The exact words
“I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future.”Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol, Stave 4 (“The Last of the Spirits”), 1843
✓ VerifiedFound in a primary source: the original book, speech transcript, letter or recording.
What people get wrong
Common reading
A promise to celebrate Christmas more, with more decorations and parties.
A promise to celebrate Christmas more, with more decorations and parties.
Closer to the original
For Dickens, “keeping Christmas” meant treating people generously. Scrooge's first acts afterwards are buying a turkey for the Cratchits, giving to charity and raising Bob's salary.
For Dickens, “keeping Christmas” meant treating people generously. Scrooge's first acts afterwards are buying a turkey for the Cratchits, giving to charity and raising Bob's salary.
Timeline
- 1843At the end of the third ghost's visit, kneeling by a gravestone with his own name on it, Scrooge begs for a second chance and makes this promise.
- 1843In the last chapter Dickens confirms that Scrooge kept his word, and that “it was always said of him, that he knew how to keep Christmas well.”
Use it in a speech
Scrooge promised, I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. So here's to the kindness of this week lasting a little longer than the leftovers.
~10 secondsto say aloud
Pauseafter “all the year”
Best spotthe closing toast
My resolution comes from Scrooge: to honour Christmas in my heart and try to keep it all the year. Fewer gadgets, more generosity.
~8 secondsto say aloud
Pauseafter “all the year”
Best spotwhen sharing resolutions
Scrooge's vow to “honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year” defines the holiday not as a date but as a way of treating people.
~9 secondsto say aloud
Pausenone needed in writing
Best spotopening sentence
Questions people ask
Who says “I will honour Christmas in my heart”?
Ebenezer Scrooge, in Stave 4 of Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol (1843), after the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come shows him his grave.
What does keeping Christmas all the year mean?
Living by the generosity and goodwill of Christmas every day, not only during the holiday.
Why is “honour” spelled with a u?
Dickens was English and used British spelling.
Cite this quote
These cite the original source directly, so you can use them in an essay or paper. Always check your teacher's required style.
MLADickens, Charles. A Christmas Carol, Stave 4. 1843. Project Gutenberg, www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/46.
APADickens, C. (1843). A Christmas Carol, Stave 4. Project Gutenberg. https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/46
CHICAGOCharles Dickens, A Christmas Carol, Stave 4, 1843.
IN TEXT (APA)(Dickens, 1843)