Ilana's Journal Week 8: Charles Dickens and Consistency [ Edited ]

[IlanaSimons]

Charles Dickens opens his A Christmas Carrol with his famous wit. Here goes:

“Marley was dead: to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. …Scrooge signed [the official papers]: …Old Marley was as dead as a door-nail.

“…You will…permit me to repeat, emphatically, that Marley was as dead as a door-nail.

“Scrooge knew he was dead? Of course he did. …Scrooge and he were [business] partners for I don't know how many years. Scrooge was…his sole friend and sole mourner….

“Scrooge never painted out Old Marley's name [from the doorway of the business]. There it stood, years afterwards, above the warehouse door: Scrooge and Marley. The firm was known as Scrooge and Marley. Sometimes people new to the business called Scrooge Scrooge, and sometimes Marley, but he answered to both names: it was all the same to him.”

Most people know something about Dickens’ famous character-type grouch Ebenezer Scrooge. This is the guy who is frighteningly consistently icy. He won’t smile on Christmas; he hides his money and tells the poor they deserve the lives they’ve got.

I think that in these first few paragraphs, Dickens paints a porthole into the character type. He begins with a small but touching detail: After the death of his only friend and business partner, Scrooge refuses to repaint the name of his business. He keeps “Marley”—the name of what’s dead, of what’s lost, or what’s dark—above his door, and maintains that title for his company, and even sometimes responds when people call him Marley instead of by his own name. He won’t take down the name that’s sprawled there in paint.

This small physical detail is packed with insight: It’s as if Scrooge will not release his hold on grievances, will not relinquish his “title” or his calling card as it’s already been printed. This visual marker is a mental reminder that, day after day, “I’m the guy who’s lost out.” It keeps him on track to being the “Scrooge” he’s promised the public world that he is.

Of course Scrooge does have convincing reasons to be a guy who’s grouchy. His dad abandoned him early, his sister died, and his fiancée left him, and he found some comfort in retreat from social life. But I think Dickens’ first few paragraphs also remind us that Scrooge is invested in consistency itself—in his grumpiness as his public “title” or public face. The fact that he won’t erase the name of his “business” reminds me of the way we all sometimes assume identities—whether it’s the “grouchy guy” or the “chipper girl”—for the sake of a similar consistency. Take the analogy: If a business changes its name, then people get confused; the business loses clientele. Extend the analogy to our lives: If I’ve taken the role of “chipper woman” for thirty years, I’m somewhat bound to the title, simply for consistency. So there might be some moments in Scrooge’s life in which some cute little kid comes up, pulls on his shirt cuff to play, and Scrooge is almost ready to play but then remembers, “I’m Scrooge. My title is Grump.” Consistency limits his possibilities for action.

Do we all feel pressure to be the people we’ve been? It would take so much energy to one day present ourselves as characters ready for a wholly new type of “business”—for the chipper girl to study philosophy, for the macho guy to go soft. What do you think? How large a role does having a consistent public face—simply for the sake of consistency—play in your life?

Then again, if you have found ways to avoid the demands of consistency—if you’ve found avenues for trying something new, perhaps in anonymity, or through a developed notion of “who cares”—tell us.

---

-Ilana
Visit my website at http://webspace.newschool.edu/~simonsi.

Message Edited by IlanaSimons on 07-12-2007 05:04 PM

[Lathan]

Greetings (I am new here.)

Fascinating observation above, lending insight to that oft-seen Scrooge & Marley sign.

Re the question: how large a role does having a consistent public face—simply for the sake of consistency—play in your life? I think in many cases, it is a conflict for the characters to maintain a consistent public face (consider Dickens' Bleak House).

To an extent, I think we need to have different faces at different times to maintain social graces. The way one speaks to the bank loan officer, for example, is different from the way one speaks to a friend at a bar. (Or so one hopes .)

Scrooge, interestingly, has withdrawn from social life to the extent where he needs only a single face.

[Choisya]

Great post Lathan and Welcome. I agree that the way we speak to people varies a lot - the way we speak to children is very different to the way we speak to an adult and the way we speak to our employer is likely to be very different to the way we speak to our spouse etc. I wonder if our speaking voices play more 'parts' than our bodies?

