Good morning and welcome to today's lesson.

My name is Miss Halliday and I'll be your teacher for today.

I'm really looking forward to hearing all of your ideas and suggestions that you come up with during our discussion time.

So let's get started with our learning, shall we? Today we'll be looking at both Scrooge and Fred individually, but also together in staves one and three.

And by the end of today's lesson you will be able to explain how Dickens presents Fred as the antithesis of Scrooge.

Here are some keywords that you'll need to unlock today's learning.

You've got antithesis, opposing, colour symbolism, frivolous, and to contrast.

Here are the definitions of these keywords.

Feel free to pause the video and take a little bit longer to read them if you wish to do so.

And here's the outline for today's lesson.

We're going to start by looking at Fred and Scrooge's contrasting values and then we're going to look in learning cycle two at Fred's Christmas spirit.

Let's start with their contrasting values first.

So let's start with a little bit of a discussion and a recap.

I'd like you to discuss, well what is Scrooge like in stave one? And here's a quick example for you to get you started.

So we know that Scrooge in stave one is isolate with no friends and he neglects his remaining family member, Fred.

You're going to populate the rest of the grid with ideas as to what Scrooge is like in stave one.

So pause the video and complete that discussion task now.

Fantastic discussions and I heard some really great ideas.

Well done if you identified that Scrooge, as well as having no friends, also shuns society and hates community.

In stave one we also see Scrooge being really harsh to his acquaintances and his employee, Bob Cratchit.

We also see Scrooge as being really selfish and miserly with his wealth.

We also see him being very harsh and critical of his nephew, Fred, which shows that he doesn't value family.

I'd now like you to think, well, we've talked about Scrooge in stave one, but what about Fred? So I'm going to invite you to pause the video while you discuss what impression of Fred did we get in stave one? And well done if you identified that, unlike Scrooge, Fred has a really good sense of humour.

Fred values human interaction.

Fred is kind and optimistic and generous with his time.

And finally, we see the fact that, because Fred continues to invite Scrooge to his Christmas party every year, even though he rejects him, he really values family, he still makes an effort with his uncle, Scrooge.

So well done if you got any of those ideas.

Again, another discussion task.

I'd like you to think, well how does Dickens characterise the two characters as opposites and what do both characters think about family? Now what I've done here to help you is I've put some quotations from stave one from both Scrooge.

So we've got things like the cold within him froze his old features, all the way to him asking Fred, well why did you get married? Okay, because you fell in love and him kind of poking fun at Fred there for getting married.

I've also populated Fred's side with some quotes from Fred in stave one, so his physical appearance first of all, he was all in a glow, he was handsome et cetera, all the way to his interactions with his uncle, Scrooge where he states that he actually wants nothing from him other than to be friends.

So, what I'd like you to do here is use the quotations on both sides of the table to really think about how Dickens characterises the two as opposites.

What methods does he use? And also, how does Dickens show us both characters' perspectives on family and how much they value or don't value family as it may be? So I'm going to invite you now to pause the video while you have those conversations and discussions and before we share some ideas together.

Fantastic work, some really fruitful discussions being had there and well done for interacting so respectfully with each other.

So let's start with Scrooge then and how Dickens characterises him.

So first of all, Dickens uses that extended metaphor, if you remember, that compared Scrooge to the cold and that showed his really cold-hearted nature.

However, Fred is described as handsome and warm, so all in a glow and ruddy and the colour symbolism here that Dickens uses, so the fact he associates Fred with the colour red, shows his emotional warmth versus Scrooge's emotional coldness.

Scrooge is also characterised as deeply misanthropic, okay, and we see his real disdain for other people because he states that he lives in a world of fools, and we really see there his contempt for other people.

On the other hand, we see Fred as an optimistic and philanthropic character who always sees the good in other people and other situations because we see through his voice, the fact that he speaks gaily and cheerfully, that he is a really optimistic and kind-hearted character.

Again we see Dickens presenting Scrooge as a character who resents other people and actually in stave one it's hard to believe that he actually has the capacity to love anybody else, including his own family because he's presented as so cold hearted and miserly.

However, we see through Fred's interactions with Scrooge that he really values those human connections over material gain.

