IN winter, London used to lie under a canopy of sulphurous clouds because of the industrial heat and coal fires in homes. These clouds — mixed with soot — would be part of the dense fog that enveloped the city. 
   Christine Corton, a Cambridge scholar, describes in her remarkable book, London Fog: The Biography, a diarist called John Evelyn, who recommended to King Charles that he remove the industrial establishments, which would enable London to be free of smoke. Although this idea was conceived in the 17th century, it was destined to crystallise only during the middle of the 20th century when people began to focus on health before business. 
   But in the arts, London’s fog had an intriguing effect on writers and artists. The famous artist, Claude Monet, fled from Paris in 1870, during turmoil in that country, and took refuge in London where he stayed at the Savoy. He made a particular painting — that of pedestrians whose feet were covered in a blanket of fog.    It also fascinated Robert Louis Stevenson who incorporated it into his narratives — Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde was manifest with suspense and that was successfully achieved by the author through the effect of fog. 
   Charles Dickens(1812-1870), related fog to his book, Bleak House, and his novella, A Christmas Carol, which encompassed winter during Christmas and the festive season — the former included poverty in Victorian times and above all, he presented the tale against the backdrop of the bleak mid winter and London’s  unforgettable fog. Dickens wrote A Christmas Carol with empathy and despite festive bells ringing, he emphasised that there were people suffering in the midst of Christmas and its revelry. A closer look at this heart-rending narrative will enlighten one on why Dickens chose to write on unhappiness in the midst of happiness. 
   A Christmas Carol was first published in 1843 and the book found instant success and critical acclaim. The story is based on Gabriel Grubb, who was a character in the story of the goblins who stole a sexton, and this tale appeared in Dickens’ first novel, The Pickwick Papers — that was about a gravedigger determined not to make merry at Christmas but is kidnapped by goblins and is convinced to change his ways. Two months after the publication of A Christmas Carol, a library pirated it but Dickens sued and won the case. The pirates declared themselves bankrupt and that left Dickens to pay 700 pounds  which would be equivalent to 56,000 pounds today. 
   The narrative relates the story of Ebenezer Scrooge, an old man, who transforms his miserly ways after four ghostly visits on Christmas Eve — the story was made even more realistic by the characteristic fog of London, which also surrounded Scrooge’s house, thus giving an impetus to the effect of ghosts.   The ghosts show Scrooge how his mean behaviour affect those around him. At the end of the story Scrooge is relieved to discover that there is still time to change and transforms himself into a generous and kind-hearted human being. 
   That was a time when it was traditional to read ghost stories at Christmas, hence the spirits encountered by Scrooge. The themes of wealth distribution and inequality in Victorian England were clearly projected by Dickens. The metamorphosis that manifests itself into Scrooge was juxtaposed with his mean former self. In fact, Scrooge refused to believe that he was destined to live as happy as a lark and imbue the same happiness to all around him. “I am as merry as a schoolboy. I am as giddy as a drunken man. A Merry Christmas to everybody. A happy New Year to all the world. Hallo there…” 
   His euphoria did not quite end there; he looked out a window and, as Dickens explained, there were many reasons why Scrooge was the happiest man in England. “No fog, no mist, clear, bright…Oh, glorious. Glorious.”