Exhibit:

(Re)Reading A Christmas Carol as a Graphic Novel

Preview of images

"Scrooge and Bob Cratchit"
Wood-Engraved image of Scrooge starring remorsefully at the two impoverished children
old man looking at two children with ghost
Scrooge's Third Visitor - Stave 3

Part of Group:

Victorian Illustrated Books (ENG910 F2020)

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Lorraine Janzen Kooistra

Works Cited

Images in this Exhibit

"The Christmas Bowl," A Christmas Carol (1843)
"Scrooge and Bob Cratchit"

This is an 8 cm by 6.5 cm wood-block engraving black and white vignette illustration by John Leech and it appears at the end of Stave Five in A Christmas Carol. It shows Scrooge and Bob Cratchit sitting in Scrooge’s office which appears to be decorated for Christmas and together they share smoking bishop. It is a type of mulled wine or punch and was popular in Victorian times around Christmas time. Both men, especially Scrooge, look happy about their encounter given the distance between the two men and how the share the table together so closely. Bob has been told that he will be...
John Leech, "The Ghosts of Departed Usurers, or, The Phantoms," A Christmas Carol

“The Ghosts of Departed Usurers, or, The Phantoms” is an illustration by John Leech, found in Charles Dickens’ novella, A Christmas Carol. It is a vignetted, black and white, woodcut engraving found in the novella’s first stave. The image depicts various spirits in the background, who have revealed themselves to Scrooge as an indication of what he will become. This is in contrast to the foreground, which shows a homeless woman without shelter sitting down. John Leech’s traditionally cartoonist style allows for an expressive depiction of the scene, coupled with the harsh, dark...
Charles Dickens, “Ignorance and Want”, A Christmas Carol (1843)
Wood-Engraved image of Scrooge starring remorsefully at the two impoverished children

This illustration taken directly from Charles Dickens' famous novella “A Christmas Carol'' was done by illustrator John Leech in wood-engraved black and white style. Leeches' work although traditionally more cartoonish was utilized perfectly in this scene in which scrooge is confronted by the dark underbelly of industrilization and the horrors of child labour in England. For the first time Scrooge is faced with the social consequences of the unrelenting capitalism he defends so passionately in the opening stave of the story. This image paints a stark picture of the kind of class disparity...
John Leech "Ignorance and Want" A Christmas Carol (1843)
old man looking at two children with ghost

"Ignorance and Want" is one of John Leech's 8 illustrations for Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol. The three quartered paged, black and white wood engraving vignette occurs in Stave three where Scrooge is confronted by his own greed with the help of the two children who accompany the second of the three spirits. The two children, called Ignorance and Want, symbolize the uncontrolled booming of the industrial and capitalistic society of the Victorian era. Furthermore, the factories illustrated in the background of the image allow Leech to further extend the...
Stave 3 - Scrooge's First Visitor
Scrooge's Third Visitor - Stave 3

Located on page 78 of A Christmas Carol, John Leeche's image of Scrooge's Third Visitor depicts Scrooge and The Ghost of Christmas Present. It is a full-page coloured, steel-plate engraved/etched image that appears 12.2 cm x 8.3 cm vignetted on the page. Along with the image, Leeche's signature and the title "Scrooge's third Visitor" are engraved onto the plate. Leeche's image mimics the texts description of the Ghost of Christmas Present, wearing a green robe and surrounded by gifts representitive of prosperity, such as the torch he has that appears to reflect the histoical Horn...
"Over a Christmas Bowl of Smoking Bishop" - Stave 5

This 8 cm by 6.5 cm woodcut vignette, drawn by John Leech, can be found in Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol (1843). The image depicts the close of the tale, when Scrooge, a changed man, offers Bob well wishes for the holidays and a raise. He says they will discuss these things over a bowl of smoking bishop. The image uses a caricature style, typical of John Leech, which allows for a very noticeably joyous expression from Scrooge. The room is decorated with evergreen boughs and holly to highlight Scrooges transformation through the image's setting. 
"Last of Spirits" Stave Four

“Last of Spirits” is found in Stave 4 of A Christmas Carol (1843). It was created by John Leech and is a hand-coloured steel engraving. It is also 10.5 x 8.2 cm vignetted, and can be found on page 150. The image shows The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come pointing down at Scrooge’s grave, as Scrooge is kneeling with his face in his hands. The illustration ultimately depicts emotion as we are physically able to see a transformation in Scrooge. 

Contributors: Nicole Bernard, Mark Dasilva, Marina Arnone, Joseph Pereira, Alicia Puebla- Ponciano and Tatiana Batista 
Ignorance and Want

A Christmas Carol (1843). Written by Charles Dickens and illustrated by John Leech. Engraved by Linton. In this three quarter paged, black and white wood engraving vignette illustration on page 119, Scrooge encounters two impoverished children. At the sight of their haggard appearance in the cold, Scrooge faces internal guilt and remorse over his greedy capitalist ways and his hungry pursuit of money and exploitation. The industrial buildings and factories of 19th century London loom in the background, symbolizing the way greed, consumerism, and industrialization entrap the citizens of...
"Scrooge Extinguishes the First of The Three Spirits"

John Leech's wood engraving in the second stave of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol illustrates Ebenezer Scrouge using an extinguisher cap to smother the first ghost he encounters after revisiting a memory with his past lover Fanny. This is a caricature that accompanies the ending of Stave 2. The image represents a suppression of memories, likely alluding to Dickens' own memories of his sister, who was also named Fanny.
Mr. Fezziwig's Ball

John Leech's steel engraved image is featured in A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. It is a frontispiece accompanying the second stave. It is a caricature-style image illustrating the annual Christmas ball hosted by Mr. Fezziwig in his workplace. In the image, Mr. Fezziwig can be seen dancing with his wife and workers. This image demonstrates the class disparity of the Victorian era, depicting Mr. and Mrs. Fezziwig as "comfortable, oily, rich, fat, and jovial" in keeping with Dicken's description of Mr. Fezziwig's voice in the stave. It contrasts with the depiction of his...
"The air was filled with phantoms" - Stave 1

This 9.5 x 6.3 cm wood engraved image, dropped into letterpress, in A Christmas Carol (1843), depicts the moment  in time in which reveals to Ebenezer Scrooge what he will become after death. Leech's illustration is repetitive here as it echos the written text, depicting a homeless woman in the foreground, and the phantoms of the image are in an agitated state because they cannot help the woman in their immaterial form. Alongside the other images in Stave 1, this image depicts the figuraitive line between life and the afterlife. This image is found on page 37, in black and white...
Marley's Ghost - Stave 1

This image is found in A Christmas Carol (1843), created with hand colouredsteel engraving/etching. This is a full page image that accompanies Stave 1 of the book. It is a 9.8x8 cm piece of art is depicting the moment in the story that Scrooge encounters his dead buisness partner. This image was created in a caricature-like way, with realistic elements. Jacob Marely and Ebenezer Scrooge together while Marely is shown with chains created out of ledger books, representing how greed weighs down a persons spirit even in the afterlife. This image, like others in teh book, allow readers...