“Rip Van Winkle”

1. “Rip Van Winkle” Washington Irving

2. 1783-1859 • First international literary celebrity of the U.S. • Humorist and satirist (satire: literature that mocks and scorns). • A native of New York, Irving humorously wrote of the history and landscape of that state. He set much of his best-loved and best-known fiction in the Catskill Mountains, the Hudson River Valley, or in the growing city of New York. • Inspired by German Romantics and folklore and legends. Washington Irving

3. Travelled widely abroad; wrote much about his travels and experiences in England, Spain, and elsewhere in Europe. • He never wavered in his loyalty and love for the young United States. • Although popular in Europe, his fluid and expressive prose paid homage to the liberty and democracy that animated American society in the early 19th century. Washington Irving Cont’d

4. Genius for inventing fictional narrators (Diedrich Knickerbocker). • Up until this point, we had no real FICTION from America • Borrowed openly from European writing • New voice- the settings/sounds of America • “Rip Van Winkle” is actually a German tale, but Irving used American settings; the Catskill Mountains and Revolution to make it his. His Writing

5. The main character in a story by Washington Irving (1783-1859), who bowls, drinks with some elves and then falls asleep for 20 years. When he awakes, he is an old man with a long, gray beard and realizes that many changes have occurred, namely, his wife has died and the AMERICAN REVOLUTION has taken place. By association, a person who sleeps a long time; a person who is not up-to-date with the current situation. Summary

6. Increased popularity of short story genre • Added local settings • Added humor • Added rich atmosphere and tone • Created independent genre • Stripped it of educational/religious nature • Fluid and beautiful writing style • Individual characters (not stereotypes) Contributions to the Short Story

7. The American Revolution • Independence (both national and Rip’s personal independence) • Change • Aging • Importance of imagination Themes

8. Henpecked, but lovable, lazy vagabond. • Refuses to accept adult responsibility as a husband, father, and member of Sleepy Hollow. • Wife nags him for good reason – he allows his farm to go to ruin and he does little to provide for his large, growing family. • Kids and animals love his childish personality. • He is the adolescent who refuses to grow up and he gets away with it. • The American hero frontiersman; loved hunting in the woods with his dog to escape from his wife (the romantic journey). Character Traits of Rip

9. Characteristics of romantic literature in “Rip Van Winkle”: • Setting • misty “fairy” mountaintops • a mysterious forest • old-fashioned villages • days gone by from a distant era. • Rip as a romantic hero • Simple, good-natured, innocent, unsophisticated, close to nature, domesticated by his wife, possessed youthful qualities. Romantic Literature

10. “Rip Van Winkle” is important to the development of American literature. • This story, although modeled after British traditions, was uniquely American, featuring American settings (Catskill Mountains) and themes (American Revolution). • Irving was considered as a talented equal to British authors, not an inferior. American Literature