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Foil
Explanation and Analysis—Tiny Tim & Scrooge:
A Christmas Carol presents Tiny Tim as a foil for Scrooge. Tim is a sympathetic character whose plight makes Scrooge seem extremely greedy and inhumane. His situation invokes sadness and pity, but also hope and inspiration because he has a good attitude despite being poor and physically ailing. By presenting Tiny Tim in this way, the narrative appeals to the reader's empathy. Bob Cratchit describes Tim as a thoughtful person who always remains optimistic and empathetic:
"As good as gold,” said Bob, “and better. Somehow he gets thoughtful sitting by himself so much, and thinks the strangest things you ever heard. He told me, coming home, that he hoped the people saw him in the church, because he was a cripple, and it might be pleasant to them to remember upon Christmas Day, who made lame beggars walk and blind men see.”
In this passage, we see a brief snapshot of Tiny Tim's character. He is a truly selfless person who refuses to let his disability get in the way of his love of humanity. The comparison of Tim to gold is significant because the Cratchit family values people over money. Bob cares far more for the health and happiness of his son than for gold. And it is important to note that the most detailed information about Tim comes from other characters; by contrast, most of Scrooge's story comes from the narrator. The narrator, who is privy to Scrooge's initial greed and narcissism, provides essential insight into his warped psyche. Although Scrooge evolves into a more generous and humane person, then his initially-negative characterization makes him the perfect foil for Tiny Tim (and vice versa).
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