Marley was Scrooge’s business partner and friend who died seven years ago. He appears to his friend as a ghost and tells him there are three spirits who will pay him a visit. Due to Marley’s life of greed and selfishness, he’s found himself in a bad fate even in death. He tells Scrooge he has one chance to avoid the same fate by listening to the visiting ghosts.
The Ghost of Christmas Past takes Scrooge back to his childhood, the Ghost of Christmas Present shows him all the happy people at the market buying food for Christmas dinner and other holiday celebrations while he is alone, and finally The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come shows the grumpy man his own grave and how no one mourns his loss. But by the end, Scrooge learns to become a kinder person.
Later, Scrooge meets the jolly Ghost of Christmas Present who takes him to a market, where people buy ingredients for a Christmas dinner. The spirit explains that Tim will die if Scrooge doesn't change the course of events. Before leaving, the spirit shows Scrooge two hideously deformed children named Ignorance and Want. It tells Scrooge to beware the former above all and mocks Scrooge's concern for their welfare.
Alone in a dark alleyway, Scrooge then meets the mysterious and silent Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come. The spirit shows Scrooge three businessmen who discuss the death of a colleague, who will only go to the funeral if lunch is provided. Scrooge notices his possessions have been stolen by his charwoman, laundress and the local undertaker and have been sold to a fencer. Scrooge is then transported to the house of the Cratchits, who are mourning the death of Tim. They vow to keep the boy with them in all they say and do. Scrooge is then taken to a graveyard during a snowstorm where he finds his grave, revealing him to be the one whose possessions was stolen. Before Scrooge is transported to hell, he promises to the spirit that he will keep Christmas in his heart for the better and begs to it for him to be spared.
As Scrooge falls into the coffin, he wakes up and discovers that it is Christmas morning. He decides to send a large prize-winning turkey to the Cratchits, greed everyone on the streets of London, and makes a big donation to the poor. He then goes to Fred's house for Christmas dinner. The next morning, Scrooge decides to increase Bob's salary and make him his new business partner. A narration explains that Scrooge became a father figure to Tim and now embodies the spirit of Christmas, like the spirits taught him.
Bob Cratchit family. Who is Bob Cratchit in Christmas Carol?Bob Cratchit in A Christmas Carol – Characters. Bob Cratchit is Scrooge's clerk and works in unpleasant conditions without complaint. He obeys Scrooge's rules and is timid about asking to go home to his family early on Christmas Eve.