History Literature / AChristmasCarol

!!TropeNamer for:
* DeadToBeginWith
* JacobMarleyApparel
* JacobMarleyWarning
* TheScrooge
* YetAnotherChristmasCarol

* TheGrinch: Scrooge is probably the TropeCodifier, though not the TropeNamer.

* JacobMarleyApparel: {{Trope Namer|s}}.
* JacobMarleyWarning: Trope Namer.

* TheScrooge: The {{Trope Namer|s}}, and possibly TropeCodifier.

* TheScrooge: The TropeNamer, and possibly TropeCodifier.
* TheSocialDarwinist: Scrooge is your typical Malthusian aristocrat of the time. Suffice to say that another of Dickens's fictional followers of Malthus, Filer in TheChimes, says the poor "have no earthly right or business to be born. And ''that'' we know they haven't. We reduced it to a mathematical certainty long ago!" Scrooge's battlefield is more market than campaign.
* TheSpeechless: The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come.

* ValuesResonance: Part of the reason why this story continues to be adapted to this very day.

** And, at least in the [[Film/{{Scrooge 1951}} Sim]] and [[Film/AChristmasCarol1984 Scott]] versions (where Scrooge is blamed for his mother dying giving birth to him) she is technically a Dead Older Sister.

* EarnYourHappyEnding: Prevents the trope listed [[DyingAlone directly]] [[ViewersAreGoldfish above this one]].

* JacobMarleyApparel: TropeNamer.
* JacobMarleyWarning: TropeNamer.
* JerkAss: Scrooge at the start of the story, oh so much.

* MoneyDearBoy: Dickens originally wrote it to pay off a debt. However, the story was a hit from the first release on. Dickens was also quite fond of the story and would keep revisiting it.

** Erroneously expecting the Ghost of Christmas Present to come on the second night at 1 o'clock, it's stated that nothing between a baby and a rhinoceros would have surprised him much. When nothing happens, he freaks out. (It turns out the Ghost was actually waiting for ''him'' in Scrooge's living room.).

* ReasonYouSuckSpeech: After delivering his IronicEcho to Scrooge, the Ghost of Christmas Present takes him to task for presuming he has the right to refer to some people as a "surplus population."

* WordOfGod: See BreakingTheFourthWall above.

* ''MickeysChristmasCarol''

* ''{{Scrooged}}''

** "Humbug," on its own, is said seven times, however, all in the first chapter. They even LampShade it with "He tried to say “Humbug!” but stopped at the first syllable."

** nearly all versions include the line "...who, upon Christmas Day, made lame beggers walk and blind men see.". it's a more subtle referance, but its meaning is pretty clear.

* WordOfDante: Several details of the story have been used in so many stage and screen adaptions that it's surprising to learn that they weren't in Dickens' original. Belle is often referred to as Fezziwig's daughter, when no such detail exists in the book (in fact, many adaptions give her name as "Isabelle," whereas in the book she's simply called "Belle"). Also, the reason for Scrooge's hostility toward is nephew is never clearly spelled out, though most adaptions just assume it was because his mother died giving birth to him. Likewise, the reason that Scrooge's father is cold to him is never spelled out, but is often given a similar FreudianExcuse.

* UnableToSupportAWife: At first, this is a problem for Scrooge. Then he gets caught up in earning it.

* AndThereWasMuchRejoicing: One family reacts to Scrooge's death in the alternate future this way.

* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Scrooge, [[CaptainObvious duh.]]

* ''Film/AChristmasCarol1971'' (1971)

** ''{{Film/Scrooge1970}}'' (1970, with Albert Finney; later became a successful U.K. stage musical)

** And, at least in the [[Film/{{Scrooge1951}} Sim]] and [[Film/AChristmasCarol1984 Scott]] versions (where Scrooge is blamed for his mother dying giving birth to him) she is technically a Dead Older Sister.

* ''Film/{{Scrooge1951}}'' (1951)
* ''Film/{{Scrooge1970}}'' (1970)

* TrueMeaningOfChristmas: Varies depending on the adaptation. Some, like the [[Film/{{Scrooge1951}} 1951 version]], plainly mention Jesus and the Nativity, along with other Biblical references. Others, like ''Film/{{Scrooged}}'', barely acknowledge it at all.

