Marley was dead, to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. The register of his burial was signed by the clergyman, the clerk, the undertaker, and the chief mourner. Scrooge signed it. And Scrooge's name was good upon 'Change for anything he chose to put his hand to. Old Marley was as dead as a door-nail.
Interpretation
The quote emphasizes the undeniable reality of death, setting the stage for themes of redemption and transformation.
In this opening passage from 'A Christmas Carol', Charles Dickens establishes the fact of Marley's death with a meticulousness that underscores its importance to the narrative. By reiterating Marley's demise and the implications of his death, Dickens hints at the potential for change in Scrooge's life, suggesting that even those who seem unchangeable can experience profound transformation. The mention of official documents signifies that death is an inescapable truth that acts as a catalyst for the events to unfold, ultimately leading to reflections on life, legacy, and the opportunity for redemption.
In practice
During a discussion about the inevitability of death, one might quote this to emphasize the reality we all face.
I recollected one story there was in the village, how that on a certain night in the year (it might be that very night for anything I knew), all the dead people came out of the ground and sat at the heads of their own graves till morning.
A silent look of affection and regard when all other eyes are turned coldly away-the consciousness that we possess the sympathy and affection of one being when all others have deserted us-is a hold, a stay, a comfort, in the deepest affliction, which no wealth could purchase, or power bestow.
Heaven knows we need never be ashamed of our tears, for they are rain upon the blinding dust of earth, overlying our hard hearts. I was better after I had cried, than before--more sorry, more aware of my own ingratitude, more gentle.
There are not a few among the disciples of charity who require, in their vocation, scarcely less excitement than the votaries of pleasure in theirs.
You might, from your appearance, be the wife of Lucifer,” said Miss Pross, in her breathing. “Nevertheless, you shall not get the better of me. I am an Englishwoman.
Christmas is a poor excuse every 25th of December to pick a man's pockets.
If you miss the bus, miss the train, you’d be left behind. So everyone says, let’s get on the train, let’s get on the bus and go faster and get rich... I just didn’t like that kind of lifestyle. I love to read books, to listen to music.
The true civilization is where every man gives to every other every right that he claims for himself.
Socialism has never and nowhere been at first a working-class movement.
I wasn't just the madwoman in the attic--I was the attic itself. The past was all over me, all under me, all inside me.
Young man," he said, "understand this: there are two Londons. There's London Above―that's where you lived―and then there's London Below―the Underside―inhabited by the people who fell through the cracks in the world. Now you're one of them. Good night.
If people really saw what was happening in Iraq and Afghanistan, then they might be marching in the streets to end wars. But you know, I think that no one ever sees because we're not allowed to see, and we're not allowed to publish what we do see. So it's quite difficult.
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