Characters in Dickens' "A Christmas Carol", Pt 2 Quiz

Answer:

Here are the characters that we meet in "A Christmas Carol":

The opening scene of "A Christmas Carol" is Christmas Eve. We find Bob Cratchit sitting in his "dismal little cell" of an office, a "tank" which is separated from his boss's warmer room. Cratchit desperately tries to warm himself by the flame of a single candle, as the boss of the counting-house refuses to provide more coal for the fire. The boss begrudgingly allows Cratchit the day off tomorrow, Christmas Day, where he will spend the day with his beloved family.

Amongst that family of six children are his two eldest daughters, Martha Cratchit and Belinda Cratchit. Martha, the oldest of the six children, works as an apprentice at a milliner's shop, making and selling hats. On Christmas Day when she arrives home late, the other children urge her to hide from the father. Then, when Bob Cratchit does come home, the children tell him giggily that Martha won't be coming. Disappointed, Bob exclaims, "Not coming upon Christmas Day!?" Not being able to stand hearing or seeing him so saddened, Martha promptly jumps out from hiding and runs into his arms.

Belinda Cratchit is the second-oldest daughter in the Cratchit family of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol." She helps her mother set the table for that Christmas dinner: "...laid the cloth, assisted by Belinda Cratchit, second of her daughters, also brave in ribbons." Fun fact: She was portrayed by actress June Lockhart of "Lost in Space" TV fame, back in 1938 for that year's film adaptation of "A Christmas Carol."

Jacob Marley is one of the most literally and figuratively haunting and figures in Charles Dickens's "A Christmas Carol." He had been a business partner in the counting-house of the story, and he died on Christmas Eve, exactly seven years before the novel begins. He appears as a ghost, transparent-looking, wearing the clothes he was buried in, and bound by a heavy chain and cash-boxes that he "forged in life." He issues the warning to the story protagonist, thus putting in motion the potential for redemption.

The third flashback shown by a ghost is the Christmas party thrown by Fezziwig, the owner of the warehouse and counting-house. It's an extravagant and joyful party displaying Fezziwig's care for his employees' happiness, quite the opposite attitude that the workers receive many years later. Fezziwig is an example of true wealth and power lying in using one's ability to create happiness for others.

Dick Wilkins whom "a better friend a man never had" (a quote from dramatic performances, not the book) was a fellow apprentice working for Mr. Fezziwig. During the party, Dick is seen making merry, spreading cheer, and dancing (he is described as "a top-class dancer"). We are left to wonder whatever became of Dick Wilkins, when it is said, ""Bless me, yes. There he is. He was very much attached to me, was Dick. Poor Dick!"

Belle represents the lost love in the story, the former fiancée of our man being chaperoned by the three Ghosts. Belle was abandoned emotionally by her fiancée who, it seemed to her, chose the pursuit of wealth. "I release you" she tells him, "With a full heart, for the love of him you once were." She has observed that "Another idol has displaced me" and she identifies that new idol as material acquisition.

The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come is the last ghost to escort the protagonist through time and space and memory, and this time it is a silent ghost. Shrouded in a dark black hooded garment this tall phantom shows visions of a future defined by death, neglect, and the dismal consequences of an unrepentant life. Earlier visions by the ghosts played upon empathy and nostalgia, but this time, the Ghost conjures up fear and dread.

Caroline is a young woman, the wife of a man in debt. During the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come sequence, she arrives at a pawnshop to pay off her debt, while her husband, fearing imprisonment, pleads for more time. Initially, they fear their debt is due immediately, but instead they find that their creditor has died, and Caroline realizes they are freed from Ebenezer's bullying, and now they have proper time to arrange their finances, which brings them blessed relief.

Old Joe is the pawnbroker that Caroline and her husband have come to deal with and he is the one that gives them the news that their creditor has died, bringing shock and relief to them. Old Joe has bought some goods from Ebenezer's servants, and haggled with them over his underwear.

And these are the characters who do NOT appear in "A Christmas Carol":

Silas Barnaby is the very Scrooge-like landlord in the 1931 holiday classic "March of the Wooden Soldiers", starring Laurel and Hardy.

Mrs Dursley is Harry Potter's aunt, the older sister of Harry's mother, and she appears most prominently in "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone."

The Old Man Parker, as played marvelously by actor Darren McGavin in the 1983 film "A Christmas Story", is based on the radio show story told by Jean Shepard.

In the movie, "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation", Aunt Bethany is the charming, senile elderly relative of Chevy Chase's Clark Griswold. It was her final film role before her death in 1998.

In the 1947 film "Miracle on 34th Street", Granville Sawyer is the store psychologist for Macy's department store, whose skepticism stirs up trouble for Kris Kringle when he declares that Kris has "latent maniacal tendencies".

Is it a Christmas movie or not the debate rages, by one thing's for sure: Holly, played by Bonnie Bedelia, is the wife of Lieutenant Detective John McClane, played by Bruce Willis in the movie, "Die Hard".

Davy Cratchit? Did you mean Davy Crockett? In either case, he is not a character in Charles Dickens's "A Christmas Carol".