Celebrate the Christmas Season with the most popular of Christmas stories ever- “A Christmas Carol,” based on one of the most popular pieces of fiction ever written.  From its publication in 1843, it has remained a mainstay of Christmas.  Some historians say that it was Dickens who, along with Prince Albert’s introduction of the Christmas tree to England about the same time,  fashioned the Christmas celebration that has become the norm for society– the gifting, the festive gathering and merrymaking.

The themes of “Christmas Carol” run deep as a result of Dickens’ involvement with charities and his special concern for homeless children. He was concerned that the upper and middle classes had no concern for those less fortunate, and Scrooge becomes his vehicle for showing this feeling.  Of course, during the course of the story with the intervention of Marley and the three ghosts of Christmas, the story gives plenty of opportunity for theatrical flair to tell the story of the social salvation of Scrooge from a bitter old man to one who realizes the joys of living and giving.  One line that sticks in memory is Scrooge’s resolve “I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year.”

Dickens seems to be reminding us of the importance in taking notice of the lives of those around us.  As the Ghost tells him:
“It is required of every man that the spirit within him should walk abroad among his fellow-men, and travel far and wide; and, if that spirit goes not forth in life, it is condemned to do so after death.”