I have also noticed that if actresses/actors in a popular TV programme/Film have certain mannerisms, people begin to copy them, especially young children. Are they 'acting' or are they incorporating the mannerisms into their own general behaviour?

Then there are the 'faces' on the internet, where we know that many people take on 'roles' and pretend to be what they are not, especially those with criminal intent.

It seems that Shakespeare was right - we are all actors upon a world stage!

---

Lathan wrote:
Greetings (I am new here.)

Fascinating observation above, lending insight to that oft-seen Scrooge & Marley sign.

Re the question: how large a role does having a consistent public face—simply for the sake of consistency—play in your life? I think in many cases, it is a conflict for the characters to maintain a consistent public face (consider Dickens' Bleak House).

To an extent, I think we need to have different faces at different times to maintain social graces. The way one speaks to the bank loan officer, for example, is different from the way one speaks to a friend at a bar. (Or so one hopes .)

Scrooge, interestingly, has withdrawn from social life to the extent where he needs only a single face.

---

[Everyman]

Your analysis is interesting. I didn't read it that way. Maybe this is just because I already know the story, so I'm not coming to this episode fresh, but I read it as showing his parsimoniousness; he's unwilling to pay a sign painter to paint it over, or even to expend the paint to do it himself.

BTW, I'm not sure what you mean by he has "lost out." He's alive and Marley is dead. In what way does this constitute losing out?

---

IlanaSimons wrote:
I think that in these first few paragraphs, Dickens paints a porthole into the character type. He begins with a small but touching detail: After the death of his only friend and business partner, Scrooge refuses to repaint the name of his business. He keeps “Marley”—the name of what’s dead, of what’s lost, or what’s dark—above his door, and maintains that title for his company, and even sometimes responds when people call him Marley instead of by his own name. He won’t take down the name that’s sprawled there in paint.

This small physical detail is packed with insight: It’s as if Scrooge will not release his hold on grievances, will not relinquish his “title” or his calling card as it’s already been printed. This visual marker is a mental reminder that, day after day, “I’m the guy who’s lost out.” It keeps him on track to being the “Scrooge” he’s promised the public world that he is.

---

[Choisya]

Scrooge 'lost out' long ago, as Ilana wrote: 'Of course Scrooge does have convincing reasons to be a guy who’s grouchy. His dad abandoned him early, his sister died, and his fiancée left him, and he found some comfort in retreat from social life.' Despite being alive and the sole owner of the business he still sees the need to 'keep[s] him[self] on track to being the “Scrooge” he’s promised the public world that he is.'

---

Everyman wrote:
Your analysis is interesting. I didn't read it that way. Maybe this is just because I already know the story, so I'm not coming to this episode fresh, but I read it as showing his parsimoniousness; he's unwilling to pay a sign painter to paint it over, or even to expend the paint to do it himself.

BTW, I'm not sure what you mean by he has "lost out." He's alive and Marley is dead. In what way does this constitute losing out?

---

IlanaSimons wrote:
I think that in these first few paragraphs, Dickens paints a porthole into the character type. He begins with a small but touching detail: After the death of his only friend and business partner, Scrooge refuses to repaint the name of his business. He keeps “Marley”—the name of what’s dead, of what’s lost, or what’s dark—above his door, and maintains that title for his company, and even sometimes responds when people call him Marley instead of by his own name. He won’t take down the name that’s sprawled there in paint.

This small physical detail is packed with insight: It’s as if Scrooge will not release his hold on grievances, will not relinquish his “title” or his calling card as it’s already been printed. This visual marker is a mental reminder that, day after day, “I’m the guy who’s lost out.” It keeps him on track to being the “Scrooge” he’s promised the public world that he is.

---

---

[Lathan]

Thank you, Choisya.

Everyman brings out a great point above regarding the sign. I think I'm inclined to believe, however, that Scrooge kept the name partly for business consistency. In general, firms often retain their original names to show stability. There are some law firms, for example, with names of long-departed partners.

Question: Was Scrooge & Marley a law firm? I'm inclined to believe so with the following line: "Scrooge was [Marley's] sole executor, his sole administrator, his sole assign, his sole residuary legatee, his sole friend, and sole mourner."