He continues to ask Scrooge why they can't just be friends, and he makes it really clear that he's not wanting to interact with Scrooge because he thinks he might gain something financially from it, but because he values family and the blood connection that they share.

Unfortunately for Fred, Scrooge is very miserly and he values material possessions way over human interactions and meaningful relationships.

So unfortunately, Fred and Scrooge's values do not match up and they're very contrasting.

Let's check your understanding of what we've just learnt.

Which method does Dickens not use to characterise Fred as the antithesis of Scrooge? Is it A, juxtaposition, B, extended metaphors, C, mirroring, or D, colour symbolism? So I'm going to encourage you to pause the video and jot down your answer before we share the correct response.

And we done if you correctly identified that it is in fact C.

Dickens does not use mirroring, but he does use juxtaposition, extended metaphors, and colour symbolism to present the two as contrasting characters who are the antithesis of one another.

So onto the first task of the lesson.

Again, I've given you a table that is full of quotations from stave one from Scrooge and stave one from Fred.

You are going to use this table, just like we did in the previous activity, to discuss Dickens' presentation of the two opposing characters and their opposing values.

So again, just like we did before, looking at the quotes, comparing how Dickens characterises them and shows their opposing attitudes.

So I'm going to invite you now to pause the video while you have a go at that activity.

Some really fantastic and detailed work going on there, I'm so impressed, so well done.

So first of all, we Scrooge really resenting Christmas in stave one, that famous, famous bah humbug quotation that everybody seems to know whether they've read A Christmas Carol or not, is indicative of Scrooge's disdain for Christmas and all that it represents, so charity, goodwill, generosity et cetera.

Instead of viewing Christmas as a time to unite together and be merry, Scrooge views it as a time for losing money and we see that when he really resents paying Bob for his time off.

When Bob requests Christmas day off, Scrooge gives it to him, but very begrudgingly because he accuses Bob of picking a man's pocket.

So he's suggesting that in not working Christmas day, Bob is effectively robbing him of a day's pay.

However, Fred demonstrates real festive goodwill and cheer and he is determined to remain positive despite Scrooge's barrage of abuse.

Going back to Scrooge, we see obviously that he hates Christmas, we've just spoken about that, and he cannot understand why anybody would enjoy it, especially the poor, who don't have the means, the financial means, to rejoice.

However, Fred on the other hand doesn't view Christmas as being about money or material gain, he views it as a time to spend time with others and to be grateful for what one has, how much or how little a person has, he thinks it's a time to be grateful for that.

And finally, going back to Scrooge, well he treats people who celebrate Christmas with real disdain, as if they're committing a criminal act and he makes that really cruel comment about burying people with stake of holly through their heart who celebrate Christmas because he believes that they should be punished for being so frivolous with their money and being just a bit over the top and hyperbolic with their celebrations because it's everything that Scrooge hates.

And finally, we see on the contrary that Fred isn't concerned with the material aspects of Christmas whatsoever, because that's not what Christmas represents to Fred.

He says he's never profited from it, but he enjoys it, not because of material gain, but because of the goodwill that people around him demonstrate and the fact that it unites the community and encourages this Christmas spirit that he really enjoys participating in and witnessing.

So for Fred, Christmas is not about losing money, it's not about paying people for a day's work they don't complete, it's about uniting the community and demonstrating goodwill and Christmas cheer.

So well done if you got any of those ideas.

Great work.

So onto the second part of the lesson now where we're going to look in a little bit more detail at Fred's Christmas spirit.

So moving on to looking at Fred's Christmas spirit in stave three.

Now in stave three, the spirit takes Scrooge to see Christmas at Fred's house.

And as a little bit of a recap, I would like you to put the following events in chronological order of when Scrooge is shown them.

So these are your events that you're going to put in order.

I'm not going to read them out to you because we'll go through them when we've put them in the right order on the next slide.

So what I'd like you to do now is pause the video and have a go at putting those events in chronological order of when Scrooge is shown them in stave three.

Off you go.

Fantastic work and I'm hoping that you all got this order.

So first of all, Scrooge hears Fred laughing about him saying bah humbug at Christmas.

And Scrooge's niece remarks that she has no patience with him.

