Rip Van Winkle Analysis

In Washington Irving’s “Rip Van Winkle,” an allegorical reading can be seen. The genius of Irving shines through, in not only his representation in the story, but also in his ability to represent both sides of the hot political issues of the day. Because it was written during the revolutionary times, Irving had to cater to a mixed audience of Colonists and Tories. The reader’s political interest, whether British or Colonial, is mutually represented allegorically in “Rip Van Winkle,” depending on who is reading it. Irving uses Rip, Dame, and his setting to relate these allegorical images on both sides. Irving would achieve success in both England and America, in large part because his political satires had individual allegorical meanings.

Ultimately, Irving’s “Rip Van Winkle” takes the form of an allegory, illustrating the atmosphere of the United States following the Revolution. The conjunction of the metaphorical relationship between Rip and his wife, the imagery of the changed town, and the necessity for Rip to adjust to his new liberty, mirror the promise of progress and freedom from the Revolution. Superficially “Rip Van Winkle” represents change, yet just below the surface lies an insight into the revolutionary

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

One thing in the story that shocked me is how different our perception of the Revolutionary War is from the reality. An example of this was how ill trained the American army was at the beginning of the war. The army was undisciplined, disobedient, and motivated only by their paychecks. Many perceive the soldiers as valiant, zealous men, but it wasn’t until much later in the war that the soldiers rose to the occasion and became the warriors that we remember today.

His life is that of working others farms and lending a hand where needed, but neglecting his chores at home. This again represents England and America, America was more concerned with growing their country and their independence than that of properly following the crown. After Rip Van Winkle arises from his slumber, he is introduced to a new town with unfamiliar townsfolk. This portion of the story represents America after the revolution. As he ventured into the familiar village inn it was evident that things had changed the picture of King George was replaced by that of George Washington (639).

            If there's one passage in this story that would summarize the entire story it would be this one. Every theme throughout Rip Van Winkle is touched on somewhere in here and the constant theme of "who Rip is" is the underlying question of both this story and this passage. In the beginning of the story I think we all took a liking to such a friendly character who cares so much about pleasing everyone. However, towards the end of the story Rip seems to examine his life and realizes that he doesn't like everything about himself, and that quite possibly some changes are in order.

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

“Rip Van Winkle” is a classic American Mythological story that tells the tale of a man who sleeps for twenty years after drinking a mysterious drink. Rip Van Winkle is a very lazy, American man who one day, ventures off into the woods with his dog named Wolf. While in the woods, he finds a group of men playing Skittles and drinking liquor in the middle of an amphitheater. He joins them, and drinks some of their alcohol, but he soon passes out. When he awakens, twenty years have passed, and he missed the Revolutionary War, his children growing up, and even his wife passing away. What characteristics make this folklore such a classic fable in American literature? The story is set in the past, features exaggerated and strange characters, and

In the story, Rip Van Winkle, Rip is seen by many of his peers as a person they can always go to for help, he is incredibly dependable. The story states, “the women of the village ,too used to employ him to run their errands, and to do such little odd jobs as their less obliging husbands would not do for them.”(10). Meaning Rip is always there to give a helping hand, even when others do not want to. Robin too is persistent, he spends hours upon hours looking for Major Molineux, until he is successful. In the story, Robin states, “I pray you tell me the whereabouts of is the dwelling of my kinsman, Major Molineux.”(2). Which shows that even from the beginning, Robin will do anything to find him. Another similaritiy the two share are the many setbacks they go through to acheive their goals. For example, Rips goal was to simply enjoy some time away from Dame Van Winkle, his horrendous wife, but falls asleep in the mountains, and wakes up in distress and shock due to his changed town. However Rip does gain a sense of peace by telling his story to whoever will listen, and the almost comforting death of Dame. Robin’s goal in My Kinsman, Major Molineux, is simply to find the location of his relative Major Molineux. Robin goes through a great deal of trouble, because he is seen as an outsider in this foreign town. Robin too reaches his goal, and finally finds Major Molineux, that is, after he is sleep

Washington Irving, author of the short story “Rip Van Winkle,” writes, “In a word, Rip [Van Winkle] was ready to attend to anybody’s business but his own; but as to doing family duty, and keeping his farm in order, he found it impossible” (10). Rip Van Winkle is the protagonist in this short story, narrated by Diedrich Knickerbocker, which first appeared in 1819 in Irving’s collection of stories, The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent (2). Irving sets the story in a small Dutch colonial village near the Kaatskill Mountains and the Hudson River pre-Revolutionary War under King George III of England (5, 26-28). Van Winkle lives with his wife, Dame Van Winkle, and his son and daughter, Rip Van Winkle, Jr. and Judith, respectively. Dame Van Winkle is an extremely henpecking wife; however, Van Winkle is very careless when it comes to caring for his family and farm, which leads to his wife’s nagging. Van Winkle eventually leaves home and meets strangers in the woods, with whom he drinks liquor with; consequently, he ends up falling asleep for what he will ultimately learn was twenty years. At this point, the setting changes to an independent United States city post-Revolutionary War under a new flag and a new leader, President George Washington (Irving 7-24). A negative person is someone who has a multitude of unpleasant traits; contrarily, a positive person is a person who has mainly admirable characteristics. Judging a character’s attributes in a novel is tough, even if they

Rip Van Winkle is described as a man who “was one of those happy mortals, of foolish, well-oiled dispositions, who take the world easy, 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” (46). He was a stubborn man

One thing we know about Rip Van Winkle is that this story is inspirited in a story belonging to a Dutch story, taking from the Dutch settlers of American colonies.

Rip van Winkle by Washington Irving is a story about a man, and a bizarre adventure through time to the near future during the American Revolution. The story follows a Dutch-American settler living in the New York Catskills before the American Revolt. Within the village, the man is well-known as a remarkable member of the society, as that plays into the genre. The story takes an unexpected turn when the main character, Rip Van Winkle, is fast-travelled through time, to an era soon after the American Revolution, where his son is grown and his wife dead. The narrative told by Rip Van Winkle is what created the deeply-rooted values that now define the American mythology genre as what it is today.

Rip Van Winkle desires to leave his nagging wife, driving him into the woods revealing a gorgeous, woodland landscape and a

"Rip Van Winkle" has been a well-known story told throughout time. There is not a doubt that as a child, many of you heard the words of Washington Irving's famous tale of the man who slept for twenty years. Nor can one forget the "elves" that Rip Van Winkle spent the night with in the amphitheater. Like many stories, Irving's "Rip Van Winkle" has been told so many times throughout American history that it has lost its original purpose. The story is now remembered for its fairy tale like quality and its appeal to the children and the young at heart. However, when given the chance to delve into the depths of what Irving was trying to portray, one may see the