In Washington Irving's "Rip Van Winkle," Rip's character is closely correlated with the theme of nature and its prominence over the ever-changing world. The story is set in the Kaatskill Mountains, an important setting with a luminance that does not falter throughout. Similarly, Rip is immediately described as a respectable and well liked man in his mountainous setting. Right off the bat, the two can be easily associated. The magical elements in the story cause Rip to fall asleep for twenty years, and upon waking, he is in a world completely changed by the progression of time. However, despite the extreme alterations, only Rip and the nature that he is so familiar with are able to prevail, remaining ultimately unaffected by the new world.
The setting constitutes for a key element and important role in the story, as it is carefully aligned with the main character. It is noteworthy to know that the Kaatskill Mountains are part of the Appalachian chain, which run through a series of states in the in the mid eastern section of the United States. Yet, the Kaatskills are not an immediate link to the rest of the chain. Instead they stand apart, ostracized by the natural terrain of the land, instantaneously suggesting that they encompass a greater status than anything else within their surroundings. Their reverence continues, as Irving describes these mountains as being noble and lording; having "magical hues and shapes, [and are] regarded by all the good wives, far and near, as perfect barometers," (Irving 702). The language used in these opening paragraphs emphasizes the setting with an easily recognizable connotation, which compares the mountains to a god of sorts, ruling over the land. This attention that Irving ...
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...d such an old man, but instead Rip was viewed as a Patriarch and a chronicle of the 'old times' before the war. Just like the forever unwavering nature that envelops the village, the story leaves with the implication of Rip's character immortalized in the minds of the citizens for many years to come.
Both Rip Van Winkle and the nature that will always surround him are the only two things that had the ability to prevail through insurmountable changes over this span of twenty years. They are mutually described with distinguished reverence upon the onset of the story, and continue this ideal throughout, thus making Rip more than the average protagonist. The story concludes with a tone of contentment in that the village people are happy to have Rip back, and more importantly Rip feels at home once again, amid the people and setting that are meant just for him.
His wife would bad mouth him and yell at him, but Rip wouldn't do much
The story “Rip Van Winkle” is about a character named Rip Van Winkle, a man who wanted nothing more out of life then to be able to do as he pleased and drink without responsibilities. One day he takes a trip into the Katskill mountains, which causes him to miss twenty years of his life. Rip wakes up after his sleep in the mountains and realizes that everything is different. He is faced with the life changing realization that he can no longer live he carefree life and must take some form of responsibility because the new villagers are hostile towards him due to his nature. In the end, Rip’s son stops the villagers from doing anything to Rip and this allows him to continue to live his carefree and chosen lifestyle.
Have you ever imagined being asleep in the forest for twenty years, coming back home and not knowing what has gone on all those years of your absence? Rip Van Winkle went through that, and had to come back home and face some real changes. The author Washington Irving has some interesting characters whom he puts in his short stories. Irving puts some characters in his short stories to reflect on some of his life. For example, Irving has similarities between Rip Van Winkle being asleep in the forest 20 years and Irving was in Europe for seventeen writing short stories and being the governor’s aid and military secretary. These two situations are similar, because they both didn’t know what they were going to come back too and were gone for such a long period of time. Irving does put some of his own life into his short stories and with a reason for his self-reflective works.
Protagonist Rip Van Winkle possesses mystical and entertaining characteristics that captivate the reader. Rip Van Winkle regards all of his neighbors with kindness continuously. He shows the depth of American values such as kindness and the love of the neighbor. Van Winkle’s great kindness is illustrated by his helping of others. On page 62, the narrator states “He inherited, however, but little of the martial character of his ancestors. I have observed that he was a simple, good-natured man; he was moreover a kind neighbor, and an obedient, henpecked husband,” confirming that Van Winkle is a kind person and a loving
The first way being, that the main characters go on dark journeys and return with new attitudes. In "Rip Van Winkle" the character comes back and the people in the village are much more different than when he left. For example, his wife has died, and most of his kids are gone. " 'Ah, poor man, Rip Van Winkle was his name, but it 's twenty years since he went away from home with his gun, and never has been heard of since -- his dog came home without him; but whether he shot himself, or was carried away by the Indians, nobody can tell. I was then but a little girl. ' Rip had but one question more to ask; but he put it with a faltering voice: 'Where 's your mother? ' 'Oh she too had died but a short time since; she broke a blood-vessel in a fit of passion at a New-England peddler '" (Irving ). Rip Van Winkle had come back to village expecting things to be the same as when he left. But little did he know, that he had been gone much longer than he
One main issue of the story was one of identity, especially at this time in history. Rip was having difficulty finding himself throughout the story. His wife constantly nagged at him probably all in good reason. His farm was fading away. He was lazy and unproductive. He underwent many emotional changes throughout the story. He didn't appreciate what he had, and before he could even blink it was gone. Life is too short to not appreciate everything in it and enjoy it to the fullest.
