Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come
Encyclopedia
The Ghost
of Christmas
Yet to Come, A.K.A., The Ghost of Christmas Future, is a fictional character in English
novelist
Charles Dickens
' A Christmas Carol
. It is the ghost that haunts the miser Ebenezer Scrooge
, in order to prompt him to adopt a more caring attitude in life and avoid the horrid afterlife of his business partner, Marley. Scrooge finds the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come the most fearsome of the spirits; he appears to Scrooge as a figure entirely muffled in a black hooded robe, except for a single gaunt hand with which he points. Although the character never speaks in the story, Scrooge understands him, usually through assumptions from his previous experiences and rhetorical questions. The Ghost's muteness and undefined features (being always covered by his robe) may also have been intended to represent the uncertainty of the future. He is notable that even in satires and parodies of the tale, this spirit nonetheless retains his original look.
"The Phantom slowly, gravely, silently approached. When it came near him, Scrooge bent down upon his knee; for in the very air through which this Spirit moved it seemed to scatter gloom and mystery. It was shrouded in a deep black garment, which concealed its head, its face, its form, and left nothing of it visible save one outstretched hand. ... It thrilled him [Scrooge] with a vague uncertain horror, to know that behind the dusky shroud there were ghostly eyes intently fixed upon him, while he, though he stretched his own to the utmost, could see nothing but a spectral hand and one great heap of black."
When the Ghost makes his appearance, the first thing he shows Scrooge is three wealthy gentlemen making light of a recent death, remarking that it will be a cheap funeral, if anyone comes at all. One businessman said he would go only if lunch is provided, while another said he didn't eat lunch or wear black gloves, so there was no reason for him to go at all. Next, Scrooge is shown the same dead person's belongings being stolen and sold to a receiver of stolen goods
called Old Joe
. He also sees a shrouded corpse, which he implores the ghost not to unmask, and a poor, debtor family rejoicing that someone to whom they owed money is dead. After pleading to the ghost to see some tenderness connected with death, Scrooge is shown Bob Cratchit
and his family mourning the passing of Tiny Tim
. (In the prior visitation, the Ghost of Christmas Present
states that Tiny Tim's illness was not incurable, but implied that the meager income Scrooge provided to Bob Cratchit wasn't enough for him to provide Tim the proper treatment.) Scrooge is then taken to an unkempt graveyard, where he is shown his own grave, and realizes that the dead man of whom the others spoke ill was himself.
This visit sets up the climax of the novella at the end of this stave. Moved to an emotional connection to humanity and chastened by his own avarice and isolation by the visits of the first two spirits, Scrooge is horrified by the prospect of a lonely death and by implication a subsequent damnation
. In desperation, he queries the ghost:
“Before I draw nearer to that stone to which you point,” said Scrooge, “answer me one question. Are these the shadows of the things that Will be, or are they shadows of things that May be, only?”
Still the Ghost pointed downward to the grave by which it stood.
“Men’s courses will foreshadow certain ends, to which, if persevered in, they must lead,” said Scrooge. “But if the courses be departed from, the ends will change. Say it is thus with what you show me!”
And in an epiphany in which he understands the changes that the visits of the three spirits have wrought in him, Scrooge exclaims:
"I am not the man I was. I will not be the man I must have been but for this intercourse. Why show me this, if I am past all hope!...I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future. The Spirits of all Three shall strive within me. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach. Oh, tell me I may sponge away the writing on this stone!”
His transformation complete, Scrooge is ready to re-enter the world of humanity as a changed man as he does in the story's denouement in the final stage.
Ghost
In traditional belief and fiction, a ghost is the soul or spirit of a deceased person or animal that can appear, in visible form or other manifestation, to the living. Descriptions of the apparition of ghosts vary widely from an invisible presence to translucent or barely visible wispy shapes, to...
of Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
Yet to Come, A.K.A., The Ghost of Christmas Future, is a fictional character in English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
novelist
English novel
The English novel is an important part of English literature.-Early novels in English:A number of works of literature have each been claimed as the first novel in English. See the article First novel in English.-Romantic novel:...
Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
' A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol is a novella by English author Charles Dickens first published by Chapman & Hall on 17 December 1843. The story tells of sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge's ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation after the supernatural visits of Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of...
