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Year 10
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'A Christmas Carol' Stave 4: Scrooge's fears

I can explain how Scrooge’s fears change throughout the novella.

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Year 10
Eduqas

'A Christmas Carol' Stave 4: Scrooge's fears

I can explain how Scrooge’s fears change throughout the novella.

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Share activities with pupils
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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Scrooge's Stave 1 behaviour is arguably motivated by his fear of abandonment; fear of poverty and fear of vulnerability
  2. Scrooge’s fears and the behaviour that these fears have encouraged exemplify Dickens’ fears for society
  3. Through Scrooge’s fear of poverty, we see how punishing life was for impoverished Victorian citizens
  4. Dickens criticises Victorian stoicism, suggesting that it led to a lack of empathy for others, which exacerbates poverty
  5. By the end of Stave 4, Scrooge’s greatest fear is the lack of legacy he will leave behind him, showing his change

Keywords

  • To abandon - to leave a person behind, usually forever

  • Vulnerability - able to be easily hurt or attacked, either physically or emotionally

  • To advocate - if you advocate for something, you promote it

  • Legacy - the long impact of a person's life

  • Stoic - enduring hardship without showing it - not showing one’s emotions

Common misconception

Students think that, in Stave 4, Scrooge is frightened of dying.

Scrooge is not frightened of death. He is frightened of dying without leaving a legacy because he has not contributed anything to society.

For learning cycle 1, once completed, perhaps ask students which of Scrooge's three fears they think might be the most harmful to A) him and B) society and get them to debate their opinions.
Teacher tip

Equipment

You will need access to a copy of Charles Dickens' 'A Christmas Carol' for this lesson.

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
  • Depiction or discussion of sensitive content

Supervision

Adult supervision recommended

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Which part of a person's life did Charles Dickens think was particularly significant in shaping a person?
old age
Correct answer: childhood
young adulthood
mid adulthood
Q2.
What did Charles Dickens believe would happen to children who faced injustice?
They would grow up to be poor.
They would grow up to be lonely.
Correct answer: They would grow up to be resentful.
Correct answer: They would turn their backs on society.
They would die young.
Q3.
Which of the following statements are true about Scrooge's childhood in 'A Christmas Carol'?
Correct answer: Scrooge was neglected by his friends.
Scrooge's father died when he was a very young boy.
Scrooge's little sister Fan ran away to France when she was a young adult.
Correct answer: Scrooge's father left him at boarding school during the holidays.
Scrooge was a well-loved child at school - particularly by his teachers.
Q4.
In 'A Christmas Carol', why does Belle break her engagement with Scrooge off?
Because he doesn't have enough money to sustain a life with her.
Because she doesn't love him anymore.
Correct answer: Because she recognises that his priorities have changed.
Because he didn't want to have a family with her.
Q5.
Which of the following is the correct definition for the term 'emotional repression'?
When you don't feel any emotions at all.
When you are overhwlemed with extreme emotion.
Correct answer: When you push your emotions away and ignore them.
When you show your emotions clearly to others.
When you cannot interpret or understand other people's emotions.
Q6.
Match the 'A Christmas Carol' quotation up to the stave it appears in.
Correct Answer:stave 2, “A solitary child, neglected by his friends, is left there"

“A solitary child, neglected by his friends, is left there"

Correct Answer:stave 1,“Because you fell in love!” growled Scrooge...

“Because you fell in love!” growled Scrooge...

Correct Answer:stave 3,“Are there no prisons?” said the Spirit, turning on him..."

“Are there no prisons?” said the Spirit, turning on him..."

Correct Answer:stave 4,"Assure me that I yet may change these shadows"

"Assure me that I yet may change these shadows"

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
What are Scrooge's views on community in stave 1 of 'A Christmas Carol'?
He feels indifferent towards his local community.
He values community and recognises its importance.
Correct answer: He wilfully isolates himself from his local community.
Correct answer: He views community as a drain on an individual's resources.
Q2.
What are Scrooge's fears in staves 1-3 of 'A Christmas Carol'?
fear of the cold
Correct answer: fear of abandonment
fear of dying
Correct answer: fear of emotional vulnerability
Correct answer: fear of poverty
Q3.
Which of these can be used as a synonym for 'appears emotionless'?
legacy
Correct answer: stoic
cynical
transformed
vulnerable
Q4.
Complete the quotation from stave 2 of 'A Christmas Carol': “There is nothing on which it is so hard as ...".
Correct Answer: poverty, Poverty, poverty., Poverty.
Q5.
Which character does Dickens present (and celebrate) as emotionally vulnerable in 'A Christmas Carol'?
Correct answer: Fred
Jacob Marley
The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come
Correct answer: Fezziwig
Correct answer: Bob Cratchit
Q6.
Which of these statements best explains Scrooge's greatest fear in stave 4 of 'A Christmas Carol'?
Scrooge fears the finality of death in stave 4.
Scrooge fears the spirit's appearance in stave 4 - it resembles the Grim Reaper.
Scrooge fears being buried in a neglected part of town and left to rot.
Correct answer: Scrooge becomes fearful of not leaving a positive legacy behind when he dies.
Scrooge becomes fearful of having the same fate as Jacob Marley in stave 4.