Ghostly and Supernatural Events Cause Tension in the Life of Scrooge.

The next display of Scrooge comes when two charity workers come to Scrooge's workplace and ask for a charity donation. Scrooge replies with comments such as, 'Are there no prisons nor union workhouses?' and, 'The treadmill and the Poor Law are in full vigour then!' When the charity workers explain to Scrooge that they are, but they wish they were not, and that many people can not go there, and many would rather die', which is why they are seeking charity donations, Scrooge replies with, 'If they would rather die, they had better do it and decrease the surplus population.' This shows the arrogance and lack of social responsibility Scrooge has yet again. He then dismisses the charity workers with no charity donation again showing his greed and lack of compassion. 'Scrooge resumed his labours with an improved opinion of himself', showing that Scrooge thinks that he did well not to make a charity donation and thinks he did the right thing. The two charity workers are described as 'portly', showing that they have a natural appetite and love life, again contrasting with Scrooge's icy appearance. Charles Dickens describes the scene and setting of the novel very well in the first chapter, this helps to show the reader the conditions people live in and also it is a comparison to Scrooge. 'It was cold, bleak, biting weather, foggy withal, and he could hear the people in the court outside go wheezing up and down, beating their hands upon their breasts, and stamping their feet upon the pavement-stones to warm them.' This shows how cold and unpleasant the weather was, which actually reflects Scrooge's personality and enhances the introduction of other key themes.

Scrooge Hears The Sounds Of Chains Over Casks in Cellar of Wine Merchants

We then learn that the fog was so dense that the people, 'were mere phantoms', this introduces the ghosts and spirits in the rest of the novel. The description of Scrooge's home and lifestyle is very shocking for the reader. The first thing which is said about his home is described in an extended metaphor, 'They were a gloomy suite of rooms in a lowering pile of building up a yard, where it had so little business to be, that one could scarcely help fancying it must have run there when it was a young house, playing at hide-and-seek, and have forgotten the way out again.' This is a very effective description as it makes the reader think and see what is being said, it also tells us how dark and eerie Scrooge's house was; it also reinforces what an isolated and lost figure Scrooge has become. We also find out about Scrooge's lifestyle as he only lit one candle and only ate 'gruel'. This is shocking as Scrooge is a very wealthy man and the reader expects him to be enjoying his money not letting it sit in a bank and not let it be spent. This also emphasises the futility of Scrooge's life; his money benefits no-one. The ghostly and supernatural events cause tension leading up to and during the appearance of Marley's ghost. Things such as the appearance of Marley's face on his door knocker, the sound of him shutting his door resounding through the house like thunder, and the sighting of 'a locomotive hearse going on before him in the gloom', all introduce and build up the appearance of Marley's ghost. Then the bells start to ring and he hears the sound of, 'dragging a heavy chain over the casks in the wine merchants cellar'. This also creates tension through vivid descriptions and the things Marley says. It says Marley is chained up with one made, 'of cash box keys, padlocks, ledgers, deeds, and heavy purses wrought in steel', this is symbolic and is a sign of material wealth. Tension is built upon during this discussion. We hear of Scrooge's doomed afterlife unless he changes his ways and Marley warns him of the three Spirits who will visit Scrooge that night. This also creates a feeling of expectancy for the audience.

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