But Fred in response states that whilst Scrooge is wealthy, he doesn't use his wealth to do good.

Fred then states that he's going to continue inviting Scrooge to Christmas dinner, despite the fact that he rejects him year upon year.

Then, Fred and his guests sing songs and they play instruments together.

They then begin to play a game called blindman's buff and then they start to play this game of yes and no that Scrooge observes, where they imitate Scrooge and have a laugh at his expense.

And finally in this stave, we see Fred raising a glass to his uncle Scrooge for providing the evening's entertainment and he drinks to his health and wishes him well.

So well done if you got the correct order of events.

Excellent work.

So we're going to look specifically at how Fred is presented in this stave, specifically at him as a merry character who embodies Christmas spirit.

So here's our quotation.

We're going to look at an example together and then I'm going to get you to do one independently.

So here's our quotation we're going to analyse.

He's a comical old fellow, said Scrooge's nephew, that's the truth, and not so pleasant as he might be.

However, his offences carry their own punishment and I have nothing to say against him.

So first of all, if we were analysing this quotations, looking at how Fred is presented, our overall impression is that Fred is shown to have a really good sense of humour and he's seen to see the best in people because even though Scrooge has treated him really poorly and has rejected his invite to Christmas every single year, he still states that he's a comical old fellow, which seems to suggest that he does still hold some level of affection for his miserable uncle Scrooge, and he always aims to see the best in people despite the way that they treat him.

We might also say that this phrase, his offences carry their own punishment, show that Fred really understands that actions have consequences and that actually, at some point, Scrooge will get his comeuppance for his behaviour.

So here we see Fred as a character who really understands the role of social responsibility to the functioning of society.

So what I'm going to do now is give you a quotation and I'd like you to unpick it and analyse it, looking at how Fred is presented.

So here's your quotation.

His wealth is of no use to him.

He don't do any good with it.

He don't make himself comfortable with it.

He hasn't the satisfaction of thinking, ha ha ha, that's he's ever going to benefit us with it.

Okay, so there's your quotation.

What I'd like you to do now is pause the video while you analyse it, looking specifically at how Fred is presented.

Off you go.

Some fantastic analysis work there, a massive well done.

Let's have a look at some of the answers that you came up with.

I'm going to share the ones that I liked best.

First of all, this phrase, he don't do any good with it.

Now that shows us that Fred is aware of the role of social responsibility to the functioning of society and he's acutely aware of the fact that Scrooge doesn't contribute to his society in any way and that's something he criticises his uncle for.

This shows us that he has a real awareness of the importance of charity and generosity.

You also might have picked out the laugh that Fred does.

Now, in the novella, Fred laughs frequently and we've mentioned before that laughter in A Christmas Carol is synonymous with goodwill and Christmas cheer.

So here, Dickens is presenting Fred as a very merry character, who, again, is optimistic and positive and always sees the best in any person or any situation.

So he's very benevolent and philanthropic in his approach.

So well done if you got those ideas, great work.

So what I'm going to do now, is I'm going to show you an extract and we're going to read it together first and then use it to have some discussions.

So, as I'm reading, you should be following along.

I was only going to say, said Scrooge's nephew, that the consequence of his taking a dislike to us, and not making merry with us, is, as I think, that he loses some pleasant moments, which could do him no harm.

I am sure he loses pleasanter companions than he can find in his own thoughts, either in his mouldy old office, or his dusty chambers.

I mean to give him the same chance every year, whether he likes it or not, for I pity him.

He may rail at Christmas till he dies, but he can't help thinking better of it.

I defy him.

If he finds me going there in good temper year after year and saying Uncle Scrooge, how are you? If it only puts him the vein to leave his poor clerk £50, that's something, and I think I shook him yesterday.

So now we've read that extract, I'd like you to discuss, how does Fred feel about Scrooge? And what is your impression of Fred? So I'm going to invite you to pause the video while you have those conversations now.

Some fantastic discussions.

Here's some of the answers you might have come up with.

Fred thinks it's a real shame that Scrooge shuns him and his party each and every single year.

Fred also believes that, by isolating himself, Scrooge is missing out on having pleasant companions and pleasant interactions with other people.

