Washington Irving's 'Rip Van Winkle'

He ‘s a lazy and obedient hen-pecked husband. “In a word, Rip was ready to attend to anybody’s business but his own; but as to doing family duty, keeping his farm in order, he found it impossible.” His idleness to his responsibility can be seen as American’s unwillingness to be a servant of England. “There is phlegm and drowsy tranquility” around the town before the revolution war. However, after Rip awakes from his sleep for twenty years, everything in the town has changed. “There was a busy, bustling, disputatious tone about it, instead of the accustomed phlegm and drowsy tranquility.” Also, the sign outside the tavern where he spent much of his time has changed from King George to General Washington. After seeing all of these changes, at first Rip doubts his own identity, especially when he sees his son who is” a precise counterpart of himself.” However, before long, “he resumes his old walks and habits,” because he doesn’t compelled to change himself into a post Revolutionary American. Since it never happens as an event in his life, it makes no drastic change in Rip’s life. Because he has no indent to fit in the new society to be who he has to be at the new age, he tries to retreat or stay in the past which is what the Americans need to lead their cultural life.

Next, the characters enter the scene of mythology. In order for mythology to come across as supernatural, the characters must lend themselves to mystery. In Rip Van Winkle, not only do other intriguing characters appear, but Rip himself tends towards strange behaviors. After all, Rip did sleep for twenty years without waking. That in its self begins to reveal the underlying interest of the story. Perhaps the most strange and exaggerated characters would prove to be the bowler in the forest. In the text it says, “He was still more surprised at the singularity of the stranger’s appearance.” It goes on to

Why is Rip’s emancipation from his wife similar to America’s emancipation from Great Britain? Emancipation of America from Great Britain had to do with the freedom that people wanted. American’s wanted independence and they had no other way to get it. Rip, in a way wanted freedom and independence from everything he was dealing with day by day.

Irving describes the sights Rip is seeing for the first time, “the very village was altered; it was larger and more populous” not only that but, “he found his beard had grown a foot long” (6). When Rip arrives to the town the only thing he is worried about is finding his wife and receiving the fire he knows his wife will spit at him. Rip arrives in the town shocked when he finds the image of King George III replaced by George Washington. As Rip continues through the town he becomes confused and unable to understand that there is an election currently going on. When he is questioned by townspeople as to “which side he voted?” (7). Rip says, “ ‘I am a poor quiet man, a native of the place, and a loyal subject of the king, God bless him!” (7). Rip is hearing the townspeople talk so freely of elections and politics, it’s all very new, and it represents the freedom of speech these citizens now have and the responsibility of the new democracy. A main struggle of the story was one of identity, especially at this time in history. The citizens of America, twenty years after Rip Van Winkle finally awoke, found their identity. Rip, who was having difficulty finding himself throughout the story, finally finds his identity when his own identity after he is told about his wife’s passing and being

When Rip returns to the village he discovers it has changed. Rip found out when he was gone that his wife was dead. Rip's daughter, son and some villagers knew who he was and he is accepted by the others. The village also looks different from before by new builds stand in place of old ones and the Yankee hotel is where the old Dutch inn was. The people also have change to concerned citizens from phlegmatic burghers. The village has drastically changed so since this has happen Rip thinks life has passed without

“... Rip's composition was an insuperable aversion to all kinds of profitable labor...would rather starve on a penny than work for a pound....would have whistled life away in perfect contentment...” His laziness was one of the most exaggerated characteristics in the story, a characteristic even more exaggerated by his 20 year long

Rip and Dame Van Winkle were husband and wife in colonial America. Washington Irving introduced their story by describing the major problem in their relationship: Dame’s constant nagging resulted in Rip losing the ability to feel content in his life when doing things he enjoyed. Both characters highlighted important issues in relationships that should be avoided; Rip chose to escape from his home temporarily to feel free instead of ending his relationship with his wife, while Dame displayed the effects caused by individuals who possess little self-awareness when constantly criticizing others.

As Rip walked through the woods behind his subdivision and towards his friend’s home, he began to feel very sleepy from all of the hotdogs, chips, and Surge Soda he had while watching the big game. So, he decided to sit down beside a large oak tree so that he could take a rest and look at the nearby Catskill Mountains and listen to the rushing waters of the Hudson River. However, rather than continuing his walk as planned, Rip wrapped his neon windbreaker tighter around his body and fell into a deep sleep.

Washington Irving was born on April 3, 1783 just as the British recognized the United States’ independence. “Rip Van Winkle” is one of the most famous stories from the post- revolution period in American literature. Rip and his wife Dame Van Winkle, have a bit of a problem. Dame keeps nagging and Rip is still sitting and sleeping all the time. Rip is good nature but he is also very lazy. Rip’s idleness is viewed by the neighbors and his wife.

The town looks different, unrecognizable almost, in the beginning Rip thinks that the keg messed with his head, because he can not find his place of dwelling, but even when he does find it, it is in a state of decay and worn. The inn’s sign was changed to someone carrying the name General Washington. The men who are conversing under the sign accuse him of trying to make trouble because he came armed to an election. When he asks where his old friends are, they seemed to have moved away or have been dead for twenty years.

The reader discovers more information as well in paragraph eight, lines nine and ten, “… eat white bread or brown, whichever can be got with least thought or trouble, and would rather starve on a penny than work for a pound.” That quote represents Rip’s attitude for not having as much effort or not working as hard when someone is watching

Rip's character is intended to represent America, whereas, his indolence represents America's sluggish response to serve the British monarchy. Rip's wife represents the England and how the monarchy strived to control the actions of the American people in the colonies, although she does have the right to scolder her husband for taking care of everyone's business besides his own. When Rip's family start disappear, it implies the monarchy is losing its control over the American colonies while at the same time rapidly losing American loyalty to the Crown. In the village tavern, where the men conjugated to talk of politics, were based on hearsay and discussions would be

We left off with Rip waking up from a supposed night of sleep after meeting these mysterious creatures in the woods. He is confused and angered because his gun had been replaced by an old, rusted gun and his dog was missing. He made it his goal to find the creatures from the night before, but when he arrived at the amphitheater there was no one to be found. Off he went back home, assuming his wife, Dame Van Winkle, would be very angry about him staying out all night. When arriving at the village he notices the town had grown quite considerably while he was gone. There were many different men, women, children and dogs that he did not recognise. When he found his way back to his home, now falling in on itself, and realises his family is not

Irving's portrayal of Rip Van Winkle was most likely written with his English audience in mind. Rip is lazy and undisciplined, constantly avoiding his duties to his wife and family. One interpretation of Rip is that he is "...just as unsophisticated and vulgar as the British reading public required him to be" (Barbarese 601). Irving was certainly trying to impress English readers, and Rip's part in the story as a symbol of the colonies' role in the British-American relationship definitely fits the English perception. Another characteristic of Rip, however, seems to give a more favorable account of the attitude of the colonists. Rip Van Winkle is also portrayed as "...one of those happy mortals, of foolish, well-oiled dispositions, who...if left to himself, he would have whistled his life away in perfect

Washington Irving’s short story “Rip Van Winkle” is a way to understand how society had evolved at the time of the American Revolution. At this time the American people, were struggling with finding their own identity. Irving uses his main character, Rip Van Winkle, to symbolize the struggle of early America. Irving uses many symbols in the story “Rip Van Winkle” to display the changes the society in America went through during this time period. Washington Irving’s shorty story “Rip Van Winkle” is about a man named Rip Van Winkle, everyone in the town loved Rip because he was always eager to help anyone and everyone, which ended up being his downfall on his walk through the mountains.