Name:_____________________________________________Period:______ Date:_____________________
Study Questions – Day 1
“A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens
1. On page 1, the narrator says that “even Scrooge was not so upset by the loss of his partner (Marley)
that he still worked at his counting house on the very day of Jacob Marley’s funeral.” Explain what this
shows about Scrooge’s character:
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________.
2. In scene one Scrooge says Cratchit will be “asking to replenish (his) coal from my coal-box.” The
word replenish means:
a. steal
b. use
c. replace
d. return
3. Scrooge’s response to the charity women on pages 2-3 suggests that:
a. He was poor as a child himself.
c. He gives regularly to charities he believes in.
b. He thinks the charity women are very wise.
d. He thinks he is better than the poor
4. On page 4, Fred says that “There are many things which have done me good, but have not made me
profit.” What does he mean?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________.
5. Scrooge tells Fred on p. 4 that he’s “quite a powerful speaker” and “it’s a wonder (he doesn’t) go
into Parliament.” What word best describes Scrooge’s attitude here?
a. cruel
b. amused
c. impressed
d. sarcastic
6. What is ironic about Scrooge’s saying that his clerk, Bob Cratchit, only makes fifteen-shillings a
week with a wife and family to support, yet still talks about a merry Christmas?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________.
7. At the end of Act I, the narrator says that Scrooge “had made himself a sort of artificial winter.”
What does the narrator mean?
a. Scrooge was so mean he was always cold.
c. Scrooge had a cold heart.
b. Scrooge didn’t like summer.
d. Scrooge’s money was cold.
8. At the beginning of Act 2, Scene 1, Scrooge sees his door knocker turn from a lion’s head into a
human face. What literary technique is Dickens using here?
a. irony
c. flashback
b. imagery
d. foreshadowing
Name:_____________________________________________Period:______ Date:_____________________
Study Questions – Day 2
“A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens
1. On page 8, Marley asks Scrooge, “Why do you doubt your senses?” Scrooge’s reply about Marley’s
being “an undigested bit of beef, a blot of mustard, a crumb of cheese, a fragment of an underdone
potato” suggests that Scrooge:
a. has a delicate stomach
c. wants to believe Marley isn’t really there
b. is probably hungry
d. is trying to make Marley angry
2. What do the chains that Marley wears symbolize? Support your answer with details from the play:
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
3. Marley tells Scrooge that Scrooge’s chain was “as full as heavy and as long as this, seven Christmas
eves ago.” What is his reason for telling Scrooge about the chain?
a. He wants Scrooge to share his misery.
c. He wants to warn Scrooge to change his ways
b. He is jealous that Scrooge is still alive.
d. He wants revenge against Scrooge.
4. On page 9, Marley says that “Mankind was my business!” Explain what he means.
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________.
5. At the top of page 11, Scrooge tells the Ghost of Christmas Past that he is “mortal and cannot fly.”
The word mortal here means:
a. heavy
b. human
c. old
d. stingy
6. In the middle of page 12, Fan tells Scrooge that “home is like heaven!” What figure of speech
is she using?
a. simile
b. personification
c. metaphor
d. oxymoron
7. At the bottom of page 13, the young Scrooge says: “…if I ever own a business of my own, I shall
treat my apprentices with the same generosity, the same dignity, and the same grace (as Mr. Fezziwig
treats his employees).” What is the irony here?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
8. Why does Belle break off her engagement to Scrooge? Use details to support your answer:
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________.
Name:_____________________________________________Period:______ Date:_____________________
Study Questions – Day 3
“A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens
1. At the bottom of page 17, Fred says that Scrooge’s “offenses carry their own punishment.” What
exactly does he mean? Use details to support your answer.
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
2. In the Narrator’s speech on page 19, he/she says that the “streets were choked with a dingy mist.”
What figure of speech is this?
a. hyperbole
c. metaphor
b. onomatopoeia
d. personification
3. On page 21, Belinda Cratchit tells her father to “Come hear the pudding singing in the copper.”
What figure of speech is she using?
a. hyperbole
c. metaphor
b. onomatopoeia
d. personification
4. On page 22, Bob and Mrs. Cratchit have a disagreement about Mr. Scrooge. Describe each
character’s point of view about him.
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
5. At the bottom of page 22, the 2nd Spirit tells Scrooge that he sees, “…a vacant seat in the chimney
corner, and a crutch without an owner.” What literary technique is this?
a. suspense
b. foreshadowing
c. irony
d. flashback
6. The Ghost of Christmas Present shows Scrooge the two children “Ignorance and Want” beneath his
robe. Ignorance means being uneducated, and Want means need or poverty. Why do you think Present
does this?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________.
7. What is the most likely reason that the 3rd Spirit, the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, has
a hidden face?
a. to make the story suspenseful.
c. to use imagery to show that the future can’t be seen
b. to make the ghost more scary
d. to make Scrooge uncomfortable
Name:_____________________________________________Period:______ Date:_____________________
Study Questions – Day 4
“A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens
1. On page 27, Mrs. Cratchit says as she is knitting that the “color hurts her eyes.” Why
does she say this?
a. Her eyes are tired.
c. She can’t see in the candlelight
b. Her eyes are too weak to do needlework.
d. She doesn’t want to be caught crying.
2. At the bottom of page 28, Bob Cratchit says he is “very, very happy.” Considering that his
son has just died, why do you think he says this?
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
3. Theme is defined as “a truth about life revealed in a work of literature.” It is usually what the
author of a piece of literature wants his reader to learn. What is the main theme in A Christmas
Carol?
a. Wealth is very important
c. People can never really change
b. Money can’t buy love
d. Poor people need to help themselves.
4. Based on your answer to question number 3 above, write a paragraph explaining why you
chose your answer. Use details from the play to support your answer.
____________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________