A Christmas Carol Study Guide.indd - Goodman Theatre

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P rose fit for a Ghost Exploring Dickens’ writing The respective ghosts of Jacob Marley and Christmas Past. Courtesy of Goodman Theatre. “It is required of every man…that the spirit within him should walk abroad among his fellowmen, and travel far and wide; and if that spirit goes not forth in life, it is condemned to do so after death. It is doomed to wander through the world...and witness what it cannot share, but might have shared on earth, and turned to happiness. […] I wear the chain I forged in life. I made it link by link, and yard by yard; I girded it on of my own free will, and of my own free will I wore it. Is its pattern strange to you? […] Or would you know the weight of the chain you bear yourself? It was full as heavy and as long as this, seven Christmas Eves ago. And you have laboured on it, since.” - Ghost of Jacob Marley, A Christmas Carol What sort of mood does the text above evoke? Is it happy? Sad? Angry? What about the text makes you feel that way about it? Are there specific word choices or phrases that Dickens uses to build that mood? Dickens writes that “the spirit within [a man] should walk abroad his fellowmen.” What does this mean? Are there other parts of the text above that give you clues? Try reading the speech out loud. Does it read differently out loud than it does silently? Why do you think that is? What do you notice about the sounds of the words, rhythm and repetition? Why might a writer make specific choices for text and rhythm? Can you think of another author or song writer that uses word choices and/or rhythms that directly affect the story s/he is telling? How does s/he do this? 12 12
Vocabulary It does a conversation good “The only proper intoxication is conversation.” -Oscar Wilde Think About It: Word Imaging Read some of the vocabulary words aloud. Do their sounds influence what you think their definitions might be? Why? Choose one word and draw how it sounds on a piece of paper. What images do you think of when you hear the word? What emotions? Share your “word imaging” with your classmates, then look up the actual definition to see if your picture fits. 13
Page 1 and 2: Goodman Theatre Student Subscriptio
Page 3 and 4: Table of Contents Welcome to the St
Page 5 and 6: Exploring the Production
Page 7 and 8: After 31 years of A Christmas Carol
Page 9 and 10: Exploring the Text
Page 11: Activity Novel Match-Up Dickens pub
Page 15 and 16: G host Stories Who you gonna call?
Page 17 and 18: Exploring the Context
Page 19 and 20: D A divided city ickens’ London L
Page 21 and 22: Activity Our Neighborhoods Most of
Page 23 and 24: What’s a Humbug?! Although the sp
Page 25 and 26: Activity Scrooge’s Campaign for M
Page 27 and 28: Exploring the Social Issues
Page 29 and 30: There are still thousands of househ
Page 31 and 32: Poverty in Chicago A city of homele
Page 33 and 34: Activity Christmas Around the World
Page 35 and 36: A Spirit of Generosity Hope for a r
Page 37 and 38: C ritical Thinking Other things to
Page 39 and 40: A One-Man Carol A captain’s voyag
Page 41 and 42: Alternate Traditions Langston Hughe
Page 43: Writing Your Response Letter After

A Christmas Carol Study Guide.indd - Goodman Theatre

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