickens I feel sure!
    
     SM Thompson: UK: Southampton:

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Hi Rahel!
     I absolutely love working with A christmas carol with my students and I always discover something new every year to discuss with them. I'll be working on it again from November with a new group and I know it will be as refreshing and interesting as the first time!
     I always work on the book and then just before the Christmas Holiday we see the film together. This year I'm looking forward to the new re-make which will be released in November (in Italy where I live) and has a host of great actors in the cast including Colin Firth and Gary Oldman!
     I have also watched an ITV modern version with English Actor Ross Kemp realeased in 2000. This appeals in particular to teenagers and is really well made!
     Anyway, I think all teachers should work on this story at least once, it really does make a difference!

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