88 pages • 2 hours read
Charles DickensA Christmas Carol
Fiction | Novella | Middle Grade | Published in 1843A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Essay Topics
How are Victorian theories of poverty similar to or different from modern theories?
Why did the Ghost of Christmas Present tell Scrooge that Ignorance was the more dreadful of the two children of humankind?
Does modern Western society suffer the same economic stratification as Victorian England? What social and economic factors might account for similarities or differences?
Do all the characters seem to be consistent in their actions? Which of the characters seems the most fully developed? Why might that be?
Compare/contrast A Christmas Carol to another Christmas story or film.
Many readers find Tiny Tim to be almost unbearably virtuous. What do you think of the child savior archetype? Is it realistic? If not, does it serve a literary purpose?
What role does humor play in the narration? How does the narrator’s sense of humor influence the ghost story and its moral message?
Dickens places a heavy emphasis on the material elements of the Christmas celebration—including laughter and community. How has his depiction helped define the modern idea of Christmas? Has his influence been generally positive or negative?
What motivates Jacob Marley’s ghost to visit Scrooge? Why does he care whether Scrooge changes?
Why do you think readers continue to find this story compelling after almost 200 years?
Related Titles
By Charles Dickens
