Book Anatomy · A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol: Prose style
17 lenses on prose style for A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Count lenses are exact for our text. AI lenses are our reading and cite only quotes that passed a word for word check.
Jump to: H1 H2 H3 H4 H5 H6 H7 H8 H9 H10 H11 H12 H13 H14 H15 H16 H17
H1. Readability score per chapter. Count
Flesch reading ease for the whole book is about 78 (higher is easier; 60 to 70 is plain English).
Reading ease per chapter, chapter by chapter
H2. Vocabulary range. Count
4,319 different words. On average 51 in every 100 words are new within a 500 word stretch. 2,401 words appear only once.
H3. Signature words: what this author uses far more than others. Count
christmas, ghost, spirit, nephew, merry. See the full lens on the book page.
H4. Adverb and adjective rates. Count
About 10.34 words ending in 'ly' and 8.99 likely adjectives per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
'ly' words per 1,000, chapter by chapter
H5. Share of weak verbs such as "was" and "had". Count
'Was', 'were', 'had', 'is' and 'are' make up 3.5% of all words.
H6. Passive voice rate. Count
About 5.7% of sentences use a passive form such as 'was taken'. (rough estimate from word lists)
H7. Variety of sentence openings. Count
The five most common first words start 29% of sentences: the, i, he, it, scrooge.
| First word | Sentences |
|---|---|
| the | 144 |
| i | 113 |
| he | 109 |
| it | 83 |
| scrooge | 74 |
| but | 65 |
| and | 47 |
| a | 37 |
| they | 36 |
| you | 35 |
H8. Rhythm: how much sentence length varies. Count
Sentence length varies by 0.91 of its mean on average (higher means a more varied rhythm).
Variation per chapter, chapter by chapter
H9. Similes and metaphors: how many, and of what kind. Both
44 likely similes ('like a', 'as ... as'): 1.53 per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
Ch 1, para 1: 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 …
Ch 1, para 2: Mind! I don't mean to say that I know, of my own knowledge, what there is particularly dead about a door-nail. I might have been inclined, myself, to …
Ch 1, para 78: The clerk promised that he would; and Scrooge walked out with a growl. The office was closed in a twinkling, and the clerk, with the long ends of …
Ch 1, para 81: Marley's face. It was not in impenetrable shadow as the other objects in the yard were, but had a dismal light about it, like a bad lobster in …
Ch 1, para 90: It was a very low fire indeed; nothing on such a bitter night. He was obliged to sit close to it, and brood over it, before he could …
Ch 1, para 97: The same face: the very same. Marley in his pigtail, usual waistcoat, tights and boots; the tassels on the latter bristling, like his pigtail, and his coat-skirts, and …
Dickens uses abundant similes and metaphors throughout, often in clusters. Examples include Marley 'as dead as a door-nail' (c1), Scrooge's heart compared to stone, chains symbolising greed's bondage (c1, c4), and light versus darkness representing hope and despair across all chapters.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 4, Ch 5
MARLEY was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. (Ch 1, para 1)
Oh! But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grind-stone, Scrooge! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! (Ch 1, para 6)
H10. Senses used: sight, sound, smell, touch, taste. Both
Share of sense words. sight 57%, sound 22%, touch 19%, taste 1%, smell 1%. (rough estimate from word lists)
| Sense | Words |
|---|---|
| sight | 237 |
| sound | 90 |
| touch | 78 |
| taste | 6 |
| smell | 5 |
All five senses feature prominently. Sight dominates (ghosts, visions, graves). Sound includes bells, carols, and Marley's chains. Touch appears in cold, frost, and Scrooge grasping the Spirit's robe. Smell and taste are minimal but present in feast scenes (c3, c5).
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 4, Ch 5
The spectre, after listening for a moment, joined in the mournful dirge; and floated out upon the bleak, dark night. (Ch 1, para 169)
The bell struck twelve. (Ch 3, para 147)
H11. Repetition, lists of three and other patterns. Both
41 lists of three in the pattern 'a, b and c': 1.43 per 1,000 words. (rough estimate from word lists)
Repetition and lists of three structure the narrative: three spirits visit Scrooge; three Cratchit children appear; Scrooge uses triplets like 'light as a feather, happy as an angel, merry as a schoolboy' (c5). Marley's description uses six adjectives in sequence (c1).
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 4, Ch 5
Oh! But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grind-stone, Scrooge! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! (Ch 1, para 6)
I am as light as a feather, I am as happy as an angel, I am as merry as a schoolboy. I am as giddy as a drunken man. (Ch 5, para 6)
H12. Old words that may trip modern readers. Count
Old forms that may trip a modern reader: thy, whence, thou, wherefore, nay, hither.
| Word | Times |
|---|---|
| thy | 4 |
| whence | 3 |
| thou | 2 |
| wherefore | 1 |
| nay | 1 |
| hither | 1 |
| thither | 1 |
| thine | 1 |
H13. Showing against telling, with examples. AI
Dickens shows character through action and dialogue rather than summary. Scrooge's coldness is shown through his rejection of charity and dismissal of Christmas (c1), not stated. The Cratchits' love is shown through their humble dinner and care for Tiny Tim (c3), not told.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 3, Ch 5
Oh! But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grind-stone, Scrooge! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! (Ch 1, para 6)
A merry Christmas, Bob!" said Scrooge, with an earnestness that could not be mistaken, as he clapped him on the back. "A merrier Christmas, Bob, my good fellow, than I have given you, for many a year! (Ch 5, para 69)
H14. How much description comes before action. Both
Description is woven into action throughout. The opening establishes Marley's death and Scrooge's character in one paragraph before action begins (c1). Scenes of Christmas Past, Present and Yet To Come blend setting details with Scrooge's reactions and movement (c2, c3, c4).
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 4
MARLEY was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. (Ch 1, para 1)
I am the Ghost of Christmas Past. (Ch 2, para 26)
H15. Filter words such as "saw", "felt", "heard". Count
Filter words ('saw', 'felt', 'heard' and so on): 4.08 per 1,000 words.
| Word | Times |
|---|---|
| thought | 29 |
| saw | 23 |
| knew | 21 |
| heard | 16 |
| seemed | 14 |
| felt | 11 |
| watched | 2 |
| noticed | 1 |
H16. Shifts in tone. AI
Tone shifts from sardonic and dark in c1 (Marley's warning) to nostalgic and tender in c2 (Belle scenes), then to urgent moral concern in c3 (Ignorance and Want), despair in c4 (grave revelation), and joyful redemption in c5 (transformation).
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 4, Ch 5
This boy is Ignorance. This girl is Want. Beware them both, and all of their degree, but most of all beware this boy, for on his brow I see that written which is Doom, unless the writing be erased. (Ch 3, para 144)
YES! and the bedpost was his own. The bed was his own, the room was his own. Best and happiest of all, the Time before him was his own, to make amends in! (Ch 5, para 1)
H17. How the comedy works. AI
Comedy arises from Scrooge's absurd resistance to the supernatural (c1), his bewilderment at the spirits' methods, and his rapid mood swings in c5. Dickens uses exaggeration (Marley's chains, Scrooge's joy) and situational irony (the miser becoming generous) for humour.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 3, Ch 5
Oh! But he was a tight-fisted hand at the grind-stone, Scrooge! a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous, old sinner! (Ch 1, para 6)
I am as light as a feather, I am as happy as an angel, I am as merry as a schoolboy. I am as giddy as a drunken man. (Ch 5, para 6)
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