C’est une histoire de Noël classique, lisez l’histoire et essayez le quiz ci-dessous. Si vous voulez imprimer l’écran, utilisez le bouton d’impression en bas.
A Christmas Carol – Chapter 1, Marley’s Ghost
Marley was dead, to begin with – there’s no doubt about that. He was as dead as a doornail.
Marley and Scrooge worked together. But then Marley died and now the company belonged to Scrooge, who was a heartless old man. On Christmas Eve, Scrooge sat in his office. It was very cold outside and in Scrooge’s office it was not much warmer either. Suddenly, a happy person entered the office. It was Scrooge’s nephew.
“A merry Christmas, uncle! God save you!” Fred said.
“Bah!” said Scrooge, “Humbug!”
“Christmas a humbug, uncle!” said Scrooge’s nephew. “You don’t mean that, I am sure?”
“I do,” said Scrooge. “What’s Christmas time to you? You have to pay bills without money! You’re a year older but not an hour richer! Keep Christmas in your way, and let me keep it in mine.”
“Keep it? But you don’t keep it,” said Scrooge’s nephew, who was a very friendly young man. He even tried to make Scrooge smile and invited him for dinner on Christmas Day. But Scrooge said no and sent him out.
When Scrooge’s nephew left, two gentlemen came in to collect money for the poor who had no place they could go. Stingy Scrooge, however, didn’t give the gentlemen any money.
“Are there no prisons?” he asked, and told them to leave the office.
When it was time to close the office, Scrooge talked to his assistant, Bob Cratchit.
“You want all day off tomorrow, don’t you?” said Scrooge.
“If that is okay, Sir,” answered Bob.
“It’s not okay,” said Scrooge, “and it is not fair. After all, I have to pay you for the day although you don’t work. But if it must be, I want you to start work even earlier the following morning.”
Cratchit promised that he would; and the two went home.
Scrooge lived all alone in an old house. The garden was very dark and scary that night and when Scrooge wanted to open the door, he thought that he saw Marley’s face there. This was rather spooky, but Scrooge was not frightened easily. “Humbug,” he said, opened the door and walked in. He locked himself in, however, which he usually didn’t do. But then he felt safe again and sat down in front of the fire.
Suddenly, Scrooge heard a noise. The noise came nearer and nearer, and then Scrooge saw a ghost coming through the door. It was Marley’s ghost, and his chains were long; they were made of cash-boxes and keys.
“Who are you?” said Scrooge
“In life I was your partner, Jacob Marley.”
“But why do you come to me now?”
“I must wander through the world and I wear the chains because I was so stingy in life. I only cared about business but not about people. Now, I am here to warn you. You still have a chance, Ebenezer. Three spirits will come to you. Expect the first tomorrow, when the bell tolls one.”
When he had said these words, Marley’s ghost disappeared; and the night became quiet again. Scrooge went straight to bed, and fell asleep immediately.
