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"A Christmas Carol"
 | Charles Dickens had a great deal of influence on the way we celebrate Christmas today.
At the beginning of the Victorian period in England, the celebration of Christmas was in a decline. Oliver Cromwell was against any type of festive or joyous celebrations and outlawed many of the customs from previous days. They had also entered the Industrial Revolution, so the workers had little time for the celebration of holidays. |
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Christmas traditions made a big comeback during the Victorian era and never fell out of favor again. Prince Albert brought the German custom of decorating a Christmas tree to England, the singing of Christmas carols thrived and the first Christmas card appeared in the 1840's. But it was mainly the 1843 masterpiece "A Christmas Carol", that set a joyful tone for Christmas in both England and America. |
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Charles Dickens was 31 years-old and already a successful author when he wrote "A Christmas Carol". He began writing in October, 1843 and finishing the book by the end of November. It was published that Christmas with illustrations by John Leech. Dickens financed the publishing and set the price at 5 shillings so everyone could afford to buy it. In the first few days of its release, the book sold six thousand copies.
Today, "A Christmas Carol" has become a Christmas tradition and is easily Dickens' best known work.
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