"The Devil and Tom Walker" is a short story by Washington Irving that many wonder about. It teaches a lesson and has many archetypes in the characters. In literature, an archetype is a typical character, a type of action, or a situation that leads to the representation of such universal patterns of human nature. An archetype may be a character, a theme, a symbol or it can even be a setting. Tom walker is the protagonist of the story he is the main character.
Tom Walker is an outrageously self-confident, greedy person. Tom Walker is a common man with miserly tendencies, living an unhappy life with his wife, who is just as miserly as he is. As he is known for his greed, he is strongly tempted by the devil's amazing deal, which ultimately results in his downfall. The first example of an archetype is the swamp, where Tom Walker meets the devil for the first
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The Devil is explaining to Tom who he is and he also describes himself. The Devil is often described as a man is disguises and here it is the same way. He describes himself as a woodsman, a black miner and a huntsman and all of these disguises can be related to dark and scary people, which is exactly what the devil is. “The devil” said he guards, Captain Kidd’s treasure, he said he guards all treasure. “The devil presided at the hiding of Captain Kidd’s money, and took it under his guardianship; but this, it is well known, he always does with buried treasure, particularly when it has been ill-gotten”. (Irving). He claims to own the swamp near Tom Walker and his wife’s home, where Tom met him during his first encounter where they were surrounded by trees with carved names of the living but soon to die and be fuel for hell’s fire. Old Scratch is the devil who knows when he’s got people right where he wants them, and tries to offer the deal of a lifetime. After Toms encounter with the devil he went to tell his wife about the
Though each story differed in many ways, these themes still held the essence: a hero goes on a quest to defeat a villain. Archetypes are recurring themes found in essentially all stories written by mankind, including “Momotaro” and “Theseus”. Not all stories are exactly the same, however, because these archetypes are bent in order to create unique, engaging stories with interesting characters with the same essential plot
In “The Devil and Tom Walker,” written by Washington Irving’s, Tom Walker gives his soul to the devil for greediest. For example, in the story, it was said, “He accumulated bonds and mortgages, gradually squeezed his customers closer and closer and sent them at length, dry as a sponge, from his door.” This shows how greedy and selfish he was for not caring about what anyone else feels,
Flannery O’ Conner’s short story, “A good man is hard to find”, explains emotional reactions, betrayal, and violence. The misfit is an example of a devil figure. This character archetype is best seen when we see the misfit’s true colors shine as he murders the grandmother and her family. O’ Conner uses setting archetypes best when she uses a clear bright sky or an open dirt road, which can mean a variety of outcomes. This helps understand the many plot twists in the story. We best see symbolic archetypes as the three bandits including the misfit. They represent a mock of the holy trinity and represent evil. “The fall” is a good archetype that shows the misfit’s lack of innocence when he betrays the grandmother. This best explains the whole
An archetype, as defined by Literary Terms, is an idea, symbol, pattern, or character type that appears repeatedly in stories from cultures worldwide, symbolizing something universal in the human experience. There are three types of archetypes: symbolic, character, and situational. In her memoir, The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls employs each archetype to capture her difficult life growing up due to her father's alcoholism and inability to hold a job. These archetypes also play a crucial role in developing the novel's theme of perseverance. The central theme of the novel is perseverance, as Jeannette and her siblings worked hard and never gave up, managing to build a better life for themselves.
Soon he falls asleep and when he wakes up, he finds that he is on a table and a scythe is being lowered from the ceiling. The scythe is another symbol of death. As the scythe is coming down, he tries to find a way to get away from it. At the end of the story, he is saved at the last moment by " an outstretched arm caught my own as I fell, fainting, into the abyss." Washington Irving also talks about death and the devil in his short story "The Devil and Tom Walker." He writes more about the devil than he does death and he does not put himself in the place of the main character like Poe did. Tom, the main character, is a greedy person along with his wife. As he comes home one night, he goes through some woods and meets the devil. "Tom might have felt disposed to sell himself to the devil," but he was afraid to. On the other hand, his wife was not afraid and she disappears. Then Tom makes a deal with the devil, but soon "he thought with regret of the bargain he had made with his black friend, and set his wits to work to cheat him out of the conditions." He turns to religion and carries Bibles with him to keep the devil away, but it does
In the short story The Devil and Tom Walker, written by Washington Irving, the protagonist Tom Walker, is characterized as being a negative man. This is demonstrated through Tom Walker being characterized as being meager, outspoken, fearless, greedy, stubborn, and unloving.
Both “The Devil and Tom Walker” and “The Devil and Daniel Webster” are exemplary specimens of Faustian myths, and as such have very many similarities and concurrences. But, they also emphasize different aspects of the characters and their respective personalities. These two commendable stories serve as excellent chronicles of literature and as worthy examples of moral lessons for all ages.
