Tiny Tim in A Christmas Carol
- Kind
- Disabled
- Thoughtful
Tiny Tim is one of Bob Cratchit's sons. He walks with a crutch and has 'his limbs supported by an iron frame'. Despite his physical difficulties, he is a positive and generous child. He thinks of others and is well-loved by his family.
Scrooge is affected by the child and when he is shown the Cratchit family Christmas by the Ghost of Christmas Present, he worries whether Tiny Tim will live. The Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come shows a possible future in which Scrooge's fears are realised and Tiny Tim has died.
At the end of the novella, after Scrooge changes his character, we learn that he becomes like a second father to Tiny Tim.
Learn more about Fred and Tiny Tim in this podcast
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| How is Tiny Tim like this? | Evidence | Analysis | |
| Kind | After Bob Cratchit raises a toast at the Christmas dinner table, Tiny Tim echoes the toast and includes everyone. | "God bless us every one!" | We learn that Tiny Tim is kind and able to offer an equal love to all mankind. |
| Thoughtful | Tiny Tim rises above his own suffering and hopes that people who see him will think of Jesus. | 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. | Dickens suggests that the child is exceptionally thoughtful for his age. This highlights how ungenerous Scrooge, an adult, can be. |
| Patient | In the scene that the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come shows of the Cratchits, Bob remembers his son as a patient child. | ...we recollect how patient and how mild he was. | Tiny Tim is remembered fondly by his family for his good qualities. |
| Kind | |
|---|---|
| How is Tiny Tim like this? | After Bob Cratchit raises a toast at the Christmas dinner table, Tiny Tim echoes the toast and includes everyone. |
| Evidence | "God bless us every one!" |
| Analysis | We learn that Tiny Tim is kind and able to offer an equal love to all mankind. |
| Thoughtful | |
|---|---|
| How is Tiny Tim like this? | Tiny Tim rises above his own suffering and hopes that people who see him will think of Jesus. |
| Evidence | 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. |
| Analysis | Dickens suggests that the child is exceptionally thoughtful for his age. This highlights how ungenerous Scrooge, an adult, can be. |
| Patient | |
|---|---|
| How is Tiny Tim like this? | In the scene that the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come shows of the Cratchits, Bob remembers his son as a patient child. |
| Evidence | ...we recollect how patient and how mild he was. |
| Analysis | Tiny Tim is remembered fondly by his family for his good qualities. |
