A Christmas Carol films comparison

The two different films portray Scrooge differently. In the 1999 version, starring Patrick Stweart, Scrooge seems more sure of himself, and just plain hostile and cheap, whereas in the 2009 animated version, Scrooge seems more like a shrivelled up old man, but just as hostile and cheap. At the beginning of both films, they show Jacob Marley in his coffin in what appears to be a cemetary office. However, after, the animated version shows a panaromic view of the city, and different scenes during Christmas Eve. Both films show the elapse of the 7-year period of time with the sign of ‘Scrooge and Marley’ decaying and breaking down. In the office, the positioning of Scrooge and his clerk, Bob Cratchit are also different. In the Patrick Stewart version, Bob Cratchit is located near the window, with Scrooge at the back, while this is reversed in the animated version. Both films follow and use the dialogues from the book directly. In both films, in the entrance of the two charitable men, the word ‘liberality’ is replaced with ‘generosity’. In the animated version, it shows Bob Cratchit going home, and the christmas spirit, while the Patrick Stewart version skips directly to Scrooge going home. Also, the house of Scrooge looks different in the two films. The effect of Jacob Marley’s face on the doorknob seems to have a greater impact on Scrooge in the animated version than in the Patrick Stewart version. Moreover, the animated version skipped the part with Marley’s face appearing on the tiles at the fireplace, while the Patrick Stewart version did not. In the animated version Marley’s ghost appears more ghost-like than in the Patrick Stewart version, floating and with elongated words. Also, the ghost appears to be dragged down with just heavy boxes, but with no books as in the Patrick Stewart version. The ghost also appears to be in more pain and frustration in the animated version. There is more comedy in the animated version than the Patrick Stewart version. The first ghost, the Ghost of Christmas Part, appeared more like a man in the 1999 version, while in the animated version the ghost seemed more like a spirit and a candle. In the animated version, the characters fly through space and time, while in the Patrick Stewart version, the background and space changes while the characters remain standing.  At the school, Scrooge ages in the boarding school at the second scene with his sister visiting in the animated version while in the Patrick Stewart version Scrooge appears to be the same age. In the two films, Scrooge’s breakup with Belle is set in different places, in the park in the 1999 version and in Scrooge’s office in the 2009 version. Both films skip the scene with Belle and her future family. In the animated version, it looks like the room is moving with the Ghost of Christmas Present while in the Patrick Stewart version the scene changes around them. Moreover, in the 1999 version the Ghost of Christmas Present put little sprinkly stuff in the food of the christmas shoppers, while in the 2009 version the ghost didn’t. In the animated version Martha looks much taller than in the 1999 version. Also, in the animated version, it skips the games in the house of Scrooge’s nephew and only shows the guessing game. The animated version also skips the scenes of christmas in the prisons and at the lighthouse. Also, the two representations of ‘ignorace’ and ‘want’ change in age and talks to Scrooge. Also in the animated version, Scrooge is chased by a carriage driven by the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come, and is shows all the different ghosts and poor of the city, and changes in size. In the Patrick Stewart version, Scrooge does not have a housekeeper while in the animated version he does. The transformations between the ghosts in the two films are different in both films.

Cherished Item

If my house was burning on fire, and I could only save one thing from it, it would be my flute. Obviously, if such a thing did happen, I would grab as much as possible, but in this scenario, my one choice would be my flute. Although my flute is relatively new, I have grown to love it. I've always had a special connection with my musical instruments. For example, I also love my piano a lot, but obviously, it is a little too heavy for me to carry out. Since I was young, I've always loved music. My mom thought I would try to grow up to be a concert pianist, but that changed after I grew older, realizing that the reality of being a musician is actually really hard. You're either famous, in which case you make a lot of money, or you're not famous, in which case you'll be forced to switch jobs later. So now, I treat performing music as a hobby. But it's still more than a hobby to me. So about my flute. It is a silver flute, and it sounds absolutely wonderful, to me. I think I might actually be emotionally attached to my flute. Everytime I play it, I can feel a connection. It's like I'm singing the notes, but through my flute. I love playing my flute and playing classical pieces. Many people may say, 'you could always get another one!', but for me, this is not the case. The reason I chose my flute to be my 'cherished item' is because it is more than 'just a flute' to me. Sure, I can play well on other flutes, but with this particular flute, I feel more confident. This flute is going to accompany me through the rest of my life, probably. I could obviously replace it with a better one, but still, I think that each individual flute produces its own individual sense of sound.
As much as I love my flute, it is still a hard decision. If I could take other things with me, I would probably take my books (I can't bear to watch books burn in fire, especially my collection of classics and my big, fat The Complete Sherlock Holmes book that looks like, and is, my personal bible), my perfume collection ( from Province, the south of France. It also has a special meaning to me), my framed poster of the Cologne Cathedral (which is drawn by little music notes), my collection of seashells (the ocean means a lot to me for some reason), a poster of pictures of me and my friends from Belgium (my friends from Belgium gave it to me as a leaving present), a few of my dresses, and many, many other things. I think this is a very hard decision to make, and hope that I would never have to be forced to make any such decisions.

