english chrismas carol

Marley's "Business" Quote

Quote: "Mankind was my business!"

Technique: Metaphor / Pun.

Analysis: Marley realizes too late that "business" shouldn't be about money, but about humanity and charity. It mocks Scrooge’s focus on the counting-house.

The Final Ghost's Arrival

Quote: "Slowly, gravely, silently approached."

Technique: Rule of Three (Triadic Structure).

Analysis: The adverbs create a somber, ominous tone. It mimics the inevitable approach of death, forcing Scrooge (and the reader) to feel fear.

The Stave 5 Transformation

Quote: "I am as light as a feather... as happy as an angel."

Technique: Simile.

Analysis: Contrasts the "flint" and "oyster" similes from Stave 1. "Angel" suggests spiritual redemption and "feather" suggests the "weight" of greed has been lifted.

The "Ignorance and Want" Children

Quote: "Yellow, meagre, ragged, scowling, wolfish."

Technique: Asyndetic Listing / Animal Imagery.

Analysis: Dickens uses "wolfish" to show how poverty de-humanizes people, turning children into predators or scavengers.

The Cratchit Goose

Quote: "A feathered phenomenon."

Technique: Alliteration / Hyperbole.

Analysis: By calling a cheap bird a "phenomenon," Dickens highlights how little the Cratchits have and how much they appreciate it. It emphasizes their goodness despite poverty.

The "Old" Scrooge (Stave 1)

Quote: "A squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner!"

Technique: Asyndetic Listing.

Analysis: The verbs (squeezing, clutching) suggest he is physically holding onto his wealth. It portrays greed as an aggressive, suffocating force.