ABSTRACT
On Christmas Eve, sometime during the 1840s, in a warren of London streets, a number of people are facing crises in their lives. Amelia and Arthur Havisham have attended their father’s funeral and have returned to their home, Satis House. Outside, the moneylender, Jacob Marley, scowls at the cheerful Mrs. Gamp, then sends a boy with a message to Fagin. He runs past Mr. and Mrs. Bumble as he does so. Elsewhere, Marley’s business partner, Ebeneezer Scrooge, passes by the Old Curiosity Shop, which has a notice saying it is closed owing to illness. Inside, a dangerously ill Little Nell is tended to by her grandfather and a bibulous Mrs. Gamp. At Scrooge and Marley’s office, their assistant learns that there has been a deduction in his wages, but prompt payment of a loan is still expected of him. Sensing that he must move quickly to gain a financial advantage, Scrooge asks for the Old Curiosity Shop account. At Satis House, Amelia is comforted by her good friend, Honoria Barbary, whose hapless father is facing financial ruin. Arthur Havisham starts to plot against his sister, with an accomplice, Compeyson. In his den, Fagin tells the prostitute, Nancy, that she has an appointment with Jacob Marley that evening. She shivers with fear … 1
