The most important things cannot be measured
Charles Dickens’ novella “A Christmas Carol” portrays the precipice humanity faces when overcome with greed and material wealth. A Christmas Carol has the purpose of educating society on how they need to change unless they want to be met with a bleak future. Dickens represents these changes through the transformation of Ebenezer Scrooge, who embodies what most upper class people of society valued in the 1800s. Through this, Dickens is able to show readers that the things we should value most in life are priceless, and are the key to ultimately finding happiness.
Dickens uses Old Fezziwig to guide Scrooge into recognising how treating his own employee well can be an important key to being truly happy; something money could never buy. In contrast to Scrooge, Fezziwig is generous and “jovial”, whereas Scrooge is a “tight-fisted covetous old sinner”. His “cold” and harsh demeanour not only affects his life, but that of his clerk Bob Cratchit, whose “fire was so very small… it barely looked like one coal.” The lack of care for his clerk is purposely depicted through Scrooge to represent the divide between the rich and poor, and how those with power to help the less fortunate most often do not. When the Ghost of Christmas Past reminds Scrooge of his former employer, Fezziwig, Scrooge is overjoyed “why it’s Old Fezziwig. Bless his heart!” Fezziwig embraces the spirit of Christmas stating “no more work tonight… Christmas, Ebenezer!”, and through this creates a “snug, warm” working environment, compared to the one Scrooge creates which is always “dark” and “cold”. Scrooge gets so caught up reminiscing of the warmth and joy of working with such a charitable employer, that he comes to the realisation that “he [Fezziwig] has the power to render us happy or unhappy, our work a pleasure or toil… The happiness he brings us is as great as if it cost a fortune”. From this, Scrooge is able to discover that he does not need money to grant him the happiness he once had, all he
Dickens uses Old Fezziwig to guide Scrooge into recognising how treating his own employee well can be an important key to being truly happy; something money could never buy. In contrast to Scrooge, Fezziwig is generous and “jovial”, whereas Scrooge is a “tight-fisted covetous old sinner”. His “cold” and harsh demeanour not only affects his life, but that of his clerk Bob Cratchit, whose “fire was so very small… it barely looked like one coal.” The lack of care for his clerk is purposely depicted through Scrooge to represent the divide between the rich and poor, and how those with power to help the less fortunate most often do not. When the Ghost of Christmas Past reminds Scrooge of his former employer, Fezziwig, Scrooge is overjoyed “why it’s Old Fezziwig. Bless his heart!” Fezziwig embraces the spirit of Christmas stating “no more work tonight… Christmas, Ebenezer!”, and through this creates a “snug, warm” working environment, compared to the one Scrooge creates which is always “dark” and “cold”. Scrooge gets so caught up reminiscing of the warmth and joy of working with such a charitable employer, that he comes to the realisation that “he [Fezziwig] has the power to render us happy or unhappy, our work a pleasure or toil… The happiness he brings us is as great as if it cost a fortune”. From this, Scrooge is able to discover that he does not need money to grant him the happiness he once had, all he