Charles Dickens’ A
Christmas Carol:
December 19, 1843
England
Last but not least, I would bring along with me one of the
greatest artifacts of time, A Christmas
Carol written by Charles Dickens. Charles Dickens was a “Romantic” writer
and his works are widely recognized even still today. Romantic writers were
motivated by their hope to “improve the conditions that faced the lower classes
in industrialized Europe” through their cleverly written novels and other
works. Charles Dickens was one of those writers and worked hard to
publicize the the economical and social problems of the poor people. He “attacked
child orphanage”, “the evils of industrialization”, and “the single-minded
pursuit of money and position.” (S,D,H pg. 513) These are all problems that carry over
in our day and time, and I appreciate the sensitivity of men like Charles
Dickens who dedicated hours of writing to try and address these very real
problems. One of the problems that I would hope to really address when building
my new culture, is that of the “single minded pursuit of money and position.”
For that reason, I decided to bring along the famous tale of the infamous
Ebenezer Scrooge depicted in Charles Dickens A Christmas Carol. This book tells the tale of an overly obsessive
man (Scrooge) who’s only preoccupation in life is money and power. After a
terrifying evening in which 3 ghosts – the ghost of the past, present and
future – appeared to him and helped him understand that there is a lot more to
life than money, which truly doesn’t bring real and lasting happiness. This
tale is told year after year around the Christmas season and reminds us all of
what is truly important in this life. This fits perfectly with my definition of
learning because through the observation and meditation on Scrooge’s life, he
and we all can learn where we should be putting forth most our efforts and to
what things we should dedicate our time. He learns that building relationships
and finding joy in serving and giving is where true happiness lies and I would
hope that the individuals of my culture could recognize that as they read this
priceless artifact of Charles Dickens.