Message Edited by Lathan on 07-13-2007 09:05 AM

[IlanaSimons]

Thanks so much for joining us, Lathan...with a really great post.
You added better detail to my first post.
I.e.: Even if we do generally keep one character-type, we do vary it up for different roles in our lives. I am different with my students than I am with my mother. You’re really right.

There was a nice study done in psychology, in which the researcher (James Pennebaker) asked subjects to write small stories each day. One thing Pennebaker found was that writing every day--processing thoughts and emotions--has healing effects (people in the study actually needed fewer doctor visits than a control group did). But another thing he found--more interesting here--was that people who changed up their writing voice from day to day--writing a short story in the first person "I" one day for instance, and then the third person "he" on another--had greater health benefits during the time of the study. He saw that our ability to really play with our voices or personas--to allow ourselves variance in expression--is good for us.

And that makes sense: Someone who can’t act differently—or find the appropriate “voice” in various situations—has less social agility than someone else. A large part of social intelligence is knowing just how and when to change up your tone of voice.

---

Lathan wrote:
Greetings (I am new here.)

Fascinating observation above, lending insight to that oft-seen Scrooge & Marley sign.

Re the question: how large a role does having a consistent public face—simply for the sake of consistency—play in your life? I think in many cases, it is a conflict for the characters to maintain a consistent public face (consider Dickens' Bleak House).

To an extent, I think we need to have different faces at different times to maintain social graces. The way one speaks to the bank loan officer, for example, is different from the way one speaks to a friend at a bar. (Or so one hopes .)

Scrooge, interestingly, has withdrawn from social life to the extent where he needs only a single face.

---

[IlanaSimons]

Thanks for the smart and flexible response. By "lost out" I meant "lost a friend." It's as if Scrooge wants to tell himself "I'm the guy who lost my support system." I was also thinking of the things Choisya says in her post--that he lost his dad and sister and fiancee, and won't let himself forget, or get over, these aspects that give him the title of "grouch."

---

Everyman wrote:
Your analysis is interesting. I didn't read it that way. Maybe this is just because I already know the story, so I'm not coming to this episode fresh, but I read it as showing his parsimoniousness; he's unwilling to pay a sign painter to paint it over, or even to expend the paint to do it himself.

BTW, I'm not sure what you mean by he has "lost out." He's alive and Marley is dead. In what way does this constitute losing out?

---

IlanaSimons wrote:
I think that in these first few paragraphs, Dickens paints a porthole into the character type. He begins with a small but touching detail: After the death of his only friend and business partner, Scrooge refuses to repaint the name of his business. He keeps “Marley”—the name of what’s dead, of what’s lost, or what’s dark—above his door, and maintains that title for his company, and even sometimes responds when people call him Marley instead of by his own name. He won’t take down the name that’s sprawled there in paint.

This small physical detail is packed with insight: It’s as if Scrooge will not release his hold on grievances, will not relinquish his “title” or his calling card as it’s already been printed. This visual marker is a mental reminder that, day after day, “I’m the guy who’s lost out.” It keeps him on track to being the “Scrooge” he’s promised the public world that he is.

---

---

[Melissa_W Moderator]

I wanted to be a doctor since I was in grade school and a lot of my identity was tied up with that goal. Everyone knew that I was going to be a doctor (if you look up "pre-medical undergraduate" in the dictionary my picture is right there) so when I started looking at other career paths, after three negative rounds of application, it was so hard running into acquaintances who couldn't believe that I was "giving up" (their quote). Even my boss (who is a physician). A performance review two years ago ended in tears because she kept after me to re-apply so I wouldn't waste the opportunity (by that time, I'd been through the wringer with the application process); I had to put on a brave face for a long time. It's taken a lot of energy to try and find a new "goal" and I've come full circle to one of the first things I liked best - books. When you've built so much identity around a particular outcome, getting people to let go of that outcome is pretty hard, too. My MS Epidemiology doesn't quite go with the literature classes, but I'm making a pretty good go of it.

---

IlanaSimons wrote:
Do we all feel pressure to be the people we’ve been? It would take so much energy to one day present ourselves as characters ready for a wholly new type of “business”—for the chipper girl to study philosophy, for the macho guy to go soft. What do you think? How large a role does having a consistent public face—simply for the sake of consistency—play in your life?

