A Christmas Carol By Charles Dickens SCOPE Magazine

A Christmas Carol By Charles Dickens SCOPE Magazine Version

VOCABULARY preposterous (prih-POS-ter-uhs) adjective; contrary to nature, reason, or common sense; absurd example: Here in upstate Michigan, the idea of an 80 degree Christmas Day is preposterous.

hobble (HOB-uhl) verb; to walk in an awkward way; to limp example: After her ankle surgery, Amanda thought it best to use a wheelchair rather than hobble from class to class on crutches.

miserly (MY-zer-lee) adjective; stingy; inclined toward hoarding money example: The villagers loathed their miserly king, who refused to share even the slightest bit of his wealth during the famine.

dilapidated (dih-LAP-ih-day-tid) adjective; reduced to or fallen into partial ruin or decay, as from age, wear, or neglect example: Aunt Terry refused to walk across the dilapidated wooden bridge after witnessing it shudder and shake in the wind.

squalid (SKWOL-id) adjective; filthy and gloomy, usually because of neglect or poverty example: “I don’t know how you can live in these squalid conditions, ” said Emma’s mom. “You must clean up your room this weekend. It’s becoming a matter of safety!”

evoke (ih-VOHK) verb; to elicit, produce, or draw forth example: Our pleas failed to evoke pity from our teacher, who went ahead and assigned a mountain of homework over winter break.

social cause (SOH-shul kawz) noun; a principle, an aim, or a movement relating to society that people support, defend, raise money for, etc. example: The charity event successfully raised thousands of dollars for various social causes.

A Christmas Carol: Background In Victorian England, poor people usually did not get much help. Even young children, sick people, and the elderly went without assistance from the government or charities.

A Christmas Carol: Background If you were a poor, out-of-work Londoner during this time, these were your options: • beg on the street • go to a workhouse • be thrown into prison

A Christmas Carol: Background As a young man, Charles Dickens witnessed a decline in the traditional celebration of Christmas in England. Because of the Industrial Revolution, many employers wouldn’t even give their employees Christmas Day off.

A Christmas Carol: Background A Christmas Carol, along with several other Christmas books by Dickens, helped revive the holiday customs. Some people even started calling Dickens “The Man Who Discovered Christmas. ”

A Christmas Carol: Background Scrooge’s story brought about other changes too. For example, because of the book, • a home for disabled children was started • a factory owner began closing his factory every Christmas and giving turkeys to of all his employees

A Christmas Carol: Background Charles Dickens had experienced poverty as a child, and he was very concerned about the poor people of England. He raised money to help people in need by reading A Christmas Carol at charity events.

Quick Write What does it mean to live a fulfilling life? What is your definition of “success”? What will it look like in your life when you are successful?