A Christmas Carol ("A Christmas Carol")
The Christmas Carol is an 1843 novel by Charles Dickens, one of Charles Dickens's three Christmas novels. It's mainly about a miserly ghost. A miserly man has accumulated a lot of money, but he is not willing to add a piece of coal to the staff's fire, his nephew kindly invites him to the Christmas Eve party, but he thinks that his nephew is to take advantage of him and resigns, and the social activists ask him to give him a little Christmas meal for the poor, but he also ruthlessly and categorically refuses. He came home at night, and in the night he saw a grimace, is this really a ghost? Or his vision? However, the appearance of the ghost has made him change drastically...
Listen to the novel and read the novel against the original text, there are test questions at the end of the article
<h1>Listen to the audio to practice listening and reading
</h1>
In this episode, you'll get to know Ebenezer Scrooge. Nobody seems to be able to get a kind word or even a smile out of him.
Transcript
Chapter 1 Marley's Ghost
Narrator
This is the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, a man who loved money and didn't like Christmas. There he was, on Christmas Eve, in his office. He was keeping an eye on his clerk Bob Cratchit. Scrooge wanted to get every little bit of work from Cratchit before allowing him to spend Christmas Day at home. Scrooge thought Christmas was a waste of time! Even his nephew couldn't convince him that it wasn't.
IN SCROOGE'S OFFICE
Scrooge's Nephew
A Merry Christmas, uncle!
Scrooge
Bah! Humbug!
You don't mean that, I'm sure!
What's Christmas time to you but a time for paying bills without money? You find yourself a year older, but not an hour richer! What good has it ever done you?
I've always thought of Christmas as a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time. A time when men and women seem to open their hearts freely. It's never put money in my pocket, but I believe that it's done me good!
Humbug!
Come on, uncle, come and have dinner with us tomorrow.
Scrooge's nephew was persistent but the old man wouldn't change his mind. He was in his usual bad mood when two gentlemen came to his office to ask for a donation to offer Christmas dinner to the poor. Scrooge worked in the money-lending business. No donation from him...
Gentlemen, are there no prisons and workhouses, where the poor receive food and accommodation in return for some work?
Gentleman
We wish we could say there aren't any, Mr Scrooge. Many poor people would rather die than go to prison or the...
They should die and decrease the surplus population. And... well, it's none of my business anyway. They cost a lot of money, and the poor should go there. Goodbye, sir.
Typical Scrooge! He feels sorry for no-one, helps no-one. With him, it's all about money. He thought of nothing else. His partner, Jacob Marley, had died seven years before, at Christmas. Marley was like Scrooge when he was alive. But now he was gone. Or was he?
AT SCROOGE'S HOUSE
Who's there? I'm finally home and I want some peace!
Marley
Scroooge... Scrooooooge...
What is this? A ghost?! It's not possible! I must be having indigestion and seeing things that aren't there!
Scrooge. In life I was your partner, Jacob Marley.
Marley, is it really you?! And what is this strange metal chain you are wearing? It's made of cash-boxes, keys, locks, heavy purses...
I wear the chain I made in life. Of my own free will I wore it when I was alive. Is its pattern strange to you? Or do you wish to know the weight and length of the heavy chain you are carrying yourself?
Don't say that, Jacob. And why is this happening to you? You were always a good man of business…
Business!? Mankind was my business. Charity, kindness - were all my business. Why did I walk through crowds of people with my eyes turned down? I'm here to warn you, that you still have a chance of escaping my fate. You'll be visited by three spirits. Expect the first spirit tomorrow at one o'clock in the morning. And remember what I've told you.
Marley disappeared into the night, flying out of an open window with other ghosts which looked as miserable as him. Scrooge was shocked. I'll tell you about the visit of the first spirit next time.
<h1>Vocabulary explanation</h1>
Vocabulary
①keeping an eye
watching closely
②clerk
office worker
③humbug
old expression meaning 'fake' which came to be closely associated with this story by Charles Dickens
④persistent
someone who does not give up on things easily
⑤donation
article or money that you give to somebody when you don't expect to get anything back
⑥workhouses
(singular: workhouse) places where people got food and accommodation in return for some work
⑦surplus
excess; too much of something
⑧indigestion
discomfort in the stomach after eating too much food or bad food
<h1>Read the quiz</h1>
Quiz
I believe that after listening to the story, you already have the answer to these, write your answer in the following message and discuss it with everyone!
Question 1:Who is Bob Cratchit?
a) Scrooge's nephew
b) Scrooge's clerk
c) Scrooge's partner
Question 2: Why did Scrooge refuse to donate money to the poor?
a) He didn't have much money for himself
b) He thought they were robbing him and should be in prison
c) He said he paid taxes to support places where the poor could go to and he didn't need to give more
Question 3: Why did Marley's ghost pay Scrooge a visit?
a) To wish him Merry Christmas
b) To give him indigestion
c) To tell him he was going to be visited by three spirits