Almost everyone knows who Ebenezer Scrooge is—“a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner! Hard and sharp as flint, from which no steel had ever struck out generous fire; secret, and self-contained, and solitary as an oyster.” And we all know what he stands for—the selfish, grasping, avaricious man of business, indifferent to human affections. He’s a mean one, is Mr. Scrooge.

But Scrooge is no Grinch. Indeed, Scrooge is a very sympathetic character indeed—and one who exemplifies the good that can come from the pursuit of profit.

So, why is Scrooge supposed to be so in need of redemption? Well, he refuses to contribute to the comfort of the poor (and even suggests that they should die, to reduce the surplus population!), he begrudges his clerk a paid vacation at Christmas, and he’s a merciless creditor, demanding payment when it’s due from his debtors. And he shuns the company of his fellow man, except to the extent required for him to be in good standing with the business community.

But these are hardly serious moral failings. And they become even less so when placed in context. Scrooge’s denial of aid to the poor seems to be based on his view that he’s already contributing to this through taxes, supporting both workhouses and prisons. Would he have helped the poor if these institutions didn’t exist? We simply don’t know. We certainly can’t say that Scrooge would be willing to let them die rather than help them. His oft-quoted comment about reducing the surplus population occurred in the context of the claim that the poor would rather die than enter the workhouse, and was uttered in support of the view that they should be allowed to make that choice if they wished. (Scrooge, it seems, is a big fan of personal autonomy!) Scrooge does begrudge Bob Cratchit his paid day off at Christmas. But it’s still he who initiates the conversation about this, offering a paid holiday to Cratchit, even though it seems that he himself intends to work. Hardly the act of “a squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner”….

So, what of the last two charges—that Scrooge demands payments from his debtors, and he shuns the company of his fellow man? Well, Scrooge can’t really be criticized for requiring the payments due to him that were agreed to by his trading partners. And while we might wish that Scrooge was more like Old Fezziwig, spreading joy around him, he can hardly be blamed for having a more reclusive personality. Indeed, even his own nephew notes that Scrooge’s lack of sociability hurts no one but himself.

Scrooge, then, isn’t as bad as he’s made out to be.

And Scrooge does a great deal of good. Take the example of Caroline and her unnamed husband, who were pleased at the news of Scrooge’s death for this gave them some additional time to come up with the payment they owed him. While they were relieved to hear of Scrooge’s death on the verge of defaulting on their loan they were no doubt happy that he lived when they borrowed from him. Dickens doesn’t tell us why they needed the loan, but need it they did—and when that happened there was Scrooge, with the funds they required, offering it to them at a competitive rate of interest. And Caroline and her husband were not the only people that Scrooge helped in their hour of financial need. This was, after all, part of his business.

But doesn’t he exploit the poor Cratchits? Not at all! If Bob Cratchit could have secured a better paid position elsewhere, he would have done so. (We see him and Mrs. Cratchit discussing the possibility that Peter could leave his current employer for a better position after the death of Scrooge, so clearly Bob was in a competitive labor market.) And the Cratchits seem to be worse off after the death of Scrooge that they were before. It’s unclear whether Scrooge died before Tiny Tim. But it’s certainly possible that the death of Tiny Tim was precipitated by Bob Cratchit’s losing his position—and hence his income—with either the illness or the death of Scrooge. And even if this was not the case, the Cratchits were certainly better off with Bob being employed by Scrooge than they were afterwards. Despite Mrs. Cratchit’s opposition to Scrooge, he was indeed the Founder of the Feast for her and her family—and Bob was right to recognize this.

Well, we might say, Scrooge’s avarice had some beneficial consequences for others. But since he didn’t intend these consequences he doesn’t deserve any credit for them. But even if we leave aside the question of the relationship between intention and praiseworthiness, Scrooge’s intentions aren’t clear. When his fiancée broke off their engagement as she claimed that she had been displaced by a golden idol, Scrooge offers the heartfelt lament:

“This is the even-handed dealing of the world!” he said. “There is nothing on which it is so hard as poverty; and there is nothing it professes to condemn with such severity as the pursuit of wealth!”

Poor Scrooge! To help eliminate poverty, he pursues wealth—and for this he is condemned!

We could say more—much more—in favor of poor Ebenezer: His lonely childhood, sent away to a harsh boarding school, where he alleviated his unhappiness through literature and flights of imagination, his happy apprenticeship, and his subsequent (and perhaps misguided) dedication to pursuing wealth. We could also mention how ill-treated he is by others–mocked by the family of his nephew (and at Christmas!), and stolen from by his servants after his death. But it is Christmas Eve, and many readers have families to rejoice with, and cheer to spread. So, paraphrasing Dickens, I’ll simply note that “I have endeavoured in this…. little [post], to raise the Ghost of an Idea, which shall not put my readers out of humour with themselves, with each other, with the season, or with me. May it haunt their houses pleasantly, and no one wish to lay it.”

Merry Christmas, Mr. Scrooge!