Is there any better guest for a New Year than Charles Dickens and his "Christmas Carol"?

Our first Book Corner gathering of the year, right after the holidays, was warm and inspiring. We shared thoughts, learned from one another, and enjoyed a great discussion about Charles Dickens and “A Christmas Carol”. 

Our Book Corner gathering began with Marina giving an introduction about the author, Charles Dickens, who is considered one of the giants of English literature, along with Shakespeare, Jane Austen and many others. He was born in 1812 in England to a middle-class family. At the age of twelve, his life changed when his father went bankrupt. Dickens had to leave school and work in a shoe polish factory to help his family, an experience that marked him deeply and shaped much of his writing.

After his father was released from prison, Dickens went back to school but kept working. He later became a clerk in a law office. From that point, he developed a strong interest in social issues such as poverty, inequality, harsh working conditions, and the way employers mistreated workers. His first novel, “The Pickwick Papers”, was a major success and made him famous.

“A Christmas Carol” was published in 1843. Through this short and accessible book, Dickens reached readers from all backgrounds: the educated, the wealthy, and ordinary people. Christmas was growing in popularity during the Victorian era, and Dickens, who loved the season, used it as a simple and warm setting to defend the values he believed in, such as supporting the poor, fighting inequality, exposing abuse in workplaces, and denouncing child labor.

The book tells the story of Scrooge, a cold and distant businessman whose partner, Marley, died seven years earlier on Christmas Eve. The events take place between the afternoon of December 24 and the morning of December 25. Scrooge hates Christmas, works late, refuses any form of celebration, and even calls Christmas “humbug”. His clerk, Bob Cratchit, only manages to take Christmas Day after much hesitation.

That night, when Scrooge returns home, he sees the ghost of Marley and it warns him that if he continues living without kindness, he will face the same miserable fate. He announces that three spirits will visit him, each one with a message.

The Ghost of Christmas Past takes Scrooge back to moments from his childhood and youth. Scrooge sees himself as a lonely boy during the holidays and later as a young man full of hope, before losing his way because of his obsession with money.
The Ghost of Christmas Present shows families celebrating with joy even if they have little. Scrooge witnesses the Cratchit family’s simple but warm Christmas and meets Tiny Tim, whose health is fragile.
The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come shows a future where Scrooge dies alone. No one cares about him, and his grave is abandoned. Shocked and filled with regret, he asks for another chance.

On Christmas morning, he wakes up a changed man. He is grateful, full of goodwill, and ready to make up for his mistakes. He goes on to help the Cratchit family and becomes like a second father to Tiny Tim.

After the summary, we opened the discussion. We began by asking why Dickens chose to show Scrooge’s past first. Wasn’t the present and the future enough? We concluded that true change starts with understanding oneself. Scrooge had to face his past, his fears, and the events that shaped him before he could see the present clearly or accept the future.

We then talked about the themes Dickens defended: poverty, shown through Tiny Tim and his family; the unfair treatment of employees like Bob; and the blind love of money that destroys compassion. Marina shared her opinion that morals without humanity become heavy and hard to carry, even if they seem correct. Tania agreed but added that employers must guide their workers with clarity and respect, not control or use them.

Benoît highlighted that Scrooge changed because he was afraid of ending up alone, unloved, and forgotten. He also realized that he could bring good into the lives of the people around him. This fear, mixed with a desire to be useful, pushed him to change.
Tania later commented on the title, saying that the best Christmas carols are not the ones sung or performed, but the transformations Christmas brings to people. In that sense, Scrooge’s new life is a Christmas carol.

Marina, the coordinator of Book Corner summarised the whole meeting:  “I felt very happy during this meeting because the discussion helped me appreciate the book even more. This is exactly what the Book Corner aims for. It is not about gathering a large number of people, but about encouraging as many as we can to read and enjoy books.”