UMD History Professor Brings Dickens to Life on a Cold December Afternoon
By Angelina Nunez
December 18, 2025
Photo Credit: Angelina Nunez
Every year, University of Maryland history professor Robert Chiles gathers a crowd of his students on the steps of Francis Scott Key Hall for his tradition of reading excerpts from the Christmas classic “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens.
After postponing the event due to the snowfall on Dec. 5, Chiles returned this Tuesday for the reading. Despite the brutal winter weather that made it hard for him to flip the pages of his book, Chiles delivered a passionate monologue.
Though many students came out to the reading for the benefit of extra credit points that Chiles so graciously offered to students in attendance, it became a fun activity that students were happy to experience.
Chiles’ reading of the classic became a performance due to his theatrical reading. His voice rose and fell with each line, giving emphasis to the drama of the narrator Ebenezer Scrooge. The steps of Key Hall were filled with laughter at his theatrical and engaging performance.
“That was actually really nice,” said Taara Verma, a UMD student who isn’t even enrolled in one of Chiles’s classes. “I want to take one of his classes. Based on this, I’m sure he’s such a good lecturer.” Verma stopped by with a friend who was attending for extra credit and found herself unexpectedly swept up in the Christmas spirit.
Chiles ended the reading with a final message to his students on what they should take away from the story.
“I think sometimes it might pay for us to step away from the material, and I think in each of those passages you see different versions of that [broader message],” said Chiles. “To be kind when you can be kind and to understand what's more meaningful in life.”
By the end of the reading, everyone was sniffling and holding their hands to their chests from the cold. Even so, the small crowd of students gave Chiles a round of applause before heading back inside for warmth.
Chiles brought some holiday cheer to the group of students, giving them a break from the stress of finals and reminding them to enjoy simple traditions.
After postponing the event due to the snowfall on Dec. 5, Chiles returned this Tuesday for the reading. Despite the brutal winter weather that made it hard for him to flip the pages of his book, Chiles delivered a passionate monologue.
Though many students came out to the reading for the benefit of extra credit points that Chiles so graciously offered to students in attendance, it became a fun activity that students were happy to experience.
Chiles’ reading of the classic became a performance due to his theatrical reading. His voice rose and fell with each line, giving emphasis to the drama of the narrator Ebenezer Scrooge. The steps of Key Hall were filled with laughter at his theatrical and engaging performance.
“That was actually really nice,” said Taara Verma, a UMD student who isn’t even enrolled in one of Chiles’s classes. “I want to take one of his classes. Based on this, I’m sure he’s such a good lecturer.” Verma stopped by with a friend who was attending for extra credit and found herself unexpectedly swept up in the Christmas spirit.
Chiles ended the reading with a final message to his students on what they should take away from the story.
“I think sometimes it might pay for us to step away from the material, and I think in each of those passages you see different versions of that [broader message],” said Chiles. “To be kind when you can be kind and to understand what's more meaningful in life.”
By the end of the reading, everyone was sniffling and holding their hands to their chests from the cold. Even so, the small crowd of students gave Chiles a round of applause before heading back inside for warmth.
Chiles brought some holiday cheer to the group of students, giving them a break from the stress of finals and reminding them to enjoy simple traditions.