The heart of a story lies in the moral. Once a story has been read, the reader must understand the moral, in order to appreciate the story. Sometimes a story 's moral can be explained with a cliché. Washington Irving 's Rip Van Winkle, can be captured by the cliché, you reap what you sow. Rip 's life was not fruitful, as many years were wasted, causing him to not reap any rewards. The Birthmark, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, follows a man plagued by the obsession to remove his wife 's birthmark, in…
Irving’s “Rip Van Winkle” exemplifies the theory of imagination using escapism. After sleeping for 20 years, readers are forced to distinguish between Rip’s fantasy and his past. In addition, Rip awakens in another time, therefore his imagination, and intelligence is more developed than the townspeople, or his wife ever thought. Rip’s imagination not only created a free nation, he also freed himself from a nightmarish marriage. Throughout the tale of “Rip Van Winkle,” Irving paints a clear…
James Cooper and Washington Irving: Different but Alike Washington Irving was born on April 3rd, 1783. He spent his childhood growing up in Manhattan, New York alongside of his ten other siblings. His parents were William and Sarah Irving, his mother was the granddaughter of a clergyman, and his father was an affluent merchant who strongly supported the cause of American Independence. All of Williams sons were expected to support themselves so therefore, he sent Washington to study law in 1801,…
a man on a horse looking down on a boy with a dog close behind them on a dirt trail. There were tall trees, large mountains, and a river that seemed to show how small the characters were in painting and how nature was that surrounded them. The painting was titled In the Catskills. The artist of the painting was Asher B. Durand. Durand lived from 1796-1886; he painted In the Catskills in 1848. The painting is done on canvas using oil and measures 30in. x42in. and1/4. After researching Asher B.…
“By endurance we conquer.” - Ernest Shackleton. Polar expeditions are some of the most dangerous expeditions out there and are very demanding. Planning the trip, animals, living conditions, food and each crew member struggling to help each other out and keep their sanity are just some of the hurdles in these treacherous expeditions. You might already have a clue about how hard these expeditions are because well, everyone knows how harsh Antarctica is being known as a “frozen desert”, but in this…
He descended to the earth in ten different forms (avatars) to preserve righteousness in the world. The Himalaya has done the same: Mountains reincarnate to preserve the planet's 'right environment' for life. This Vishnu-Himalaya parallelism has mythological beauty and richness. In Hindu mythology, Himavat is the personification of the Himalayan Mountains. He is the father of Ganga, a heavenly river that flew from the toe of Vishnu, but which was brought down to the earth to purify the ashes…
Lodge, Montana, I am able to lay my eyes upon one of the most majestic places I have ever seen, Beartooth Mountain. The first time I see the mountain I am astounded anything could possibly be so immense. The sun catches the snow at the top of the mountain shooting light down into the Valley below. Then my view slides down the mountain, numerous pine trees seem to wrap around the entire mountain like a child in their blanket. This is the moment I realize it is amazing that later today, I am going…
fortune. I had grown up in mountains and didn’t know anything different. As I have gotten older and been fortunate enough to have traveled outside of my familiar mountain range, I have realized how intensely beautiful mountains are. Now that I have become so attached to my activities and lifestyle in Vail, I can’t imagine growing up anywhere else. The beautiful mountains that surround me have shaped me into who I am. I am so fortunate to have grown up in the mountains with ski racing as a big…
United States. There is no picture of Edward Hillary as Tenzing was unfamiliar with the camera. Conclusion – To conclude, these personalities were totally different from each other. They do not have any similarities rather than reaching the top of mountain. They were introduced to each other while joining the team to reach Mt.Everest. Tenzing Norgay and Edward Hillary were the first reaching the Mount Everest leaving the whole team behind. Despite of the numerous obstacle and problems they…
Climbing a mountain is a high-risk pursuit that is likely to be very difficult, but is also likely to be very rewarding. The stories, The Devil’s Thumb by Jon Krakauer and Touch the Top of the World by Erik Weihenmayer, both detail the authors’ exploits to climb the treacherous mountains, The Devil’s Thumb and Mount Everest, respectively. There are many similarities between the experiences of each climber as they went through their ascents. These similarities also are reflected in the writing of…