Making Christmas Cool Again

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Many Christmas traditions rooted in the Roman celebration of Saturnalia and the German celebration of Yule faced criticism in England during the rule of Oliver Cromwell, a Puritan politician who wanted to “cleanse” the church of pagan traditions. Furthermore, the Industrial Revolution left little time for families

to celebrate the holiday. The joyful

and festive attitude depicted in A

Christmas Carol was uncommon in

1843, but proved instrumental in the

revival of Christmas traditions and

merry-making. Dickens drew some

elements of the holiday from his own

experiences, including the unusually

snowy winters of his childhood,

Christmas’s affiliation with

generosity, and the celebration of

the season for weeks before the 25th.