Scrooge's Christmas Morning Awakening
Christmas morning brings pure joy to a man who hasn't felt happiness in decades. Scrooge wakes up in his own bed, overwhelmed with relief that he's still alive and has time to change his ways. His emotional outburst shows years of suppressed feelings finally breaking free.
The contrast between this cheerful Scrooge and the miserable man from Stave One is striking. He's literally dancing around his room, examining every familiar object with wonder - the fireplace, the door, even his bed curtains become sources of delight. This isn't just happiness; it's rebirth.
Dickens uses brilliant figurative language to show Scrooge's transformation: "light as a feather," "happy as an angel," and "merry as a schoolboy." These similes emphasise how the heavy burden of his past cruelty has lifted, leaving him feeling young and free again.
Key insight: Scrooge's physical movements - laughing, crying, dancing - show that his emotional transformation is so powerful it affects his entire being.