Why did Marley appear to Scrooge on the seventh anniversary of his death?
Does the seventh anniversary have some special significance to Scrooge or the story?
No.
Maybe not the 7th specifically but Scrooge is at the point that his long and ponderous chain will be too long to “retract” if he isn’t saved now.
Remember, his chain was as long as Marley’s and has been added to since Marley’s death.
Seven days to create the universe
‘Cain shall be avenged sevenfold.’
Seven pairs of each animal on the ark
Seven days of Passover
Jericho’s walls fell on the seventh day
Seven deadly sins
Seven virtues
Seven Sisters of the Pleiades
Seven levels of Hell
The seventh son of a seventh son is supposed to have special powers/abilities/fortune.
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You forgot the Seven Swans a-Swimming.
And the Seven Samurai
Further, it wasn’t just the seventh anniversary of Marley’s death, he had specifically died on Christmas and the implication was that on some future Christmas, so would Scrooge.
Man, the holidays are rough.
And Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
And the Seven Pillars of Wisdom.
The Seven Summits
Hey! I’m helping hijack my own thread! :smack:
Actually, running coach’s answer is pretty good.
In that case, Scrooge’s chain is too long to ‘retract’ because it was already at the ‘non-retractable’ length when Marley died.
I still say that it’s seven years because seven is a ‘mystical number’.
Marley died before repenting but he does imply(I don’t remember the exact phrasing) that despite the length of Scrooge’s chain, it’s not too late yet.
OK, Scrooge can avoid the chains by repenting.
But I still think Marley comes seven years after his death because seven is a mystical number and it’s a ‘shortcut’ or ‘clue’ to the reader that something amazing is going to happen.
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I thought that was Dave Bowerman.
Seven Chinese Brothers.
“That is no light part of my penance,” pursued the Ghost. “I am here to-night to warn you, that you have yet a chance and hope of escaping my fate. <b>A chance and hope of my procuring</b>, Ebenezer.”
Scrooge didn’t just get this change to repent for no reason. From the text, it seems Jacob begged mercy for him, and after magical 7 years, the power to be listened and decide to give him a change. So Jacob couldn’t have warned Scrooge before, as he was just doomed to wander invisibly around their counting house.
The question isn’t why now, but why bother? From the text, whether Scrooge repent or not, Jacob’s sentence doesn’t end or shorten. Was just an act of love from Jacob, wanting to see his old friend avoid his fate.
Seven Dials, London
How old is Tiny Tim? Is he seven? I haven’t read the story in a long time, but IIRC, he is dead by next Christmas, if nothing changes, so Scrooge must change immediately if Tim is to be saved. In other words, if Marley had waited eight years, Tim would be dead. If Tim is to play a major role, he has to, first of all, be born, and second of all, be ill enough for his illness to be significant. People were diagnosed with things when symptoms appeared back them. Even if Tim had a disease he was born with, the symptoms would have had to have shown up. Also, Tim’s personality, in contrast to Scrooge’s, is a major plot point. He has to be old enough for his personality to have emerged.
So really, I think that’s the explanation. Tim.