The Legend of Sleepy Hollow By Washington Irving - Book Report/Review Example

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow - By Washington Irving "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is a short story composed by Washington Irving. Even though the plot is created in an American background, it clearly shows influences of late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth century European cultural movements: a gothic literature featuring supernatural apparitions and a broader romantic movement characterized by an emphasis on imagination over reason, an attraction to the marvelous, and a longing for the legendary past. "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" also owes a particular debt to romantic interest in German legends. The story's climactic scene was borrowed from a German story, parts of which had been translated into English in 1791 as "Popular Tales of the Germans". (http://www.novelguide.com/a/discover/ahlt_0001_0002_0/ahlt_0001_0002_0_00137.html) "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is the story of strange events happening in the mystical place named Sleepy Hollow. The main character of the story is Ichabod Crane who is a strict school master and a music teacher. He, just like his surname, resembles a crane in physical appearance. He is a lanky guy with an awkward sense of dressing. However, he is extremely popular with the people of Sleepy Hollow. He plays with the older boys after school hours and is an active participant when it comes to gossips taking place amongst the women. Ichabod is especially interested in witchcraft and reads several books on topics alike. One of the most common topics among the gossipers is the tales of the ghost of Hessian trooper who was killed by a cannonball and rides through the countryside searching for his lost head. Katrina Van Tassel, a thriving farmer Baltus Van Tassel's daughter, captures Ichabod's heart. Ichabod notices Katrina at his music class where she is one of his students. However, by the description provided, it looks like Ichabod is interested more in the luxury available at Baltus Van Tassel's house rather than in Katrina Van Tassel. In any case, Ichabod is highly determined to marry Katrina Van Tassel and fills his heart with dreams relating to their future. Katrina is beautiful and her father is wealthy. So there are others in the list of those who desire her companionship. One amongst them is Brom Van Brunt. Brom Van Brunt is very different from Ichabod in his interests and style. Unlike Ichabod, he is well-built and dexterous. He has an overbearing rough exterior but at the same time has a humorous side to him. Ichabod and Brom Van Brunt view each other as tough competitors. Consequently, Brom Van Brunt and his companions begin to harass Ichabod through their practical jokes. Ichabod's perseverance does not let him back down. One evening, Baltus Van Tassel hosts a grand party to which Ichabod too is invited. He dresses up in his finest of clothes to the party. He is fascinated by the arrangements made at the party. He also gets an opportunity to dance with Katrina Van Tassel. After the dance, the men in the party begin to exchange horror filled tales of Sleepy Hollow. By the end of the party, after all the guests have left, Ichabod's heart is so much filled with positive thoughts that he decides to ask Katrina for her hand. The narrator does not disclose the conversation that takes place between Ichabod and Katrina, but the description of the after-effects quite clearly indicates that Katrina rejects Ichabod's proposal. Ichabod immediately leaves. Ichabod, on his way back, realizes that the paths are rather dark and deserted. The scary stories discussed at the party begin to haunt his mind. His horse too begins to disobey him. Suddenly, he notices a shadowy figure of a man on a horse moving along with him. He is shocked to notice that the man riding the horse is headless. Ichabod tries to lose him by riding as fast as he can, but is unsuccessful. The last thing he sees is the man throwing his head towards Ichabod. Ichabod falls to the ground unconscious and his horse runs away. The next morning, there is no sign of Ichabod in the village. On conducting a search, the villagers find only the horse and some of Ichabod's belongings. They are unable to trace Ichabod, but find a pumpkin instead. Several interpretations of Ichabod's sudden disappearance creep up amongst the villagers. Some consider Brom Van the reason for Ichabod's disappearance. One farmer brings news from New York after a few years that Ichabod has continued to live his life in some other part of the country. The women of Sleepy Hollow however continue to believe that it was the supernatural powers that caused Ichabod to suddenly vanish. The way in which Irving concludes the story is very interesting. He discloses only part of the facts and leaves the rest for readers' interpretation and imagination. Towards the end, Irving only says that the farmer brings the news about Ichabod's survival from New York. He does not clearly state if that news is totally reliable. The readers who are more practical in their approach may view Ichabod as a person who is capable of taking a drastic decision as to flee the place just because of Katrina's refusal. The more imaginative ones may interpret it in a different way. The manner in which Irving builds the story, there is significant emphasis on the supernatural qualities of the place. So, some readers may interpret the conclusion accordingly. There can be yet another interpretation of the concluding scene. Ichabod may be viewing his own image in the form of the ghost. Ichabod had always held his head high under all circumstances, even when he was being discouraged by his competitor, Brom Van. But now, since Katrina herself had rejected him, he could no more hold his head high. Her refusal had hurt him to that