Nina D.
asked • 05/17/211. How does the choice of the narrative point of view correspond with the didactic function of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol?
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1 Expert Answer
Nicole T. answered • 09/11/21
Tutor
New to Wyzant
Patient English Grad for HS Tutoring in English and History
I hope that this video sums up the question asked. While I know that it is an old one, it’s clear that the point of view and didacticism in this story go hand-in-hand with not only the main character, but with the reader, as well. I encourage you to place yourself in Scrooge’s place and think about what knowledge you may learn as an “outsider” looking in at your own life.
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Dawn H.
Dickens uses third person limited omniscient point of view in A Christmas Carol. This means that the narrator is outside the story and knows everything that is happening in the story, but only has insight into the thoughts and feelings of certain characters. In A Christmas Carol, this character is Scrooge. The narrator relays Scrooge’s thoughts and feeling throughout the story using various literary techniques. The reason this point of view works well with the didactic function of the story is that the author’s main reason for writing A Christmas Carol was to teach people that charity and compassion are what the Christmas Season is all about and those who have much should feel compelled to help lift up the poor and downtrodden in society. The third person limited omniscient point of view allows us to see Scrooge’s heart change from cold to compassionate through the narrator’s insight into Scrooge’s mind.05/31/21