The Victorian Workhouse

A workhouse is a building which provided work, lodging, and food to the impoverished and destitute.  Sometimes the workhouses would form unions, which resulted in the widely used term 'Union Workhouses'. Workhouses were a result of the Poor Law Amendment Act and the Workhouse Test Act of 1723 in England. The government used it as a way of clearing out the poor and homeless among the streets. Workhouses generally include a central building surrounded by extensions of the building and courtyards. The conditions in the Victorian workhouses were bad, because it is meant to be a way of eliminating the destitue from the able-bodied men. The conditions were so desperate and harsh that the able-bodied would try to find work elsewhere. So the workhouses were reserved for people who were poor and old, and single mothers and orphaned children. As a result, many children were born into workhouses, with no choice but to work there and be 'imprisoned' their whole life. The 'inmates', as they were called, were underpaid, and normally worked long hours. Many were 'rented' out to other factories to work in. The food there was dreary, and normally only consists of gruel, broth, bread and cheese. The workers were practically imprisoned there, though they are allowed time out, with a reasonable excuse, for normally around 3 hours. Although the workhouses provided education, the teachers were normally poorly trained, and had to mange large classes of unruly children. Another problem at the workhouse was the matrons. They were normally abusive to the workers, and often whipped the inmates. I think that Scrooge would not understand the horrors of the workhouse. He has had a privelaged life, compared to many others. He was sent to boarding school, had a proper education, and was even apprenticed. Many of the poor and destitute had not such advantages. They were denied many basic needs. Scrooge then continued on and made money, and didn't have to worry and food and lodging, while the poor had to work under these terrible conditions just to get a piece of bread each day.

Which Ghost Affected Scrooge the Most?

I think that all three affected Scrooge in a different way. The Ghost of Christmas Past showed Scrooge the happiness he had as a child and the transformation, which made Scrooge reflect on himself. The Ghost of Christmas Present showed him the situation now, and what other people thought of him. The Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come showed him the future situation if things don't change. I think that the third ghost, the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come, affected Scrooge the most. It made him sympathetic about Tiny Tim's death, and it made him sad. Also, I think that 'death' makes people think more because people tend to fear it. Moreover, when he saw that the name on the grave was his own, it really shocked him. He also saw what other people thought about him after his death, where they didn't even care that he's dead, and some people even stole his stuff to sell. He saw that he had to change, not just for his own sake, but also for the Cratchit family's.

Themes for 'Liberty' and 'Exile'

'Liberty' and 'Exile' are two pieces of writing by Julia Alvarez. However, 'Liberty' is written as a short story while 'Exile' was written as a poem. Both share a story (and subject) of political exile. A common theme for both stories would be that the reality of political exile could often be too complicated and dangerous for children to understand, so the way they perceive it would be different, but somehow also true to horror of exile. However, differently, in 'Liberty', the main character knows that the family is leaving, and is sad to leave her most prized possession, Liberty the dog, behind. The theme for 'Liberty' would be that sometimes facing tough situations require sacrifices, but for the purpose of a greater, more symbolic need. On the other hand, for 'Exile', the main character was kept in the dark about the purpose of their 'family trip' although she could sense something wrong. In the poem, the main character's family is all fleeing to America, but when they get there, although they found freedom, they were not truly happy. The theme for 'Exile' would be leaving your homeland is diificult, but sometimes necessary, no matter the challenges you will face.