* AdaptationExpansion: In the musical, we see much of young Scrooge's life, including him rejecting Fezziwig's need for a loan, and the death of Jacob Marley.

* AndThereWasMuchRejoicing: The "Thank You Very Much" number from the 1970 ''Scrooge'' film takes this to the extreme of having nearly the whole of London celebrating his demise. The next morning, there is a TriumphantReprise in which the same characters sing the same song, but now celebrating Scrooge's change of heart.

** Scrooge in some versions. Even more so in the 1970 musical.

** ''Scrooge'' (1970, with Albert Finney; later became a successful U.K. stage musical)

** And, at least in the Sim and [[Film/AChristmasCarol1984 Scott]] versions (where Scrooge is blamed for his mother dying giving birth to him) she is technically a Dead Older Sister.

* AdaptationExpansion: The Alastair Sim version has the best example there -- such as depicting how Scrooge and Marley were corrupted by an unscrupulous mentor luring them away from Fezziwig's good influence. Then there is the [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming touching]] scene where Scrooge comes to Fred's house to accept his invitation for Christmas dinner at last, fearful that he would be rejected, only to find he needn't have doubted Fred's love.
*** In the musical, we see much of young Scrooge's life, including him rejecting Fezziwig's need for a loan, and the death of Jacob Marley.

* CreepyChild: Ignorance and Want tend to get left out of adaptations, probably for time and other obvious reasons. But they're in the Alastair Sim version, which never lets you forget that it's a ''ghost story''.
* DeadpanSnarker: Scrooge in some versions, particularly Alastair Sim's Scrooge.
*** Even more so in the 1970 musical.

* DeathByChildbirth: Scrooge's mother, and later Fan (at least it is said and shown so in the Alistair Sim version).

* TrueMeaningOfChristmas: Varies depending on the adaptation. Some, like the 1951 version, plainly mention Jesus and the Nativity, along with other Biblical references. Others, like {{Scrooged}}, barely acknowledge it at all.

* CreepyChild: Ignorance and Want tend to get left out of adaptations, probably for time and other obvious reasons. But they're in the Alastair Sim version, which never lets you forget that it's a ''ghost story''. And the RichardWilliams version, in which they look positively ''demonic''.

* UnableToSupportAWife: At first, this is a problem for Scrooge. Then he gets caught up in earning it.

* WordOfGod: See BreakingTheFourthWall above.

** Scrooge is also almost always shown to be an old man; however nothing in the original story states this. In fact the story makes just as much sense (arguably more so) if Scrooge is in his early forties.
*** Dickens does describe Scrooge as "old" several times: "old sinner", "old Scrooge" and said he had "old" features. Can be written off as pertaining to his attitude, since one of the first things Scrooge remarks upon when he wakes is how young he feels, like a baby.

** Two street children figure in a British telemovie adaptation in which Eddie Scrooge is an inner-city loan shark who needs to learn the error of his ways. Scrooge has visions of them freezing to death in an alley, and one of the components to him achieving his salvation is to find and rescue them before they perish.

** And, at least in the Sim and Scott versions (where Scrooge is blamed for his mother dying giving birth to him) she is technically a Dead Older Sister.

** the latter scene is expanded even more in the George C. Scott Version.

* AdaptationInducedPlotHole[=/=]TheyJustDidntCare: Almost every single adaptation, even the illustrations in the original novella, depicts Scrooge in Victorian nightwear during his travels with the ghosts, even though Dickens explicitly states that Scrooge "went straight to bed, without undressing, and fell asleep upon the instant." The 1984 version with George C. Scott avoids this.

** Also, suprisingly enough, in the GeorgeCScott version, Ghost of Christmas Present qualifies as well.

** In the George C. Scott movie, the spirit of Yet to Come doesn't speak, but every time it "responds" to Scrooge, a weird metallic wail is heard in the background.

