Scrooge's passion for Belle has been replaced by "a golden one." She tells Scrooge that the master passion of Gain "engrosses" him; that is, the acquisition of wealth, and his love for her has lessened.
In Stave II, "The First of the Three Spirits," the Ghost of Christmas Past returns Scrooge to his childhood, youth, and his prime as a man. In one scene that he witnesses, a teary-eyed Belle speaks to Scrooge, telling him that his higher aspirations have fallen away as he has become consumed by "Gain." Further, she informs Scrooge that he measures everything and everyone by Gain. Therefore, she releases him from their relationship because what they have had together is gone since Scrooge has changed. Bidding him goodbye, Belle says,
"You may--the memory of what is past half makes me hope you will--have pain in this....May you be happy in the life you have chosen!"
Belle releases Scrooge from his commitment to her because he loves gold and financial gain too much to have room in his heart for her.
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