180 Years of A Christmas Carol
The original Christmas "horror" story -- why its legacy continues strong
Happy holidays to those who celebrate! To keep up good spirits, this week’s newsletter is a special Christmas edition commemorating 180 years of Charles Dickens’ classic A Christmas Carol.
A Christmas Carol was first published in 1843 and has since become a huge part of pop culture during Christmas time. You’ll probably hear at least one person refer to someone as a “Scrooge” or perhaps you know of one yourself even. Hell, maybe you jokingly call yourself that!
If you’re interested, please donate to Bright Holidays. They’re a local charity here in Jacksonville, FL that helps underprivileged students during the Christmas season. If you can’t afford to donate, bringing awareness to the organization is just as valuable.
The name has become synonymous with the lack of Christmas cheer or an extreme case of greed. Perhaps you refer to your boss as a “Scrooge” because they refuse to turn the heat on during winter rather than because they lack any Christmas joy—or maybe it’s both. They certainly exist in the world, after all.
I remember reading A Christmas Carol in high school for literature class, all in its classic 1800s language that I still sometimes have trouble with. It’s a tale warning of the dangers of selfish greed, digging into the true meaning of the holidays.
Of course, the story famously uses the three Christmas ghosts to achieve this… making A Christmas Carol a holiday ghost story. Thus, meaning I can sneakily make it into a newsletter topic!
What Goes Around, Comes Around (Christmas Edition!)
The general “horror” of the Christmas classic comes from the concept of both karma and the crippling debt of loneliness.
Scrooge’s entire character is built on his nasty personality, being a selfish and cranky old man. His greed leads his decisions rather than his heart, and his heart is most likely frozen from the lack of heat anyway, considering he refuses to waste his money on a fire. Most of us know this type of behavior only results in a sad and lonely life, even if you are financially successful. Scrooge, however, is seemingly unaware of such outcomes.
As the story goes, Scrooge is visited by three ghosts. Each ghost shows him the cause-and-effect relationship his life has had, including what his behavior has caused to those around him and what will come if he continues to be so despicable. Essentially, one could argue that it’s a story of karma.
Scrooge is greedy and barely pays Bob Cratchit. The Cratchit family lives in poverty and can’t afford to help their sick son, never mind afford a decent Christmas dinner. Scrooge will die a lonely old man. Bob Cratchit, however, will die with a family who loves him.
This, then, brings us into the main point of the horror: loneliness.
As we know, loneliness is one of the biggest topics in horror. Isolation, depression, social outcasts—it’s present in many horror tales, including films like The Thing (1982) and Buried (2010). A Christmas Carol is no different, especially in considering how Scrooge himself reacts to dying alone when the Ghost of Christmas Future presents to him such a grim fate.
Warning From an Old Friend
Technically, there’s four ghosts in the story. One of them being Mr. Jacoby Marley, Scrooge’s old business partner. Marley warns Scrooge of the three ghosts that will visit him, and explains that he must change his ways or he will end up like him.
“I wear the chain I forged in life,” replied the Ghost. “I made it link by link, and yard by yard; I girded it on of my own free will, and of my own free will I wore it. Is its pattern strange to you?”
Three Ghosts & A Greedy Old Man
Each ghost arguably represents a different fear in which Scrooge is forced to face during that fateful night.
The Ghost of Christmas Past (What You Cannot Change)
The first ghost to visit Scrooge is the Ghost of Christmas Past. As the name obviously suggests, this ghost forces Scrooge to relive his tragic past. As we learn more about him, the audience begins to understand why Scrooge is the way he is.
(Yes, I am using The Muppets as reference here, but can you look me in the eyes and tell me that puppet isn’t creepy af? Exactly.)
But Scrooge doesn’t like facing his past. In fact, he begs the ghost to stop showing him such awful memories. Why? Because he can’t do anything to change them.
It’s something that many folks suffer from: being stuck in the past, unable to forget the things you never said or did. Regretting the risks you didn’t take. Focusing on the bad memories that still haunt you.
For some, such as those who suffer from PTSD, the past is something they are forced to face day after day, and they are some of the bravest people out there because of that.
It’s scary, though. You never know when a bad or traumatic memory may decide to spring up in your head, and you never know how you may react. And you have to live with it. You can’t just go and change things.
It’s no wonder why Scrooge was so desperate to get on with it. He didn’t want to face the awful things he went through or the bad things he did. He didn’t want to accept that those things really happened. He was content in ignoring the memories, pretending they never really happened.
