im trying to read ‘a christmas carol’ by charles dickens quite literally one of the easiest books to read ever and i cant do it. at all. im trying to reread this one bit over and over and i am stressed out because my brain cant grasp it at all? what do i do? am i just stupid? english is my first language aswell and i have to read this by tomorrow, i’ve genuinely spent 2 hours reading this and got past 12 pages. wtf

‘The owner of one scant young nose, gnawed and mumbled by the hungry cold as bones are gnawed by dogs, stooped down at Scrooge’s keyhole to regale him with Christmas carol: but, at the first sound of - “God bless you, merry gentleman! May nothing you dismay!” Scrooge seized the ruler with such energy of act that the singer fled in terror, leaving the keyhole the fog and even more congenial’

is this just a normal sentence?? can you see where my confusions coming from or am i just dyslexic or whatever.

  • Arkholt@alien.topB
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    10 months ago

    If you’re not familiar with literature from that era, you probably would have trouble with it. Sure, A Christmas Carol seems simple because everyone knows the story from movies and TV, but that doesn’t mean the original story is necessarily easy to read. The passage you posted is a wonderful bit of prose, and very poetic, but the construction of the sentences is not something that you would see in most modern novels. If you’re worried about your ability to read and comprehend books, maybe pick up something more modern and see if you have the same trouble.