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Charles Dickens’ novel is a compelling and exciting tale about the ghosts of Christmas. The book is divided into five musical staves (instead of chapters) that illustrate how A Christmas Carol will forever be a part of the glorious holiday season.

Ebenezer Scrooge is an old, grumpy, businessman who absolutely hates Christmastime. In Stave One, Marley’s Ghost, two-men come to scrooge’s business after his nephew has left and ask for donations to help the poor. Scrooge refuses them and then walks home to find the ghost of Jacob Marley, his old business partner who has been dead for seven years, in his house. The ghost tells him that he should have given to the men and that he has one last chance to escape the same fate as Jacob Marley. The ghost also tells him that he will be haunted by three spirits. In Stave Two, The First of the Three Spirits, Scrooge is visited by the ghost of Christmas past. This child-like spirit shows Scrooge several Christmases in his own past, revealing that he was much happier as a young man than he is now. In Stave Three, The Second of the Three Spirits, Scrooge meets the ghost of Christmas present. The spirit shows Scrooge the Christmas dinner that Bob Cratchit (Scrooge’s assistant) and his family are having, and Bob is toasting to “Mr. Scrooge, the Founder of the Feast!” The spirit also tells Scrooge that Tiny Tim will die if the shadows Scrooge has cast go unaltered by the future. Also, Scrooge and the spirit go to see Scrooge’s nephew, Fred, who wishes Scrooge a merry Christmas and a happy New Year behind his back. In Stave Four, The Last of the Three Spirits, Scrooge encounters the ghost of Christmas yet to come. This ghost shows him what people say about him after he has died. Then, the ghost makes Scrooge face his death before changing his mind at the last second and transforming into a bedpost. Scrooge then awakens, delighted to find out that he has not missed Christmas and starts being generous to everyone. He buys the prize turkey for the Cratchit’s dinner, as well as raising Bob Cratchit’s salary.


First, Charles Dickens has a certain amount of bias in his writing because Christmastime was his favorite time of the year. This bias shows through Scrooge towards the end of the book when Scrooge starts acting generous and happy because of the holidays. Second, A Christmas Carol is a very unique book compared to other stories of Christmastime. Marley’s Ghost and the three Spirits bring a feeling creepiness into the book that separates it from other stories. Lastly, the book was successful because of Dickens’ ability to balance the mix of genres presented within this book. It is both a ghost story and a Christmas story, with a happy ending to sum it all up.

In conclusion, because of its enticing words, balance of genres, and ultimate uniqueness, A Christmas Carol is a wonderful tale of both horror and elation that will exist in the minds of humanity every holiday season for many decades to come.