* ActorAllusion: Scrooge in the 2009 version is played by Jim Carrey. [[HowTheGrinchStoleChristmas It wouldn't be the first time he played the role of a curmudgeon from a popular Christmas story.]]

* BerserkButton: Jacob Marley with Scrooge. Poor guy was so frustrated he ''dislocated his own jaw'' during one of his ghostly wailing fits.
** In the 2009 movie, the Ghost of Christmas Present may be a jolly figure, but do not bring up what the current bureaucracy of the Church of Christ is doing in Christ's name, like closing places once a week when the poor are so in need of help. He does not take such mentions well and considers them not of ''his'' church.

** They make a startling appearance in the 2009 Disney(!) version where they morph into adults: a thug and a(n implied) prostitute, respectively. They also get Present's [[IronicEcho line]] about prisons and [[FreudianSlip wh--]] ''work''houses.

* TheHyena: The Ghost of Christmas Present in the 2009 animated film, continuing to laugh even as he turns into a skeleton and then crumbles to dust.
* IdiotBall: Does anyone notice that in the 2009 adaptation, Scrooge couldn't help saying ''something'' to each of the spirits that obviously pisses them off? You do not back-sass Death.

* InkSuitActor: In the 2009 adaptation, Fred looks very much like Colin Firth, The Ghost Of Christmas Past looks ''exactly'' like JimCarrey, and Bob Cratchit looks like a shorter GaryOldman.
** Zemeckis' Ghost of Christmas Present also resembles Carrey (in his brow, mainly). I was under the impression this was a deliberate choice; the spirits are here specifically for Scrooge and thus resemble him accordingly.

** The 2009 movie has JimCarrey as The Ghossssst of Chrisssstmasss Passsst....and GaryOldman as JacobMarley (a much larger ham than Carrey's Scrooge to boot).
*** "'''OOOOOOOOOOH, WOE IS ''MEEEEEEEEE''!!!'''"

* MoodWhiplash: In the Robert Zemeckis version. One minute, Scrooge is being chased by demonic shadowy horses, the next he's crawling through a sewer pipe with a chipmunk voice. And then, back to the horses.
** Also done quite skillfully in the Marley scene. At one point, Marley yells so powerfully that he dislocates his jaw, then says the next line by moving his lower jaw with his hand (borders between disturbing and funny) before attempting to put it back and in the process folding his face up tightly to the point where he cannot speak (CrowningMomentofFunny)

* NeverTrustATrailer: The 2009 version's trailer made it look like your average Jim Carrey, kid-friendly, physical comedy movie. It's actually much more adult oriented, serious and scary at some parts. There's also the minor infraction of Scrooge blowing a snowflake off his nose out of sheer spite for the season in the trailer, but not in the movie.
** And only "some" scenes may be scary to "small" children.
* PlayingGertrude: In the 2009 version, Jim Carrey plays Scrooge, and Colin Firth, who is 16 months older than he, plays Fred. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]] through the use of Performance Capture, and also overlaps with DawsonCasting in a way, because Carrey also plays Scrooge as a child, teenager, and young adult. Similarly, in the 1970 musical film, Albert Finney played both the elder Scrooge and his young adult self.
* PragmaticAdaptation: Disney's version being the most prominent.

* ShoutOut: In the RobertZemeckis version, during the opening credits, a few kids are having fun by [[Film/BackToTheFuture clinging onto the backs of carriages and hitching a ride on them.]] Upon being redeemed, Scrooge himself does this too.

* SssssnakeTalk: The Ghossssst of Chrisssstmasss Passsst.
** Considering how Past was represented, its speech could be representative of a guttering candle.
* TalkingToHimself: In the Zemeckis adaptation, Jim Carrey voices/acts out Scrooge and all three Christmas Ghosts, though in the case of Christmas Yet To Come, it's not so much talking as it is pointing out to/chasing/scaring the living daylights out of.
** Scrooge lampshades this when laughing at the end and realizing that he sounds just like the Ghost of Christmas Present.

* TheVoiceless: Every depiction of the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. How Jim Carrey voices him in the Zemeckis adaptation baffles this editor (It might have just been Motion Capture, though).

Not to be confused with actual {{Christmas Carol}}s