He feels sorry for Scrooge because he can't recognise the value of other people and I think Fred's sad because I think he realises how much he could contribute to Scrooge's life and how much he could enrich his uncle's existence.

Fred also vows to always visit Scrooge at Christmas despite his rejection and he says that one day, he hopes he might inspire Scrooge to at least be more generous with Bob on Christmas day.

So that shows how selfless Fred is, because he's almost visiting Scrooge, not only for Scrooge's benefit, but also for Bob Cratchit's benefit.

And finally, you might have said that actually Fred is presented as a really selfless and kind character who gives up his time to help and encourage other people.

So well done if you got any of those ideas.

And onto our last task of the lesson and I'd like you to answer the following questions using quotations from the text to support your opinions and ideas.

First of all, here's your first question.

What does Scrooge learn from watching Fred at Christmas with his guests? Why is Fred in the novella? And why did Dickens create him? What is it that we, as the reader, learn from Fred? So what I'm going to invite you to do now is pause the video while you answer the two questions on screen, making sure that you are using quotations from the text to support your opinions and ideas, that's really important.

Any opinion needs to be evidenced with quotations from the text.

So pause the video and have a go at that task for me now please.

Some fantastic work and here are some suggestions of things that you might have written.

So first of all in response to this question about what Scrooge learns from watching Fred at Christmas.

Well, you might have said that when observing Fred with his guests at Christmas, Scrooge again learns what he has been missing out on, the value of human interaction.

Though, quote, his voice made no sound in their ears, Scrooge joins in the party games and often guessed quite right too.

This shows that he has, in this stave, developed a sense of humour and softened more and more, showing his transformation from stave one in which he was hard and sharp as flint.

He has learned the true value of human connection and community from watching Fred interact with his guests.

So here we're kind of epitomising this idea that basically, in watching Fred interact with his guests, Scrooge has learned how important our interactions are with other people, but also how important it is to have a sense of humour and to view situations positively and try to think more kindly about other people, even though they may not treat us nicely themselves.

So well done if you got that idea.

So in terms of why Fred's in the novella and why Dickens created him and what we learn from him.

Well, you might have said that Dickens characterises Fred as the complete opposite, or the antithesis, of Scrooge in every way.

Whereas Scrooge is frosty and hard, Fred is ruddy and handsome.

Scrooge in stave one, and Fred throughout the novella, value opposite qualities.

Scrooge values material wealth and gain, whereas Fred values family and interpersonal relationships.

Dickens creates the antithesis of Scrooge to exemplify what a moral and philanthropic Victorian citizen looks like, to provide a harsh contrast with Scrooge's miserly and ignorant approach to life.

Through showing us Scrooge through the eyes of Fred, we learn the importance of humour and empathy, for Fred shows that even a character like Scrooge deserves pity.

Fred therefore exemplifies Dickens' message, not just about being kind and generous at Christmas, but all year round.

So basically, in terms of why Fred's in the novella, well he's there to make contrast with Scrooge and to show how immoral Scrooge is.

In terms of why Dickens creates him, well he embodies all of the values that Dickens is promoting in this novella such as kindness, empathy, and charity.

And in terms of what we learn from him, well we, along with Scrooge, learn the importance of family and empathy from Fred.

So to summarise the learning from today's lesson.

Remember that Dickens uses colour symbolism and extended metaphors to characterise Scrooge and Fred as opposite characters.

Scrooge is likened to the cold, whereas Fred is described as ruddy, handsome, and warm.

Dickens creates the antithesis of Scrooge in Fred to exemplify Christmas spirit, empathy, and goodwill and to provide a harsh contrast with Scrooge's miserly and ignorant approach to life.

Through showing us Scrooge through the eyes of Fred, we learn the importance of humour and empathy and even a character like Scrooge deserves pity.

So that's something that the reader learns alongside Scrooge.

And finally, seeing Fred's Christmas party causes Scrooge to, quote, soften, and that shows his moral progress and the transformation that he's already undergone.

I'd like to thank you for coming to today's lesson and being so active in your engagement with the learning.

I've been really impressed by all your responses, ideas, and suggestions.

I hope you have a lovely rest of your day and I look forward to seeing you next time.

See you later.