A Christmas Carol
- An Analysis of the Imagery of Charles Dickens -

Introduction

 

Charles Dickens, the Social Evolutionist 

 

Charles Dickens (1812 to 1870) believed that creative writing was key to creating a more compassionate society. Although he was born into relative affluence,  at only twelve years old his father’s gambling debts proved disastrous.  As the rest of his family went to a debtor’s prison, young Charles toiled ten hour days in a vermin infested factory. Thus, he evermore felt the ‘social blade’ of ‘financial morality’ with a keen sharpness; his lifelong trauma-scar became both road map and mission. Upon gaining his freedom, he set out to humanize the down trodden and harangue the miserly, entitled and condescending rich. 

 

In his masterpiece, A Christmas Carol (1843) Dickens created the perfect book to encourage a sense of Christian charity. The future fate of tiny Tim pulls at the social heart strings. Scrooge’s reacquaintance with his youthful self, acts as a kind of ‘soul resuscitation’ for the elderly protagonist. Old Marley, his former business partner, speaks of a hellish afterlife for those committed to avarice. One by one, the ‘spirits of Christmas; set his protagonist on a powerfully redemptive pathway - Dickens thus  role-modelling both remorse and heartfelt generosity to each reader.

 

Dickens was deliberate with his literary craft, viewing it as a way to positively influence current and future generations. In this book, we will look at his range of literary devices: imagery, word choices, primal instincts, symbolism, personification, repetition and alliteration. As with all classic authors, he had his own unique pattern - his “author fingerprint.” As ever, it is a privilege to learn from one of the all time great masters of English Literature!

 

 

 Imagery

 

Imagery is the use of our five senses, plus our emotions,  to create full-sensory images in the reader’s imagination. We use the senses of sight, hearing, smell, touch and (sometimes) taste. Emotions may arrive as part of personification and embedded in symbolism; yet in this part of our analysis we will keep it fairly simple; later on there will be quotes especially for those aspects. 

 

Charles Dickens was an absolute master of imagery and so you will see it throughout his works. Then, once your attention is drawn to it your learning will be ‘toggled to automatic! What was once invisible will become a tap dance of technique on every page… Whether you want it to or not! How rude! Bwahahaha! 

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Notes on imagery:

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1. Changes in temperature are part of our sense of touch. Words such as ‘biting’ invoke the same tactile sense.

 

2. The weather can be both the senses of sight and touch, depending on the scene and what the character is experiencing.

 

3. Any object will invoke a sense of sight, and as such it is the most common one used in writing. 

 

4. Many physical actions in these quotes (such as stamping feet to keep warm) would generate a sound and thus invoke the sense of hearing.

 

5. Aspects such as the “brown air’ indirectly invoke the dirty smell of smog.
 

 

Quotes for imagery:

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These quotes are offered without much further explanation other than putting parts in bold that carry imagery. As you read them, notice what is there and ask yourself what senses or emotions are being appealed to. Gain a sense of the breadth of the imagery. What senses are used most often? Which ones are used less frequently?

 

Quote 1: [from stave one: Marley’s Ghost]

"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. The city clocks had only just gone three, but it was quite dark already—it had not been light all day—and candles were flaring in the windows of the neighbouring offices, like ruddy smears upon the palpable brown air. The fog came pouring in at every chink and keyhole, and was so dense without, that although the court was of the narrowest, the houses opposite were mere phantoms.”

 

Quote 2: [from stave two, the first of three]

“When Scrooge awoke, it was so dark, that looking out of bed, he could scarcely distinguish the transparent window from the opaque walls of his chamber. He was endeavouring to pierce the darkness with his ferret eyes, when the chimes of a neighbouring church struck the four quarters. So he listened for the hour.

 

To his great astonishment the heavy bell went on from six to seven, and from seven to eight, and regularly up to twelve; then stopped. Twelve! It was past two when he went to bed. The clock was wrong. An icicle must have got into the works. Twelve!”

 

Summary

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Dickens, as with all great authors, developed a style dense in imagery. In his day novels, stage plays and live music were the great forms of entertainment. Appealing to all the senses, enlivening the emotions, was essential. We often speak of imagery as a thing for readers, yet let us always recall that it is firstly and foremost the tool of the creative writer. Thus, as you write and redraft, ask yourself if you have a proper balance of imagery - the five senses and the emotions.

 

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Learning Activities

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1. Use the passages above to write your own imagery dense paragraph. Soak into your scene. Feel it. Let your emotions swirl! What can you see? What is hidden? Is it warm, cold, sunny, stormy? Where are you? What is the landscape like? Urban or rural? Coastal or mountainous? Are there aromas? What are they? What can you hear? What season is it? What is the time of day? What things are happening that could make a noise?

 

2. The Descriptionari.com pages on “Hope's Pen” and “The Old Stove-top Kettle” carry great examples of imagery. You will find them in The Mood Book, safely tucked away in The Quiet Archive. Read those pages and then write your own versions.

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