Then again, if you have found ways to avoid the demands of consistency—if you’ve found avenues for trying something new, perhaps in anonymity, or through a developed notion of “who cares”—tell us.

---

[IlanaSimons]

Melissa,
Thanks for adding a crucial part to the picture here. You're saying that we don't invest in our goals in isolation. Other people's expectations also compel us to the often limiting need for "follow-through."
Sometimes it feels like we'd be more "realized" people if we lived in a vacuum (but not really. and not happier people...).
I'm glad you have that ability to rekindle an old passion

---

pedsphleb wrote:
I wanted to be a doctor since I was in grade school and a lot of my identity was tied up with that goal. Everyone knew that I was going to be a doctor (if you look up "pre-medical undergraduate" in the dictionary my picture is right there) so when I started looking at other career paths, after three negative rounds of application, it was so hard running into acquaintances who couldn't believe that I was "giving up" (their quote). Even my boss (who is a physician). A performance review two years ago ended in tears because she kept after me to re-apply so I wouldn't waste the opportunity (by that time, I'd been through the wringer with the application process); I had to put on a brave face for a long time. It's taken a lot of energy to try and find a new "goal" and I've come full circle to one of the first things I liked best - books. When you've built so much identity around a particular outcome, getting people to let go of that outcome is pretty hard, too. My MS Epidemiology doesn't quite go with the literature classes, but I'm making a pretty good go of it.

---

IlanaSimons wrote:
Do we all feel pressure to be the people weâ  ve been? It would take so much energy to one day present ourselves as characters ready for a wholly new type of â  businessâ  â  for the chipper girl to study philosophy, for the macho guy to go soft. What do you think? How large a role does having a consistent public faceâ  simply for the sake of consistencyâ  play in your life?

Then again, if you have found ways to avoid the demands of consistencyâ  if youâ  ve found avenues for trying something new, perhaps in anonymity, or through a developed notion of â  who caresâ  â  tell us.

---

---

Message Edited by IlanaSimons on 07-13-2007 08:50 PM

[Melissa_W Moderator]

Exactly. There were many days when I just wished I could be invisible so I would have to explain myself so many times. (The boss got behind my after I edited all our grant applications and fixed the grammar boo-boos. Yay me.)

---

IlanaSimons wrote:
Melissa,
Thanks for adding a crucial part to the picture here. You're saying that we don't invest in our goals in isolation. Other people's expectations also compel us to the often limiting need for "follow-through."
Sometimes it feels like we'd be more "realized" people if we lived in a vacuum (but not really. and not happier people...).
I'm glad you have that ability to rekindle an old passion

---

[IlanaSimons]

so remind me (sorry)--are you in grad school for literature now? ...Not that you need to be in order to pursue that passion. I just need a reminder of the details.

---

pedsphleb wrote:
Exactly. There were many days when I just wished I could be invisible so I would have to explain myself so many times. (The boss got behind my after I edited all our grant applications and fixed the grammar boo-boos. Yay me.)

---

[Melissa_W Moderator]

Want to be. I'm working on my application for Fall 2008 (good vibes, good vibes). I'm just taking some upper level classes to show that I can do advanced English work (didn't need that for a bio major in undergrad)

---

IlanaSimons wrote:
so remind me (sorry)--are you in grad school for literature now? ...Not that you need to be in order to pursue that passion. I just need a reminder of the details.

---

pedsphleb wrote:
Exactly. There were many days when I just wished I could be invisible so I would have to explain myself so many times. (The boss got behind my after I edited all our grant applications and fixed the grammar boo-boos. Yay me.)

---

---

Message Edited by pedsphleb on 07-13-2007 08:35 PM

[IlanaSimons]

That's really exciting. I hope you mention your role here in your application. You know more about books than all of us.

---

pedsphleb wrote:
Want to be. I'm working on my application for Fall 2008 (good vibes, good vibes). I'm just taking some upper level classes to show that I can do advanced English work (didn't need that for a bio major in undergrad)

---

IlanaSimons wrote:
so remind me (sorry)--are you in grad school for literature now? ...Not that you need to be in order to pursue that passion. I just need a reminder of the details.