Sometimes, the scariest thing you can do is accepting that something did happen, and that you simply cannot do anything about it.
The Spirit dropped beneath it, so that the extinguisher covered its whole form; but though Scrooge pressed it down with all its force, he could not hide the light, which streamed from under it, in an unbroken flood upon the ground.
The Ghost of Christmas Present (What You Cannot Ignore)
Ghost number two is the Ghost of Christmas Present: a personification of the Christmas spirit, large and bright to lead Scrooge on his journey.
This time, the spirit shows him the beauty of the season: love and giving. Dinners are cooked for the poor and Bob Cratchit is spending time with his family.
The Cratchit family, though impoverished, enjoy each other’s company. They are happy to be with one another despite their financial struggles. Tiny Tim is even cheerful despite his hardships, and when Scrooge asks what’s wrong with the boy, the spirit explains that he is sick. In fact, he tells Scrooge that he will die unless things change.
Scrooge, then, panics in hearing such a thing. A boy die? Why need he die? The panic being from the understanding that he could change the outcome, knowing that his selfishness would be the reason of the boy’s death.
Something that he can change in the future, but not in the present. Scrooge must come to terms that he cannot ignore the needs of others anymore, and that if he continues, he will be one of the biggest villains he has ever known.
A fact that frightens him dearly, especially when Scrooge faces “Ignorance” and “Want"—the two children who crouch under the spirit’s robe. The children seem to be starving, and the spirit warns that Ignorance will soon grow into Doom if things don't change.
“They are Man’s . . . And they cling to me, appealing from their fathers. This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want. Beware them both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom, unless the writing be erased.”
Scrooge, of course, shows his ignorance many a time. From refusing to donate to the poor to being shocked that Cratchit is in poverty.
This spirit’s “fear” represents a few things. The fear of not having control is probably the biggest, but also the easiest (at least in Scrooge’s situation) to change. In having to face the horrors of his own ignorance and greed, Scrooge is forced to come to terms with the fact that he’s the “bad guy.”
The Ghost of Christmas Future (What You Cannot Know)
The last ghost is the iconic and ominous spirit of the future. A ghost that, in many iterations, is meant to resemble the reaper. The ghost is shrouded in darkness, mysterious and unknown—a personification of the uncertainty of what’s yet to come.
The phantom takes Scrooge to a grave, empty with nobody to bring flowers. The grave, of course, is Scrooge’s, and he realizes that nobody cares to mourn his death. This frightens him, causing him to beg the spirit for a second chance.
“Spirit!” he said, “this is a fearful place. In leaving it I shall not leave its lesson, trust me. Let us go!” Still the Ghost pointed with an unmoved finger to the head.
The ghost never says anything during this entire interaction. He is simply there, looming over Scrooge. He is, essentially, the creepiest ghost of them all. Not only because of his appearance, but because of what he represents.
The future can be terrifying. The unknown is more so. Much of horror is based on the unknown after all. The Blair Witch Project: the unknown of what’s in the forest. A Nightmare on Elm Street: the unknown of the dream world. And, more festively, Black Christmas: the unknown of who is killing.
For Scrooge, it’s a darker thought. People say you never truly die if people remember you. To die and be forgotten is a terrible thought, and Scrooge knows that if he doesn’t change, then his fate is sealed.
Merry Christmas, Everybody’s Having Fun
Christmas morning comes and Scrooge wakes up a changed man. He’s excited about Christmas, wishing everybody a happy holiday as he gives donations and smiles. Of course, he also makes sure that the Cratchits get a Christmas dinner before stopping by at his nephew’s house.
And, finally, he gives Bob Cratchit a raise.
The ghosts did their job.
Different Iterations
There’s… way too many versions of A Christmas Carol to count. So, here’s a quick list of some:
A Christmas Carol (1938)
A Christmas Carol (2009)
Scrooged (1988)
The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992)
Spirited (2022)
Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009)
And… many more!
A Jolly Conclusion
Well… that’s about it.
A Christmas Carol is now 180 years old. Its legacy is a strong one, with new versions of the story being made every year. The message of the tale, which highlights the meaning of the season and criticizes the nastiness that humans can portray, is a timeless one.
And as Tiny Tim said, “A Merry Christmas to us all; God bless us, everyone!”
Have a wonderful holiday!
Muppets Christmas Carol is watched every year 🥰🎄