SCROOGE’S MORAL LEDGER: A SEMIOTIC ANALYSIS OF ACCOUNTING IN CHARLES DICKENS’ A CHRISTMAS CAROL
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.33884/basisupb.v12i2.10097Keywords:
Semiotics, Critical Accounting, Charles Dickens, A Christmas CarolAbstract
This research examines the symbolism of accounting in Charles Dickens’ novel A Christmas Carol through the lens of Roland Barthes’ semiotic theory and critical accounting theory. The novel was selected for its rich use of economic terms, symbols, and metaphors that reflect the moral value system and capitalist structures of the 19th century. The research aims to identify accounting elements within the text, interpret their symbolic meanings, and analyze how Dickens' narrative critiques social inequality and capitalist ideology through the language of accounting. Employing a qualitative descriptive method and close reading technique, the research reveals that terms such as profit, debt, and penny, as well as symbols like chains, the banker’s book, and the ghostly figures, serve as metaphors for moral responsibility, spiritual burden, and a critique of dehumanization within the economic system. Through the integration of semiotics and critical accounting theory, the research concludes that accounting within the novel is far from neutral; it is ideologically charged, reproducing power relations and social disparity. Thus, A Christmas Carol emerges not merely as a literary text, but as a sharp reflection on social and moral practices in capitalist economies.
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