---

pedsphleb wrote:
Exactly. There were many days when I just wished I could be invisible so I would have to explain myself so many times. (The boss got behind my after I edited all our grant applications and fixed the grammar boo-boos. Yay me.)

---

---

Message Edited by pedsphleb on 07-13-2007 08:35 PM

---

[KathyS]

Do we all feel pressure to be the people we’ve been? It would take so much energy to one day present ourselves as characters ready for a wholly new type of “business”—for the chipper girl to study philosophy, for the macho guy to go soft. What do you think? How large a role does having a consistent public face—simply for the sake of consistency—play in your life?

Then again, if you have found ways to avoid the demands of consistency—if you’ve found avenues for trying something new, perhaps in anonymity, or through a developed notion of “who cares”—tell us.

The first sentence struck me right off the bat. Yes, I've felt that pressure, The first half of my life was living within rules that weren't mine, and I was made to believe that no where else would I find I could belong. The pressure was on me, and it was within me.....Change.....I hear more versus to a song...Change can come on tip toes....but for me it was more like having to wear combat boots just to take big, high steps, slogging through the mire, and try to make these new choices belong to me, becoming only mine. I heard words and voices that said,don't do this, and don't do that, you don't need to change, until I wanted to scream and run so fast, and hide, just so no one could witness these changes in me. And maybe if I weren't noticed, I wouldn't hurt people around me.

It wasn't easy getting those words out of my head, words which were drilled into me since birth. The problem with any change, is, you not only change yourself, but the people around you see you differently, and it can alienate relationships. That's the hardest part to take in and digest. I questioned myself continually. Am I being selfish in making new choices, my own choices? This changing of the established balance, rocking the boat, and causing catastrophic imbalances in other people's lives? It's not just your own life you change, but so many other people around you feel you, and look at you differently. It's not always easy to live that new path you choose.

It wasn't a matter of "who cares". Because I did care about others. I cared for the people I hurt, but more importantly, I had to care more for myself, because without that change, I couldn't care at all.

[IlanaSimons]

You said the beginning of my post struck you. The beginning of yours strikes me. Why did self-definition seem so important early on in your life?

---

KathyS wrote:
Do we all feel pressure to be the people we’ve been? It would take so much energy to one day present ourselves as characters ready for a wholly new type of “business”—for the chipper girl to study philosophy, for the macho guy to go soft. What do you think? How large a role does having a consistent public face—simply for the sake of consistency—play in your life?

Then again, if you have found ways to avoid the demands of consistency—if you’ve found avenues for trying something new, perhaps in anonymity, or through a developed notion of “who cares”—tell us.

The first sentence struck me right off the bat. Yes, I've felt that pressure, The first half of my life was living within rules that weren't mine, and I was made to believe that no where else would I find I could belong. The pressure was on me, and it was within me.....Change.....I hear more versus to a song...Change can come on tip toes....but for me it was more like having to wear combat boots just to take big, high steps, slogging through the mire, and try to make these new choices belong to me, becoming only mine. I heard words and voices that said,don't do this, and don't do that, you don't need to change, until I wanted to scream and run so fast, and hide, just so no one could witness these changes in me. And maybe if I weren't noticed, I wouldn't hurt people around me.

It wasn't easy getting those words out of my head, words which were drilled into me since birth. The problem with any change, is, you not only change yourself, but the people around you see you differently, and it can alienate relationships. That's the hardest part to take in and digest. I questioned myself continually. Am I being selfish in making new choices, my own choices? This changing of the established balance, rocking the boat, and causing catastrophic imbalances in other people's lives? It's not just your own life you change, but so many other people around you feel you, and look at you differently. It's not always easy to live that new path you choose.

It wasn't a matter of "who cares". Because I did care about others. I cared for the people I hurt, but more importantly, I had to care more for myself, because without that change, I couldn't care at all.

---

[KathyS]

Why did self-definition seem so important early on in your life?

Ilana,
I've been sitting here for over an hour, typing this all out, trying to give you an answer, not really sure what the answer is you want. I've written all of what I know, twice, then sent it to myself in an email. And the only commonalities I see, are locked up in these words: FEAR. HURT. LIES. GUILT. HATE...... FORGIVENESS. Some of these issues are still unresolved, undefined. I'm not finished.