. It is the ghost that haunts the miser Ebenezer Scrooge
Ebenezer Scrooge
Ebenezer Scrooge is the principal character in Charles Dickens's 1843 novel, A Christmas Carol. At the beginning of the novel, Scrooge is a cold-hearted, tight-fisted and greedy man, who despises Christmas and all things which give people happiness...
, in order to prompt him to adopt a more caring attitude in life and avoid the horrid afterlife of his business partner, Marley. Scrooge finds the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come the most fearsome of the spirits; he appears to Scrooge as a figure entirely muffled in a black hooded robe, except for a single gaunt hand with which he points. Although the character never speaks in the story, Scrooge understands him, usually through assumptions from his previous experiences and rhetorical questions. The Ghost's muteness and undefined features (being always covered by his robe) may also have been intended to represent the uncertainty of the future. He is notable that even in satires and parodies of the tale, this spirit nonetheless retains his original look.
"The Phantom slowly, gravely, silently approached. When it came near him, Scrooge bent down upon his knee; for in the very air through which this Spirit moved it seemed to scatter gloom and mystery. It was shrouded in a deep black garment, which concealed its head, its face, its form, and left nothing of it visible save one outstretched hand. ... It thrilled him [Scrooge] with a vague uncertain horror, to know that behind the dusky shroud there were ghostly eyes intently fixed upon him, while he, though he stretched his own to the utmost, could see nothing but a spectral hand and one great heap of black."
When the Ghost makes his appearance, the first thing he shows Scrooge is three wealthy gentlemen making light of a recent death, remarking that it will be a cheap funeral, if anyone comes at all. One businessman said he would go only if lunch is provided, while another said he didn't eat lunch or wear black gloves, so there was no reason for him to go at all. Next, Scrooge is shown the same dead person's belongings being stolen and sold to a receiver of stolen goods
Fence (criminal)
A fence is an individual who knowingly buys stolen property for later resale, sometimes in a legitimate market. The fence thus acts as a middleman between thieves and the eventual buyers of stolen goods who may or may not be aware that the goods are stolen. As a verb, the word describes the...
called Old Joe
Old Joe
The Joseph Chamberlain Memorial Clock Tower is a campanile located in Chancellor's court at the University of Birmingham in the West Midlands of England. It is the tallest free-standing clock tower in the world, although its actual height is the subject of some confusion...
. He also sees a shrouded corpse, which he implores the ghost not to unmask, and a poor, debtor family rejoicing that someone to whom they owed money is dead. After pleading to the ghost to see some tenderness connected with death, Scrooge is shown Bob Cratchit
Bob Cratchit
Robert "Bob" Cratchit is a fictional character who is the abused, underpaid clerk of Ebenezer Scrooge in the Charles Dickens story A Christmas Carol...
and his family mourning the passing of Tiny Tim
Tiny Tim (A Christmas Carol)
Timothy Cratchit, called "Tiny Tim", is a fictional character from the 1843 novella A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. He is a minor character, the young son of Bob Cratchit, and is seen only briefly, but serves as an important symbol of the consequences of the protagonist's choices...
. (In the prior visitation, the Ghost of Christmas Present
Ghost of Christmas Present
The Ghost of Christmas Present is a character in one of the best-known works of the English novelist Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol. The Spirit closely resembles Father Christmas from local folklore....
states that Tiny Tim's illness was not incurable, but implied that the meager income Scrooge provided to Bob Cratchit wasn't enough for him to provide Tim the proper treatment.) Scrooge is then taken to an unkempt graveyard, where he is shown his own grave, and realizes that the dead man of whom the others spoke ill was himself.
This visit sets up the climax of the novella at the end of this stave. Moved to an emotional connection to humanity and chastened by his own avarice and isolation by the visits of the first two spirits, Scrooge is horrified by the prospect of a lonely death and by implication a subsequent damnation
Damnation
Damnation is the concept of everlasting divine punishment and/or disgrace, especially the punishment for sin as threatened by God . A damned being "in damnation" is said to be either in Hell, or living in a state wherein they are divorced from Heaven and/or in a state of disgrace from God's favor...
. In desperation, he queries the ghost:
“Before I draw nearer to that stone to which you point,” said Scrooge, “answer me one question. Are these the shadows of the things that Will be, or are they shadows of things that May be, only?”
