Charles Dickens was an English writer and
in 1843 he wrote “A Christmas Carol”. It
was a reminder to his readers not to forget that Christmas is a time for doing
good in the world. We should be charitable
towards others.
So, I have edited a section from A
Christmas Carol, where the greedy and seemingly heartless businessman called Scrooge
is visited by the ghost of his dead partner, Marley. Make sure you don’t forget the Christmas 1spirit. The Christmas 2spirit
hasn’t forgotten you!
An edited scene from Charles Dicken’s “A
Christmas Carol”
As Scrooge sat down, every bell in his
house rang out loudly.
This might have lasted half a minute, or
a minute, but it seemed an hour. The bells ceased as they had begun,
together. They were followed by a clanking noise, deep down below; as if
some person were dragging a heavy chain.
“It’s nonsense,” said Scrooge. “I won’t believe it.”
His colour changed though, when, without
a pause, Marley’s ghost came through the heavy door.
The chain he pulled was wound
about his middle. It was long, and was made of cash-boxes, keys, etc. His body
was transparent; so that Scrooge could see the door behind him.
“Who are you?” asked Scrooge.
“Ask me who I was,” replied the ghost.
“Who were you then?” said Scrooge.
“In life I was your partner, Jacob
Marley”.
“Can you -- can you sit down?” asked
Scrooge, looking doubtfully at him.
The ghost sat down on the opposite side
of the fireplace, as if he were quite used to it.
“You don’t believe in me,” observed the
ghost.
“I don’t,” said Scrooge. “A little thing can
affect one’s senses. A slight disorder of the stomach makes them cheats.
You may be an undigested bit of
beef, a crumb of cheese, a fragment of an underdone
potato. There's more of gravy than of
grave about you, whatever you are!”
The truth was that Scrooge tried to be
smart to keep down his terror.
At this the spirit raised a frightful
cry, and shook its chain.Scrooge fell upon his knees, and clasped his hands before his face.
“Mercy!” he said. “Dreadful spirit, why do you trouble me?”
“It is required of every man,” the Ghost
returned, “that the spirit within him should walk among his fellow men, and
travel far and wide; and if that spirit doesn’t do that in life, it is condemned
to do so after death.”
“I wear the chain I made in life,” said the
ghost. “And I have come to warn you before it is too late.”
Scrooge trembled more and more.
“Do you want to know the length of the
chain you are making for yourself?” asked the ghost...
Vocabulary:
1spirit
– Feeling.
2a
spirit – A ghost.
to be charitable – To be generous; to
donate money.
to cease – To stop.
clanking – Noise like metal hitting
against something.
to drag something – To pull something
heavy.
to be wound around something – To be put
many times around something, often to loosely attach it.
to be transparent – If something is
transparent, it can be seen through. For
example, glass is usually transparent.
a disorder – A problem; a malfunction.
to be undigested – Not absorbed by the
body. The stomach digests food after it
is eaten.
a crumb – A very small piece, especially
of food like bread or biscuits.
a fragment – A small piece. For example, after the glass smashed there
were many small fragments.
to be underdone – Not cooked enough.
terror – Great fear
to clasp something – To hold something
tightly
mercy – Being kind or showing forgiveness
to someone you could harm.
to be dreadful – To be terrible.
to be condemned – To be given a
punishment. For example, the murderer
was condemned to death.
to tremble – For your body to shake, perhaps
with fear or cold.
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