Crayon

States, Washington Irving helped gain international respect for American literature through his short stories, biographies, and histories. During the 19th century, he undertook the persona of Geoffrey Crayon and published a collection of 34 pieces of writing titled The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon. One of the most popular short stories amongst this collection, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, is noted for its action, adventure, romance, horror, and even comedy. Ichabod Crane, the protagonist of…

These included Johnathan Oldstyle (1802-03), Diedrich Knickerbocker (1807-09), and Geoffrey Crayon (1819-20). Though short-lived, had distinct characteristics which differentiated them from one another, similar to multiple personalities with the common characteristics of a satirical sense of humor. Each alias came with its own type of historical…

The main focus of all my research on Washington Irving, a Yankee living in New York, was to learn how the first American author pictured the world. Irving is widely considered the first American author not because he was the first author in North America, but because he is the first person in America to write stories “by heart”. What I mean by writing with heart was that Irving wrote with a passion, as he considered his work written for the reason of what he loved the most, humor. Irving wrote…

John Irving was born March 2, 1942, in Exeter, New Hampshire, he was raised by his biological mother, and stepfather. Many events from Irving’s personal life have inspired books that he has written, such as, parent separations, feminism, sexual abuse, and sexual fantasies. Not only have plots been inspired by Irving’s personal life, but also the characters; which often follow Irving’s past experiences. At the age of 15, John Irving’s life was greatly affected after reading, Great Expectations.…

Rip Van Winkle as a Romantic Hero Rip Van Winkle is a short story written by Washington Irving which follows a lazy farmer named Rip, who enjoys helping everyone besides himself and his wife. Rip wanders off into the mountains one day and falls asleep, only to awaken after twenty years have passed. The author endows Rip with various characteristics that portray him as a Romantic Hero. Some of these qualities include being child-like and innocent, disliking women, and going on a journey in…

The development of America is captured in both factual and fictional stories. The characters in the “Legend of Sleepy Hollow” are specifically shaped to represent well-thought attributes of America. The author of sleepy hollow uses characters to expound on the development of young America. Washington Irving is reflected as the father of American short story. His inscription depicts the invention of the American myths that deal with ancestors, heroes, and mystical beings that are an essential…

scare one another, saying that if someone is not careful, the Headless Horseman will come for them. However, many Americans do not realize that this legend originated from a story that appears in Washington Irving’s book, The Sketchbook of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. Washington Irving was born to a Scottish immigrant family on April 3, 1783, in New York City. Later that year, The Treaty of Paris was signed,…

A few months ago, my cousin Mark invited me to help on his farm. I accepted his invitation, knowing he would pay me handsomely. However, when I set foot on the farm, one thought came to mind: what a dump! Mark 's farm was so pitiful one could mistake it for a junkyard. One thing that stuck out to me was his cattle. The poor creatures did not have anything to eat. All of Mark 's grass was dead, and I could count every cow 's ribs from a football field away. As I roamed around Mark 's farm, it…

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…

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Birthmark” can be read allegorically as a condemnation of the nefarious effects of the patriarchy on young women, represented here by Aylmer and his beautiful wife Georgiana. Georgiana has a birthmark on her check, and because she is other wise “so perfect, [Aylmer] found this one defect grow more and more intolerable, with every moment of their united lives” (pg. 419). Immediately the reader realizes that Aylmer does not see his wife as a human being to be loved…