The Theme of Redemption In Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol"

A timeless theme is a theme for which will never go out of date, but will always stay applicable to the human condition. Audiences understand timeless themes no matter how old or modern the text, because timeless themes are true and connect to the very essence of what makes us human. Redeeming yourself doesn’t require a certain age. The theme redemption is explored in the play, “A Christmas Carol”, by Charles Dickens, in the film “A Diva’s Christmas Carol”, and also shown today.

In the play, “A Christmas Carol”, the theme of redemption is shown because the character of Scrooge transforms from a vicious, brutal character into a cordial and welcoming man. One way Scrooge redeemed himself from being a cruel to a bountiful person is by learning and knowing how important family and friends are. To begin with, in the play Scrooge threatens to fire Bob Cratchit if he is late to work on the day after Christmas. After being visited by the ghost of past reminds Scrooge remembers how kind his first boss was, the next morning Scrooge offers Bob a raise, instead. Seeing how kindness motivated himself when he was younger, Scrooge understands that the way he was treating Bob was affecting him negatively. After being visited by the 3 spirit, Scrooge chooses to show kindness and affection to Bob instead. Furthermore, in the play, “A Christmas Carol” Scrooge tells his nephew, Fred, that he will not be joining him for Christmas. After being visited by all 3 spirits of Christmas and seeing how he has forgotten about family, Scrooge awakes a changed man, sending a large goose to Fred’s house as a Christmas present and attending the family Christmas dinner. Scrooge’s changed attitude shows that he has learned from his mistakes and does not want to separate from his family anymore. Lastly, in the play, “A Christmas Carol” Scrooge appeared to be treating his employee, Bob very poorly by making him work long hours without breaks and for minimal wages. When Scrooge is visited by the ghost of Jacob Marley, he is shocked by the chains his deceased friend had been condemned to drag around interminably. Those chains represented the emotional burden that he was forced to wear in punishment on how he was treating people. Jacob Marley warned Scrooge that if he doesn’t change the ways that he was treating people, he would end up like Jacob Marley. The terrified Scrooge ends up being generous and friendly to Bob and the people in his community. Scrooge’s transformed attitude indicates that he has learned from his past mistakes.

In the film, “A Diva’s Christmas Carol”, the theme of redemption is explored throughout many ways. For example the character of Ebony transforms from a greedy and ignorant woman to a caring and loving person. One way Ebony redeems herself from being a selfish woman is by knowing how much family meant to her crew. To start off, at the beginning of the film Ebony didn’t allow her crew to go home on Christmas because they had a concert on that day. This made her crew feel like Ebony was a selfish and uncaring person. When being visited by the spirit of Christmas present, Ebony realizes that Bob’s son was close to dying. This made her feel very regretful for the way that she has been treating Bob and her crew. Seeing how wealth made her a bad and selfish person Ebony decided to purchase many tickets for her crew to make up for what she has done. After thinking of how to payback Bob for all the hard work that he has done, Ebony decided that she should bring his family over to New York. In conclusion, in the film, Ebony was money hungry until she was visited by the spirit of christmas present. One way Ebony redeems herself is by knowing how important it is to give back to people on a significant holiday like Christmas. For example, at the beginning of the film Ebony didn’t really care about anybody but herself. All she wanted was money, success and fame. After being visited by the spirit of Christmas future, Ebony realizes that if she doesn’t change the way she was acting and treating people she would end up dead like her friend Marley. To avoid ending up like her friend Marley, Ebony decided to send thousands of copies of her new cd to Children’s Hospital. She also decided to visit every sick child that is in the city that she has her concerts in. Ebony’s altered behaviour indicates that she has changed and became a better person.