Hugh J. Dawson contradicts the characterization of the events in the forest, made by other critics. For example, he disregards the point, made by Richard J. Zlogan, that forest’s scene exists because of “male overindulgence in drink”(246). He assures, that Zlogan overlooked the symbolic landscape of the episode, therefore had misread it. First, as Rip entrees the forest, his dog’s behavior signal danger. Poor dog “bristle up his back (-- removed HTML --) and looks fearfully down into the glen”(246). Such anxious description of the dog’s actions could not open the scene of leisure fun. Additionally, the portraits of Hudson and his crew mostly equalize them with ghosts; with the souls of dead persons, who can’t find the peaceful rest.
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Veeder acknowledges, that the forest scene in the tale exists as an answer or as a defense to “the preOedipal fears of failed nurturance, which are prominent in the squaw legend”(109). The figure of Hendrick Hudson is a symbolic version of a “Nurturant Father” for Rip (109). This “Father” and his group show Rip the other side of life, the side without aggression from women around him, but with the “life-generating” aspect (110). Veeder claims that the dream in the forest occurred as the response to the bad treatment of Rip’s mother. His mother, together with his wife, is cultivating the Oedipal complex in Rip Van Winkle. Therefore, poor Rip can’t “associate nurturance with feminity”(109). According to Veeder, female characters in the story are presented as a “castrators” for Rip’s identity. William concludes his essay by stating, that he “makes no claim for any thoroughgoing and consistent feminism in Washington Irving”(113). Irving’s Rip struggles due to oppressive female figures around him, and we have no right to accuse him of …show more content…
The program “Gender Guesser” detects the author’s gender according to the word choice in the work. According to the “Gender Guesser,” all Irving’s tales are mainly writing by “weak male”, or “female” author. Therefore, based on the language of Irving’s tales, he should not be considered as the anti-feminist writer. With the percentage, various between 50-54 among female and male words usage, Irving’s tales are neither “Oedipal” nor “Electra”. And by using Freud’s term, Irving’s gender score represent either “predevelopment bisexuality”. Besides Freud, because of Irving’s word choice, he is ambivalent in his language. And Hugh J. Dawson presents the idea of ambivalence in his essay as
Veeder acknowledges, that the forest scene in the tale exists as an answer or as a defense to “the preOedipal fears of failed nurturance, which are prominent in the squaw legend”(109). The figure of Hendrick Hudson is a symbolic version of a “Nurturant Father” for Rip (109). This “Father” and his group show Rip the other side of life, the side without aggression from women around him, but with the “life-generating” aspect (110). Veeder claims that the dream in the forest occurred as the response to the bad treatment of Rip’s mother. His mother, together with his wife, is cultivating the Oedipal complex in Rip Van Winkle. Therefore, poor Rip can’t “associate nurturance with feminity”(109). According to Veeder, female characters in the story are presented as a “castrators” for Rip’s identity. William concludes his essay by stating, that he “makes no claim for any thoroughgoing and consistent feminism in Washington Irving”(113). Irving’s Rip struggles due to oppressive female figures around him, and we have no right to accuse him of …show more content…
The program “Gender Guesser” detects the author’s gender according to the word choice in the work. According to the “Gender Guesser,” all Irving’s tales are mainly writing by “weak male”, or “female” author. Therefore, based on the language of Irving’s tales, he should not be considered as the anti-feminist writer. With the percentage, various between 50-54 among female and male words usage, Irving’s tales are neither “Oedipal” nor “Electra”. And by using Freud’s term, Irving’s gender score represent either “predevelopment bisexuality”. Besides Freud, because of Irving’s word choice, he is ambivalent in his language. And Hugh J. Dawson presents the idea of ambivalence in his essay as