Still the Ghost pointed downward to the grave by which it stood.
“Men’s courses will foreshadow certain ends, to which, if persevered in, they must lead,” said Scrooge. “But if the courses be departed from, the ends will change. Say it is thus with what you show me!”
And in an epiphany in which he understands the changes that the visits of the three spirits have wrought in him, Scrooge exclaims:
"I am not the man I was. I will not be the man I must have been but for this intercourse. Why show me this, if I am past all hope!...I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future. The Spirits of all Three shall strive within me. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach. Oh, tell me I may sponge away the writing on this stone!”
His transformation complete, Scrooge is ready to re-enter the world of humanity as a changed man as he does in the story's denouement in the final stage.
Variations
- In Mickey's Christmas CarolMickey's Christmas CarolMickey's Christmas Carol is a 1983 American animated short film produced by Walt Disney Productions and distributed by Buena Vista Distribution Company. It was directed and produced by Burny Mattinson...
, Christmas Future smokes a cigar, blowing fog all over Scrooge McDuckScrooge McDuckScrooge McDuck is a cartoon character created in 1947 by Carl Barks and licensed by The Walt Disney Company. Scrooge is an anthropomorphic white duck with a yellow-orange bill, legs, and feet. He typically wears a red or blue frock coat, top hat, pince-nez glasses, and spats...
. After showing Scrooge the grieving Cratchits at Tiny TimTiny Tim (A Christmas Carol)Timothy Cratchit, called "Tiny Tim", is a fictional character from the 1843 novella A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. He is a minor character, the young son of Bob Cratchit, and is seen only briefly, but serves as an important symbol of the consequences of the protagonist's choices...
's grave, Christmas Future brings him to a fresh plot being dug by two of the Weasels from Disney's The Wind in the Willows. Both Gravediggers half-drunkenly exchange a few jokes about the person being buried here, then take a lunch-break (Weasel #1: "I've never seen a funeral like this one.", Weasel #2: "Aye. No mourners. No friends to bid him farewell.", Weasel #1 "Oh, well. Let's rest a minute before we throw 'im in, eh? He ain't going nowhere."). Scrooge asks "whose lonely grave - is this?", and Christmas Future strikes a match to light up the inscription on the gravestone, which much to Scrooge's horror is revealed to be his own, and the ghost reveals himself to be popular Disney villain Peg-Leg Pete who then replies: "Why yours, Ebenezer. THE RICHEST MAN IN THE CEMETERY!" As Christmas Future laughs diabolically, he pushes Scrooge who falls into the grave and desperately clutches at the sides to keep from falling into the casket...which opens to reveal the bowels of HellHellIn many religious traditions, a hell is a place of suffering and punishment in the afterlife. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hells as endless. Religions with a cyclic history often depict a hell as an intermediary period between incarnations...
. "I'll change! I'LL CHANGE!!" howls Scrooge as he plummets into the smoking and flaming coffin...which suddenly becomes his bed once more as the dream ends ("Spirit! Let me out!! LET ME OUT!!!"). This scene is re-used in the 2009 film, in which Scrooge also fell into his own grave, again instigated by the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come.
- In John Grin's Christmas, Christmas Future is interpreted by Geoffrey HolderGeoffrey HolderGeoffrey Richard Holder is a Trinidadian actor, choreographer, director, dancer, painter, costume designer, singer and voice-over artist.-Early life:...
as a variation on his popular 007 villain Baron SamediBaron SamediBaron Samedi is one of the Loa of Haitian Voodoo. Samedi is a Loa of the dead, along with Baron's numerous other incarnations Baron Cimetière, Baron La Croix, and Baron Kriminel. He is the head of the Guédé family of Loa, or an aspect of them, or possibly their spiritual father...
(from Live and Let DieLive and Let Die (film)Live and Let Die is the eighth spy film in the James Bond series, and the first to star Roger Moore as the fictional MI6 agent James Bond. The film was produced by Albert R. Broccoli and Harry Saltzman...
). - In A Diva's Christmas Carol the Ghost is actually portrayed by a miniature TV showing a future episode of Behind the Music, about Ebony Scrooge.
