Stave 2

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Stave 2: The Ghost of Christmas Past

The strangely child-like Ghost of Christmas past enters Scrooge's bedroom at 1am, as predicted by Marley's ghost.

Supernatural sign

Scrooge wakes in the night.
He listens to the clock striking and is astonished that it is striking midnight – he remembers that it was after 2am when he went to bed, and so he is confused about the time.
Dickens uses the confusion in time here to show that something unusual and supernatural is about to happen.

Child-like ghost

Just after the clock strikes 1am, light flashes into the room and the curtains on his bed are drawn aside and Scrooge comes face-to-face with the first ghost.
The first ghost looks strangely child-like – it has white hair and gives off the impression of being wise, but it has unwrinkled, child-like skin.
A bright, white light shines out of the top of the ghost’s head.

The cap metaphor

The ghost informs Scrooge that he is the Ghost of Christmas Past.
Suddenly terrified, Scrooge asks the ghost to put his cap on to cover the bright light coming from its head: he “begged him to be covered”.
The ghost responds that Scrooge has helped to create this cap that covers his light.
Scrooge is metaphorically covering the light in his own life – he lives a dark, dull, lonely life.

The significance of "fall"

The ghost leads Scrooge from his bed towards the window.
Scrooge realises what the ghost wants him to do and exclaims “I am a mortal and liable to fall”.
Dickens may have used this line to show that mortal people make mistakes and “fall”, but that they (like Scrooge) can learn from their failures and to improve their lives.
The ghost puts his hand on Scrooge’s heart and says he will not fall because the ghost will help him – again, the ghost is helping Scrooge to improve his life, therefore stopping his “fall” from goodness.

Stave 2: Scrooge's Schoolhouse

The ghost transports himself and Scrooge to somewhere in his past: the place where he grew up. Scrooge remembers every place and person they pass. He recalls memories, sounds, smells, etc.

Lonely in the schoolhouse

The ghost tells Scrooge that, although it is Christmas, there is one person left in the schoolhouse: “a solitary child, neglected by his friends”.
The ghost leads Scrooge into the schoolhouse, where he sees his young self in a “melancholy room”, reading alone in front of a “feeble fire”.
Adult Scrooge watches his young self and begins to cry.
It's interesting that the young, neglected Scrooge grows up to be a lonely, melancholy older man – the idea of loneliness and neglect seem to travel throughout his life.

Seeing Fan

Scrooge’s sister (Fan) comes into the schoolhouse and tells young Scrooge that she has come to take him home. Fan calls Ebenezer “dear, dear brother”, indicating that they had a close relationship.
She tells her brother that their father is now much nicer – she wasn’t afraid to ask him if Ebenezer could come home! There is a suggestion of a distant parental relationship, where young Scrooge experienced some neglect from his father.

Memories of Fan

Older Scrooge thinks about his younger sister – he recalls that she died, but did have a child: his nephew, Fred.

Stave 2: Fezziwig's and Belle

As well as Scrooge's old schoolhouse, the Ghost of Christmas Past takes Scrooge to visit where he used to work and a past lover.

Fezziwig's

The scene changes as the ghost leads Scrooge to another place from his past: to Fezziwig’s, where Scrooge was an apprentice when he was young.
Dickens shows us a happy young Ebenezer who seems to have enjoyed Christmas.
We see Fezziwig himself throwing a huge Christmas party, seeming to spare no expense (with luxurious foods and a lot of music and dancing) – he only seems to care about people enjoying themselves.

Seeing Belle

Scrooge and the ghost move through time once more, coming to a scene where young Ebenezer is talking with Belle.
Belle is breaking her engagement to Ebenezer.
Belle tells him “another Idol has displaced me” – she believes that Ebenezer’s greed and desire to obtain more and more money has finally taken over him. She thinks he loves wealth more than he loves her.

Belle's new life

The older Scrooge is distressed at the memory of Belle ending their relationship – he tells the ghost: “Show me no more!” and tells it to take him home.
The ghost takes him to one more place: Belle’s home – here, Belle is a middle-aged woman and is married.
Scrooge watches Belle and her husband – they talk about young Ebenezer and Belle’s broken engagement.
Belle’s husband says that Scrooge is “quite alone in the world”.

Distressed Scrooge returns home

Scrooge begs the ghost to take him home: “haunt me no longer!”
He cannot bear to live through any more memories, or to relive the consequences of his actions (losing Belle).
Scrooge grabs the ghost’s hat and pulls it down over his head, trying to extinguish the light which glows from its head – he tries and tries but cannot put out the light.
Suddenly, Scrooge is back in his bedroom.
Scrooge feels exhausted – he climbs into bed and goes back to sleep.

1Plot Summary

1.1Plot Summary

1.1.1Outline

1.1.2Introducing Scrooge & Marley

1.1.3Stave 1

1.1.4Stave 2

1.1.5Stave 3

1.1.6End of Topic Test - Staves 1-3

1.1.7Stave 4

1.1.8Stave 5

1.1.9End of Topic Test - Staves 4-5

2Key Characters & Quotes

2.1Ebenezer Scrooge

2.1.1Outline & Stave 1

2.1.2Stave 2

2.1.3Stave 3

2.1.4Stave 4

2.1.5Stave 5 & Key Quotes

2.1.6End of Topic Test - Ebeneezer Scrooge

2.2Other Characters

2.2.1Bob Cratchit

2.2.2Tiny Tim

2.2.3Fred

2.2.4The Ghosts Pt 1

2.2.5The Ghosts Pt 2

2.2.6End of Topic Test - Other Characters

2.3Grade 9 - Key Characters

2.3.1Grade 9 - Key Characters

2.3.2Grade 9 - Extract Analysis

3Key Ideas

3.1Key Ideas

3.1.1Inequality, Ignorance & Want

3.1.2Duality, Family & Love

3.1.3Christianity & Redemption

3.1.4End of Topic Test - Key Ideas

3.1.5Grade 9 - Key Themes

4Context

4.1Context

4.1.1Dickens & Victorian England

4.1.2Poverty & Victorian Christmas

4.1.3Exam-Style Questions - Poverty

4.1.4Gothic Fiction

4.1.5Gothic Fiction & Victorian England

4.1.6End of Topic Test - Context

5Authorial Method

5.1Structure & Techniques

5.1.1Structure & Time

5.1.2Time Frame & Pace

5.1.3Narrative Voice & Tone

5.1.4Settings, Similes & Metaphors

5.1.5End of Topic Test - Authorial Method

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