Relationship Analysis in A Christmas Carol - Essay Example

In books, the tone of communication is enough to describe the relationship between two characters and the author does not need to explain the relationship separately. The analysis in this paper will be done in a similar manner, i.e. by considering the tone of communication between the characters. Thus, this analysis would show that the context and manner of communication define the relationship between the individuals communicating with each other. This is also one of the most important aspects of the interpersonal communication.

The main character of the book is Ebenezer Scrooge who has been described as being a stingy and miser person who stays away from philanthropic activities and spends every penny after giving it a significant thought. Scrooge has no value for the acts of kindness or benevolence and all he cares about is accumulation of wealth. Jacob Marley was the business partner of Scrooge who has been disclosed to have been dead for seven years when the story starts to unfold. On the Christmas Eve in the 1840’s Scrooge is visited by the ghost of his dead business partner Jacob Marley who tries to convince Scrooge to change his ways.

In the past, Marley has been described as being the only friend, administrator, business partner and mourner of Scrooge therefore it can be said that both the characters had a similar personality, i.e. they both had love for money. After seven years of the death of Marley, Scrooge is visited by the ghost of Marley. Initially the character of Marley does not communicate directly with Scrooge but makes Scrooge feel his appearance in different ways. He then appears in the fireplace in Scrooge’s bedroom.

Ultimately, the ghost of Marley appears in front of Scrooge himself. This is where the first verbal communication between these two characters takes place. Initially the character of Scrooge responds coldly to the appearance of the ghost and asks what does the ghost wants from him. The ghost of Marley replies, “Much!” Scrooge then asks who the ghost was and Marley replies, “Ask me who I was.” The character of Marley then reminds Scrooge that he was his only friend in his life. Scrooge still remains doubtful but the manner of his dialogue suggests that he is not as cold as he was at his first reaction.

He offers Marley a seat and remains unsure whether a ghost would need one. Scrooge remains skeptical whether Marley is real or not and the communication between the characters takes another turn when Scrooge behaves as if Marley is just a figment of his imagination and it is not a real ghost. At one point, Scrooge expresses to Marley that it must be something he had eaten that is playing tricks on his mind. The ghost of Marley lets out a cry that makes Scrooge so afraid he fell upon his knees and begged from mercy.

Here, it can be said that the context of communication has changed completely as compared to where it started. Initially, the character of Scrooge was cold towards the character of ghost Marley. Perception of the characters also plays an important part in the effectiveness of communication between two individuals. If the perceptions of individuals are similar, there would be effective communication between them as the receiver would understand what the sender is trying to communicate (Robbins, 2009).

However, if there is difference in perceptions there would be distortion in the flow of communication and a lot of reconciliation would also be required. In this book, the character of