‘A Christmas Carol’ part4
Plot summary
Subject: / English
Age groups: / 12-14, 15-16
Topic: / ‘A Christmas Carol’ by Charles Dickens

‘A Christmas Carol’ by Charles Dickens: Part4

Scrooge sees the third spirit coming towards him. He is wearing black clothes and a hood. He approached Scrooge slowly. The dark figure is The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. He has come to show Scrooge the future. This spirit does not speak but signals to Scrooge to follow him.

Heshows Scrooge some mysterious scenes about a man who has just died. Scrooge sees businessmen discussing how rich the dead man was. This time Scrooge does not see himself in the scene, so he wonders why the spirit is showing him this.

Next they go to a shop in a poor part of the city. Some people are sharing out the dead man’s possessions, which they have stolen. They are going to sell them. Scrooge tells the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come that he understands that his life is a bit like the dead man’s. The spirit takes him to the dead man’s bedroom but Scrooge is too scared to look at the face of the corpse. He asks the spirit to show him someone who cares that the man is dead.

The spirit takes Scrooge to the home of a poor couple who owed the dead man some money. They did not have enough money to pay him back, so they are happy he is dead. Scrooge asks the spirit to show him some people who are sad because someone has died.

The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come takes Scrooge back to the Cratchit family who are very sad because Tiny Tim has just died. Bob Cratchit tells his family that he had met Fred in the street and told him about Tiny Tim’s death. Fred had been very kind and asked if there was anything he could do to help them. They talk about how much they loved Tiny Tim and how they will always remember him. Talking about Tiny Tim makes them feel a bit better.

Scroogeasks the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come the name of the dead rich man. The spirit takes Scrooge to a churchyard and points to a grave. Scrooge looks at the gravestone and is shocked to read his own name. He understands that the dead rich man is himself. He tells the spirit he will change, stop being mean and cruel, and celebrate Christmas with all his heart. The spirit disappears.

Key words or phrases with pictures

Key words to translate

Word or phrase / Translation / Meaning
to approach
cruel
to disappear
to discuss
to approach
to feel better
a figure (person)
to follow
future
happy
to love
mysterious
to owe money
to point
possessions
sad
shocked
scared
toshare
to signal
slowly
stolen (to steal)
a street
to wonder

Image attributions

  1. Ghost of Xmas Yet to Come: By John Leech (1843) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
  2. People sharing out the dead man’s possessions: By Fred Barnard [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
  3. A grave: By Deeday-UK (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 ( via Wikimedia Commons
  4. Cratchit family are very sad: By Frederick Simpson Coburn, Internet Archive Book Images [No restrictions], via Wikimedia Commons.