extent. So, he viewed himself headless in the form of the ghost. In a way, it also signifies that he could not get rid of the ghost of his imagination no matter how hard he tried. Finally, he decides to leave Sleepy Hollow for good. He no more had reason to continue living there. There are two main aspects of the story that would capture any reader's attention. One is the mystical character of the place that the narrator keeps reminding the readers about at different points in the story. The other aspect is the way Irving has made use of humor in a subject like this. Irving has extensively used humor to form descriptions throughout. For instance, the physical description of Ichabod is very humorous in itself. Irving has also used sarcastic humor to describe the mentality of women in the village. One of the great themes of American literature and American folklore is the clash between the city and the country, between civilization and the wilderness. As the theme is played out in literature around the world, it carries one of two interpretations: either the city is seen as beautiful, civilized, rich, clean and safe, and the country is ugly, dirty and dangerous, or else the city is dirty and dangerous, populated by swindlers who love nothing better than tricking the kind, gentle people from the beautiful country. American folklore from the nineteenth century tends to favor the second view. Settlers were proud of their wilderness, and excited by it, and their stories celebrated the skills and qualities one needed to survive on the frontier. Irving sets up a confrontation between the two opposites - Ichabod and Brom Van. Ichabod Crane, a native of Connecticut, represents the man from the city. Brom Van, the countryside man and Crane's most formidable competitor for the hand of Katrina, is as unlike Crane as he could be. Any reader of American folklore knows how this confrontation would turn out. Crane's education is no match for Brom's native wit, his scrawny body and awkward riding are no match for Brom's strength and skill, and the woman chooses the rough and strong man over the refined and delicate one. Neither man is particularly unlikable, but in America, a young country with frontier to be tamed, the values of the country win out over those of the city. (http://www.answers.com/topic/the-legend-of-sleepy-hollow-story-4) Some critics have examined the story from a feminist perspective, to examine what the story reveals about Irving's ideas about the role of women. In her 1975 book "The Lay of the Land," Annette Kolodny describes Sleepy Hollow as a feminine pastoral setting. She sees Ichabod Crane as a male aggressor who threatens this community and therefore must be driven away. In 1993, Laura Plummer and Michael Nelson again find that Crane is "an intrusive male who threatens the stability of a decidedly feminine place," as they explain in an article in Studies in Short Fiction. They describe the story as a conflict between male and female forms of storytelling, and point out its "misogynistic bent." (http://www.answers.com/topic/the-legend-of-sleepy-hollow-story-7) Though Irving fell into critical disfavor in the early twentieth century, his tales have received appreciative reappraisals by later generations, who have recognized "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" as a pioneering work in numerous ways. In addition to showing that American materials could be worked into successful literary form, even in a predominantly romantic cultural moment, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," along with "Rip Van Winkle," has been credited with inventing the short-story form. Its humor has been described as anticipating the "tall tale" genre that surfaced most famously in the work of Mark Twain. Its innovative plays on gothic materials have been seen as prefiguring works by Edgar Allan Poe, Nathaniel Hawthorne, and Henry James, and the questions of reliability it raises resonate with postmodern critical approaches. But the story's place in literary history is only part of its cultural legacy. "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" was also a pioneering work of American popular culture. Not only has it been widely read, but the sketch has also been so thoroughly adopted as bona fide American folklore that many know the story of Ichabod Crane and the headless horseman without having any idea that it comes from a story written by Washington Irving. There is something marvelously ironic about this: commenting on the potential for restless Americans to be sold unreliable stories, Irving produced a story that would come to stand as authentic American lore, something he also wholeheartedly encouraged. (http://www.novelguide.com/a/discover/ahlt_0001_0002_0/ahlt_0001_0002_0_00137.html) There is no doubt about the fact that this story is an application of European romanticism and German lore to an American setting. While "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" owes something to European models, it also draws from domestic sources. Irving had traveled a good deal in the Hudson Valley, and he clearly had at least some knowledge of the Dutch, Native American, African, and British vernacular cultures that contributed to the region's cultural inheritance. Also, by adapting European imagery to display American details, he showed in a way that America had as much to offer as the Europeans, and more. (http://www.novelguide.com/a/discover/ahlt_0001_0002_0/ahlt_0001_0002_0_00137.html) Bibliography Irving, Washington. "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow". 3 May 2009. Gale, Thomson. "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow". 3 May 2009. "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (Themes)". 3 May 2009. < http://www.answers.com/topic/the-legend-of-sleepy-hollow-story-4> "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow (Critical Overview)". 3 May 2009. Read More