- In A Carol ChristmasA Carol ChristmasA Carol Christmas is a TV movie starring Tori Spelling, Dinah Manoff, William Shatner and Gary Coleman. It premiered on the Hallmark Channel in 2003. The film is an adaptation of the Charles Dickens story of a similar name...
the Ghost is portrayed as a tall, ominous-looking chauffeurChauffeurA chauffeur is a person employed to drive a passenger motor vehicle, especially a luxury vehicle such as a large sedan or limousine.Originally such drivers were always personal servants of the vehicle owner, but now in many cases specialist chauffeur service companies, or individual drivers provide...
. - In A Christmas Carol: The Musical a blind old beggar woman Scrooge rebuffs later becomes the Ghost.
- TazTasmanian Devil (Looney Tunes)The Tasmanian Devil, often referred to as Taz, is an animated cartoon character featured in the Warner Bros. Looney Tunes series of cartoons. The character appeared in only five shorts before Warner Bros...
(Jim CummingsJim CummingsJames Jonah "Jim" Cummings is an American voice actor who has appeared in almost 100 roles. He has appeared in classic animated movies such as Aladdin and The Lion King, as well as taking on roles in more current films, such as Bee Movie, Princess and the Frog, and Winnie the Pooh.-Personal...
) portrays the Ghost in Bah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes ChristmasBah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes ChristmasBah, Humduck! A Looney Tunes Christmas is a 2006 animated direct-to-video film starring the Looney Tunes and directed by Charles Visser and produced by Warner Bros. Animation...
. - In Disney's A Christmas CarolA Christmas Carol (2009 film)A Christmas Carol is a 2009 film written and directed by Robert Zemeckis...
, the ghost is depicted as a shadow (usually in place of Scrooge's own shadow) which has the ability to come out from the wall to a black physical form and can shrink Scrooge and chase him as a giant shadow carriage driver. - In "A Little Miracle", a season three episode of the science fiction television series Quantum Leap, the character Al CalavicciAl CalavicciRear Admiral Upper Half Albert “Al” Calavicci USN is a fictional character on the science fiction drama Quantum Leap, created by Donald P. Bellisario and played by Dean Stockwell.-Biography:...
dresses in chains and ghostly makeup and appears as a hologram to a greedy industrialist, claiming to be "the Ghost of Christmas Future". The industrialist, at first not believing him, points out that Jacob MarleyJacob MarleyJacob Marley is a fictional character who appears in Charles Dickens' 1843 novella A Christmas Carol.- Relationship with Scrooge:In life, Marley was the business partner of Ebenezer Scrooge. As teenagers, both men had been apprenticed in business and met as clerks in another business...
wore chains, whereas the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come wore "a black robe". - In A Flintstones Christmas CarolA Flintstones Christmas CarolA Flintstones Christmas Carol is an animated made-for-TV movie based on the original 1960s series classic, The Flintstones and on the holiday novel of the same name by Charles Dickens. Produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, it premiered in syndication on November 21, 1994...
, in which the story is performed as a play, the ghost is portrayed by Dino because the original actor for the role contracted the 'Bedrock BugIllnessIllness is a state of poor health. Illness is sometimes considered another word for disease. Others maintain that fine distinctions exist...
'. - In a 2010 episode of The Young and the RestlessThe Young and the RestlessThe Young and the Restless is an American television soap opera created by William J. Bell and Lee Phillip Bell for CBS. The show is set in a fictional Wisconsin town called Genoa City, which is unlike and unrelated to the real life village of the same name, Genoa City, Wisconsin...
, "Victor's Christmas Carol," the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come is portrayed by Colleen CarltonColleen CarltonColleen Cecile Carlton is a fictional character from the American soap opera The Young and the Restless. She was last portrayed by Tammin Sursok, who joined the cast on July 30, 2007 and departed on October 5, 2009...
, Victor NewmanVictor NewmanVictor Newman is a fictional character on the CBS soap opera The Young and the Restless played by actor Eric Braeden from February 1980 through November 2, 2009 and again from January 15, 2010 to present. The character briefly appeared on The Bold and the Beautiful in 1999...
's goddaughter and heart donor after taken off life support due to drowning. Faithful to the original Dickens story, she is shrouded in a black cloak completely concealing her and never speaks. Later on, Victor figures out for himself who she is and realizes he has been wasting the heart she gave him.