This memory aid covers Memory Aid: The ICT Arc within Scrooge (character) for GCSE English Literature. Revise Scrooge (character) in A Christmas Carol for GCSE English Literature with 12 exam-style questions and 13 flashcards. This topic shows up very often in GCSE exams, so students should be able to explain it clearly, not just recognise the term. It is section 14 of 17 in this topic. Use it for quick recall, then test yourself straight afterwards so the memory aid becomes usable in an answer.
🧠 Memory Aid: The ICT Arc
Scrooge's character arc follows three stages — remember them with ICT:
- I — ISOLATED: Stave 1 — "solitary as an oyster"; laissez-faire ideology; cold as weather; the man he has become
- C — CONFRONTED: Staves 2–4 — three ghosts as moral teachers; empathy → shame → fear; Belle, Cratchits, gravestone; the man he could still be
- T — TRANSFORMED: Stave 5 — "Hallo! Whoop!"; childlike joy; systematic repair of each Stave 1 wrong; the man his name always promised
In essays, trace how Dickens constructs each stage — the techniques used, not just the events that happen. ICT gives you three clear essay paragraphs for any Scrooge question.
Practice questions for Scrooge (character)
In Stave 1, Dickens describes Scrooge as 'a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner!' Which of the following best describes what Dickens achieves by accumulating six present participles in this single phrase?
Identify and explain ONE technique Dickens uses in the following description of Scrooge in Stave 1: 'cold within him froze his old features, nipped his pointed nose, shrivelled his cheek, stiffened his gait.'