A Christmas Carol And Oliver Twist English Literature Essay

This work is about two novels written by Charles Dickens. These stories are both classics and interesting novels that have been enjoyed for over 100 years. A Christmas Carol is a cold, frightening, and spiritual novel that takes you on an adventure from bad to good and has a very touching ending that warms the soul. “Charles Dickens’ novella, A Christmas Carol, is one of the most heartwarming Christmas stories of all time” (Melissa Howard), whereas Oliver Twist is a dark book that has a lot of ups and downs and shows financial problems with life. These novels are both loved and read around the world, and although quite similar they are different in many ways.

A Christmas Carol is about a mean-spirited, miserable old man named Ebenezer Scrooge, who sits in his counting room on a frigid Christmas Eve. His clerk, Bob Cratchit, freezes in the other room because Scrooge is too cheap to spend money on heating coals for a fire. Fred, Scrooge’s nephew, pays his uncle a visit and invites him to his annual Christmas party. Two plump gentlemen drop by and ask Scrooge for a donation to their charity. Scrooge responds to the men and his nephew by spitting out an angry “Bah! Humbug!”. When Scrooge returns home that night he is visited by three ghosts, the ghost of his deceased partner Jacob Marley, the ghost of Christmas past, and the ghost of Christmas present. They all show him that his dark, bitter and wicked ways will leave him lonely as well as teaching him the meaning of Christmas. When Scrooge awakens he is “Overwhelmed with joy by the chance to redeem himself and grateful that he has been returned to Christmas Day, Scrooge rushes out onto the street hoping to share his newfound Christmas spirit. He sends a giant Christmas turkey to the Cratchit house and attends Fred’s party, to the stifled surprise of the other guests. As the years go by, he holds true to his promise and honors Christmas with all his heart: he treats Tiny Tim as if he were his own child, provides lavish gifts for the poor, and treats his fellow human beings with kindness, generosity, and warmth”. (sparknotes) this is one of the best Christmas stories ever told if not the best.

Oliver Twist is a story of a child who spent the first nine years of his life in a grungy, awful foster home for young orphans. Oliver is then transferred to a workhouse for adults where he was bullied by the others. Oliver was forced to ask Mr. Humble the parish breadle for more gruel which resulted in him being chased down and escaped to be an apprentice to a local undertaker. Over the rest of the story, Oliver ends up being a pickpocket and gets into burglary. In all cases, he is a good boy and he gets scared and runs away. He also has a complex family issue involving the truth about his parents and aunt. “Mr. Brownlow, with whom the Maylies have reunited Oliver, confronts Monks and wrings the truth about Oliver’s parentage from him. It is revealed that Monks is Oliver’s half brother. Their father, Mr. Leeford, was unhappily married to a wealthy woman and had an affair with Oliver’s mother, Agnes Fleming. Monks has been pursuing Oliver all along in the hopes of ensuring that his half-brother is deprived of his share of the family inheritance. Mr. Brownlow forces Monks to sign over Oliver’s share to Oliver. Moreover, it is discovered that Rose is Agne’s younger sister, hence Oliver’s aunt. Fagin is hung for his crimes. Finally, Mr. Brownlow adopts Oliver, and they and the Maylies retire to a blissful existence in the countryside” (sparknotes) this story goes from depressing bad to good.

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A Christmas Carol and Oliver Twist both have a lot of similarities to each other. Both novels start out as dark, depressing and cold. For example, in Oliver Twist it was said “Men who look on nature, and their fellow-men, and cry that all is dark and gloomy, are in the right; but the somber colors are reflections from their own jaundiced eyes and hearts. The real hues are delicate, and need a clearer vision.” (pg. 53)

Both books end with a satisfying outcome. Scrooge in the Christmas Carol is a cold, grumpy old man with a nasty attitude toward good spirit and Christmas. “If I could work my will, said Scrooge indignantly, every idiot who goes about with ‘Merry Christmas’ on his lips should be boiled with his own pudding, and buried with a stake of holly through his heart. He should!” (stave one) A character who resembles Scrooge from Oliver Twist, is Mr. Bumble. He has no emotion and no care of feelings. “tears were not the rings to find their way to Mr. Bumble’s soul; his heart was waterproof.” (pg. 92) You can see why both novels are classics throughout the world, because the author used a lot of similar styles and moods throughout both books as you can tell.

The two novels, A Christmas Carol and Oliver Twist are very similar in their moods and the style that author Charles Dickens wrote them. In A Christmas Carol, a story of grumpy old scrooge who finds the meaning and happiness in Christmas, and Oliver Twist a poor orphan who goes through many battles and struggles in life but ends up succeeding thanks to sticking with everything and with God. Both books start out as ugly, poor, and heartless, and end with happiness and good fortune.