In “Rip Van Winkle” by Washington Irving he writes about a simple man, Rip Van Winkle, who does just enough to get by in life. He lives in a village by the catskill mountains, and is loved by everyone in the village. He is an easy going man, who spends most of his days at the village inn talking with his neighbors, fishing all day, and wandering the mountains with his dog to refuge from his wife the thorn on his side. On one of his trips to the mountains Rip Van Winkle stumbles upon a group of men who offer him a drink, and that drink changes everything for Van Winkle. He later wakes up, twenty years later, and returns to his village were he notices nothing is the same from when he left. He learns that King George III is no longer in charge,
Rip is viewed in the town as a person who helped everyone with anything, except his own family- “…he was a simple ...
In Rip Van Winkle, Irving shows his doubts in the American Identity and the American dream. After the Revolutionary war, America was trying to develop its own course. They were free to govern their own course of development; however, some of them had an air of uncertainties on their own identity in this new country. Irving was born among this generation in the newly created United States of America, and also felt uncertainty about the American identity. Irving might be the writer that is the least positive about being an American. The main reason for this uncertainty is the new born American has no history and tradition while the Europe has a great one accumulated for thousands of years. Therefore, in order to solve this problem, Irving borrows an old European tale to make it take place in America. This tale related to the Dutch colonists haunts the kaatskill mountains. In order to highlight the American identity, Irving praises the “majestic” mountains which Europe lacks. He describes the mountains that “their summits…will glow and light up like a crown of glory” Nevertheless, the use of these ancient explorers into Rip Van Winkle only to show that although American has formed its own identity, no one can cut its connection with Europe. No wonder when America was still under tyranny of the British rule, some people still cannot cut the blood relationship with Europe. Therefore, the American identity is blurred by their relationship with Europe since then.
“Rip Van Winkle”, a short story written by Washington Irving, is known for being a tale that illustrates multiple aspects of life before and after the American Revolution. After spending twenty years in the forest asleep, Rip Van Wrinkle returns to his quaint village to find his home transformed into a bustling town. By the end of the story, he has become a local historian; telling the townspeople what the village was like in days before the revolution. The events of “Rip Van Winkle” occurred due to the actions of Rip Van Winkle’s wife: Dame Van Winkle. Dame Van Winkle can be viewed as the main antagonist in “Rip Van Winkle”, as well as a symbol of Great Britain before and after the American Revolution.
Van Winkle" depicts a story of a man longing to be free, and of the transformation that occurs to him and the
The story of Rip van Winkle is a popular folktale of the United States. Its general motif is the magical passing of many years in what seems only a few days. Japan’s popular version of this story is Urashima Taro. In addition to the common motif, the personality of the main characters, Rip van Winkle and Urashima Taro, and plot structures are similar as well.
In RIP Van Winkle, Dam Van Winkle is abusive, nagging, and sarcastic. In Rip Van Winkle, Washington Irving states that “but what courage can with stand the ever-during and all besetting terrors of a woman’s tongue.” He seems to imply that he did not like women who gave their opinions and spoke their mind. It seems that Rip is going into the woods to escape his wife.
He looks for a sense of comfort in his own life and the lives of those around him. Ms. Bily Cynthia explains that in Rips case “The hero does not necessarily want to become a hero, or to venture out on a quest that will separate him from the world he knows and change his life forever”. An example of Rip being such a hero would be his love of nature. His love for nature allows him to escape stress, and a big amount of the story takes place in the wilderness. Rip mainly uses his time in the wilderness to escape his wife Dame, “She scolds him to such an extent that he is at last reduced almost to despair, 'and finally his only alternative is to take up his gun and stroll away into the woods. ' (Bily)”. As a husband Rip is in a much damaged relationship with his wife Dame. In a marriage “A termagant wife may, therefore, in some respects, be considered a tolerable blessing; and if so, Rip Van Winkle was thrice blessed” (Irving
Rip Van Winkle tells the story of a man who, on a trek into the Kaatskill mountains, mysteriously sleeps away twenty years of his life during the Revolutionary War. When he returns home, he finds that things have dramatically changed; King George no longer has control over the colonies, and many of his friends have either died or left town. At this point, the story reaches its climax, where Van Winkle realizes that his life may be forever changed.