Episode 96 Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol - Analysis and Vocabulary

Yesterday we read Charles Dickens' Christmas Carol. This is quite a challenging read, even for me! So I just read a tiny bit, which is all about Christmas dinner. Today we are analysing the text. This is the longest episode yet, 20 minutes! But I go through the text bit by bit and I hope it will help you understand.  In this analysis I will also tell you a lot about British Christmas dinners, the kinds of foods and how they are prepared as well as some background to Charles Dickens. Whatever you're doing this holiday season, I hope you have a lovely time! Happy Holidays! Vocabulary (More Vocabulary in the YouTube Description) 'The two young Cratchit's set chairs for everybody, not forgetting themselves, and mounting guard upon their posts crammed spoons into their mouths lest they should shriek for goose before their turn came to be helped.' - So they put chairs around the table, then they sat on their own chairs and put their spoons into their mouths to stop themselves from shouting. 'At last the dishes were set on and grace was said' - the dishes were put on the table (these days 'put on' is a more common phrasal verb than 'set on'.) 'Mrs Cratchit' looking slowly all along the carving knife, prepared to plunge it in the breast; but when she did, and when the long expected gush of stuffing issued forth' - 'gush of stuffing issued forth' just means the stuffing was coming out of the bird. 'Themes of universal admiration' - everyone liked it, everyone was impressed 'Eked out by apple sauce and mashed potatoes, it was a sufficient dinner for the whole family' - the dinner was made bigger by having lots of potatoes and apple sauce. Eke something out - phrasal verb - to extend something past it's expected limit 'The youngest Cratchit's in particular were steeped in sage and onion to the eyebrows' - idiom - when you eat too much of something and now you're full up. Full to the brim - idiom - similar to the above, means you're full. 'Mrs Cratchit left the room alone - too nervous to bear witnesses -to take the pudding up, and bring it in.' - She didn't want anybody watching her while she prepared the final stages of the pudding. Bear witness to something - idiom - to see something happen 'Suppose it should not be done enough! Suppose it should break in turning out. Suppose somebody should have got over the wall of the backyard and stolen it'. - the children are making lots of guesses of terrible things that might have happened. Heresy - to disagree with accepted truth. Often used to talk about people who don't agree with religious beliefs. Additional Vocabulary props - physical things we can use to support an idea serials in newspapers - A serial is something that comes out regularly, it can be a TV show, but in this case it is the story in a newspaper. extraordinarily prolific - unusually productive portraying - showing or demonstrating poverty stricken - a common collocation describing people who are experiencing poverty staple food - a regular and main food of a country or culture get a helping of goose - phrasal verb - get an amount of something be helped to the goose - phrasal verb - someone helps you get something help ourselves to the goose - phrasal verb - we take something ourselves, 'help yourself' is a common way for English speakers to tell guests they can feel comfortable and take their own food. churchy house - adding a 'y' on the end of a word can suggest 'something like this', in this case it means 'religious people' notches in the knife - damage to the knife tea-towel - a thin towel used in the kitchen to dry glasses and crockery cross your fingers - a common phrase, often accompanied by an action, to ward off danger or hope for success, superstitious. Whatever you're doing this holiday season, I hope you have a lovely time! Happy Holidays!