Everyone can relate to an archetype character in a movie, book, or television show. An archetype in literature is a typical character with an action or a situation that seems to represent such universal patterns of human nature. Common archetypes of characters are: a hero, caregiver, rebel, damsel in distressed, lover, villain, or tragic hero. In the play, The Crucible, there are several kinds of characters with archetypes. Tragic hero normally are in tragic plays which also can be called tragedy. “Tragedy is a drama in which a character that is usually a good and noble person of high rank which is brought to a disastrous end in his or her confrontation with a superior force but also comes to understand the meaning of his or her deeds and to
Consistent in literature throughout every era and culture, archetypes represent a recurring image, pattern, or motif mirroring a typical human experience. An idea developed by Carl Jung, archetypes in literature exist as representations reflecting vital perceptions of the human psyche expressing the manner in which individuals experience the world. Using Jung’s concept, writers of all epochs embeds archetypes in structures, characters, and images of their narratives. John Gardner, in his novel Grendel, integrates several of Jung’s archetypes into his epic tale derived from the early story Beowulf. Gardner associates Jung’s personas of the outcast, the shadow, and the mentor-pupil relationship through the identities of Grendel, the narrator of events, and the dragon.
Tom was walking along the forest, and through the swamp. Tom discovered the remains of an old Indian fortification and then Tom kicks a skull that is there, and encounters with the Devil named Old Scratch. The Devil offers Kidd’s riches and treasure to Tom in exchange for his soul, but Tom declines the offer because he knew it would please his wife. Tom’s wife wanted money so she goes back to make the deal with Old Scratch, but she dies because the Devil didn’t want her he wanted Tom. Later on Tom encounters with Old Scratch and agrees to make the deal to sell his soul. So, by now, both Tom and Jabez sold their soul to the Devil, one devil being more stern and brutal and the other devil appears to be more charismatic, tricky, and looks like a human. Both, Jabez and Tom wanted to get out of the deal, but only one person does. Even though Tom’s character is static, he was repenting from the deal he made and was attending church, and kept two Bibles near him. One day Tom hears a knock on his door and sees Old Scratch. Old Scratch grabs Tom and rides away with him and he is never seen again. So, Jabez being the only one to get out of the deal. Jabez’s character is dynamic because he changed to being rich and caring about riches, also leaving his wife to the side and in the beginning he didn’t act in such a manner, but in the end he changes back to regretting all he did. Every year Scratch would visit Jabez and the closer
In Washington Irving’s story, The Devil and Tom Walker, Irving uses his imagination to convey his thoughts about the truth of life through symbols and characterization. In one specific instance in the story, the main character, Tom Walker, is walking home and “he took what he considered a shortcut homeward, through the swamp. Like most shortcuts, it was an ill-chosen route.” The path being “thickly grown with great gloomy pines” symbolizes the path of wrongdoings, bad decisions, and darkness. By taking this path, one then strays off the path of
Brown begins the journey believing that his forefathers are innocent, good men, but the devil tells Brown that he has been, "…well acquainted with your family as with ever a one among the Puritans; and that’s no trifle to say" (Kelly, 192). Brown's forefathers become equated with the devil. The people of the town are also displaced as the devil. The devil tells Brown, "I have a very general acquaintance here in New England. The deacons of many a church have drunk the communion wince with me; the selectmen of divers towns make me their chairman; and a majority of the Great and General Court are firm supporters of my interest, The governor and I, too----But these are state secrets" (Kelly, 192-93).
Washington Irving displays a sense of humor throughout “The Devil and Tom Walker” about greed, marriage and religion to help the reader, become a better person. Tom Walker makes a Faustian Bargain, also known as a deal with the devil. Tom has a lot of problems with his abusive wife, his desire for riches and getting into the afterlife. Washington Irving tells us the story of Tom Walker in a humorous way. Irving does this to display a message to his readers.
In Washington Irving's "The Devil and Tom Walker," Walker is motivated by greed and money to succeed in life, which was influenced by ethical, social, and cultural impacts of the New Englanders along with their attitudes in the early eighteenth century. Essentially, Tom Walker was selling his soul to the Devil for experience, knowledge, and treasure to be at the level of the wealthy. New Englanders at the time were so driven towards money, land, and power that they would do anything to get their hands on it. Some whites would
In the Devil and Tom Walker Tom’s wife has a temper, loud mouth and she was strong . His face sometimes showed signs that their fighting may have been more than words. She would hide things from Tom. They did not have a very good marriage. Again Irving portrayed the wife as loud and nagging.