How do you pear down volumns into these few words? Each one carries a story. A lifetime. Is this what you're asking me? Do you want definitions for each word, as I applied them to myself as a child growing up? Or as an adult looking back...which voice to you want to hear?
Do any of these words have to do with Scrooge?

[IlanaSimons]

---

KathyS wrote:
FEAR. HURT. LIES. GUILT. HATE...... FORGIVENESS.

...Do any of these words have to do with Scrooge?

---

Ha! Yes.
yes.
I'm watching a tv show now (while painting...new obsession), about sex change operations. No analogy implied for you. But all these kids decided at a preternaturally young age, like 3, that they were living in the wrong bodies. And they made big moves to reverse the trick of fate. Good TV.

Message Edited by IlanaSimons on 07-14-2007 04:04 PM

[KathyS]

Ilana, one word for you: FOCUS! I'm glad there were no analogies....I've had a few changes in my life, but a sex change wasn't one of them! Mind alterations are my limit!

Now, I'd hate to see what your keyboard looks like! Paint, food, assorted wrappers and crumbs?

Topic at hand: Is that all the information you were looking for?...just those words for dear old S.? Or do you want me to send everyone into a comma, with essays on reasons why kids bite their fingernails, wet their beds, or throw themselves on the floor in fits of anger...etc, etc....all of which I DIDN'T DARE do!

Now, the other hand...pray tell, how does a 3yr old child determine what body is the right one to live in? Seems like an awfully young age to come to this realization. I keep learning new words...Preternaturally...Somedays, you're just a plethora of knowledge!
P.S. I always wonder, when I see an edited post....what exactly was edited...mine are *usually* misspelled cuss words!

---

IlanaSimons wrote:

---

KathyS wrote:
FEAR. HURT. LIES. GUILT. HATE...... FORGIVENESS.

...Do any of these words have to do with Scrooge?

---

Ha! Yes.
yes.
I'm watching a tv show now (while painting...new obsession), about sex change operations. No analogy implied for you. But all these kids decided at a preternaturally young age, like 3, that they were living in the wrong bodies. And they made big moves to reverse the trick of fate. Good TV.

Message Edited by IlanaSimons on 07-14-2007 04:04 PM

---

Message Edited by KathyS on 07-14-2007 02:57 PM

[IlanaSimons]

Right on. I'll comply. The edits, as far as I remember, were these: misspell on
"preternaturally" ("per·i·na·tally" was a viable option) and I wrote "mesmerized by the t.v." instead of "good t.v.." Changed that one to sound less in love with pain in other people's t.v.'d lives.

---

KathyS wrote:
Ilana, one word for you: FOCUS! I'm glad there were no analogies....I've had a few changes in my life, but a sex change wasn't one of them! Mind alterations are my limit!

Now, I'd hate to see what your keyboard looks like! Paint, food, assorted wrappers and crumbs?

Topic at hand: Is that all the information you were looking for?...just those words for dear old S.? Or do you want me to send everyone into a comma, with essays on reasons why kids bite their fingernails, wet their beds, or throw themselves on the floor in fits of anger...etc, etc....all of which I DIDN'T DARE do!

Now, the other hand...pray tell, how does a 3yr old child determine what body is the right one to live in? Seems like an awfully young age to come to this realization. I keep learning new words...Preternaturally...Somedays, you're just a plethora of knowledge!
P.S. I always wonder, when I see an edited post....what exactly was edited...mine are *usually* misspelled cuss words!

---

IlanaSimons wrote:

---

KathyS wrote:
FEAR. HURT. LIES. GUILT. HATE...... FORGIVENESS.

...Do any of these words have to do with Scrooge?

---

Ha! Yes.
yes.
I'm watching a tv show now (while painting...new obsession), about sex change operations. No analogy implied for you. But all these kids decided at a preternaturally young age, like 3, that they were living in the wrong bodies. And they made big moves to reverse the trick of fate. Good TV.

Message Edited by IlanaSimons on 07-14-2007 04:04 PM

---

Message Edited by KathyS on 07-14-2007 02:57 PM

---