Bob Cratchit is Ebenezer Scrooge's underpaid clerk in the classic story A Christmas Carol. Although a central figure of the tale, his passive character is overshadowed by that of Ebenezer Scrooge. Cratchit is Scrooge's employee, a low-paid clerk with a large family. Though he is treated poorly by Scrooge, he is shown to be very loyal to his boss.
Background[]
Personality[]
Bob is usually portrayed as being a very quiet and meager man who is nevertheless kind and considerate to others. He managed to maintain a very good life, having married and fathered several children whom he loves all dearly. Bob's life rests on the happiness of his family and enjoys being with them every moment of his life. Tiny Tim in particular is the one he cares for most due to his health issues and in the alternate future where he passes away, he became hopelessly depressed and inconsolable. Despite being verbally mistreated by Scrooge, presumably for years, he still treats him with respect and actually seems to admire him to a degree, though he does acknowledge his faults.
Physical appearance[]
Bob Cratchit is middle-aged, brown haired man with a receding hairline, who is unusually short, in reference to his meagerness. He usually wears a brown winter coat, a dark blue scarf, and a black top hat.
Role in the film[]
Bob retains a loyalty to his boss despite the protestations of his wife. His youngest son, Tiny Tim, is a cripple, and it is partly through concern for his plight that Scrooge makes the transformation from miser to philanthropist.
Bob Cratchit spends a normal day at work shivering, due to Scrooge rationing coal. Bob gets to the point of begging Scrooge to take Christmas Day off, so he can spend time with his family.
When The Ghost of Christmas Present is showing Scrooge the joy of Christmas, he shows how Bob Cratchit's family, despite being poor, are still grateful about the Christmas spirit.
When The Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come shows Scrooge his future, it is shown that Bob Cratchit's youngest son, Tiny Tim, died due to the lack food and medical help he needed thanks to Scrooge underpaying Bob Cratchit.
Disney characters portraying Bob Cratchit[]
- Mickey Mouse - Portrayed the role of Cratchit in Mickey's Christmas Carol
- Kermit the Frog - Portrayed the role of Cratchit in The Muppet Christmas Carol
- Anita Dearly - Portrayed the role of Cratchit in the 101 Dalmatians: The Series episode "A Christmas Cruella"
Trivia[]
- In the album The Walt Disney Players: Dickens' A Christmas Carol, the role of Bob Cratchit is played by Mickey Mouse. Mickey reprised the role for the 1983 cartoon Mickey's Christmas Carol.
- In The Muppet Christmas Carol, Cratchit is played by Kermit the Frog.
- In 2012, Kermit the Frog mistakenly confused Bob Cratchit with Captain Abraham Smollett, to be the character he played on The Muppet Christmas Carol several times during his promotional tour for Die Muppets in Germany.
- In the movie, he takes over the narration of Charles Dickens at the end.
Gallery[]
External links[]
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