Washington Irving (1789-1859).

Romantic Period in America (1828-1865)

American romanticism appeared in the beginning of the 19 century and ended only in the middle of 60s. (In Europe – 30s) Why so? During these years the Americans had to create a national literature. They believed strongly that in the new land they can manage everything much better than it was in Europe. That is why the period lasted for a longer time than in Europe. And that is why “freedom” and “independence” are the key words for the literature of the period.

Romanticists saw the end of the French revolution and the defeat of the Age of Reason. In 1776 people still believed in reason – but not in the beginning of the 19^th century.

Key features of the period:

- the conflict between the ideal and immediate reality

- an exceptional hero in the exceptional circumstances

- black and white world: everything is either good or evil

- nothing stays as it is

• intuition is more valid than reason
• experience is more important than universal principles
• man is at the center of the universe and God is the center of man
• man should seek harmony with nature where the supernatural can be sensed
• we should strive for idealism by changing the world into what it should be, rather than what it is
• passion, beauty, emotion are revered
• return to the "romantic" past, i.e., the Homeric & heroic era

Washington Irving. Rip Van Winkle.

Washington Irving (1789-1859).

The youngest of 11 children born to a well-to-do New York merchant family, Washington Irving became the first professional US writer. He wanted to be a businessman, and he went to Europe. Went bankrupt. W. Scott encouraged him to earn on living by writing. The main contribution which he made – short story.

He was able to publish his Sketch Book (1819-1820) simultaneously in England and America, obtaining copyrights and payment in both countries.

The Sketch Book of Geoffrye Crayon (Irving's pseudonym) contains his two best remembered stories, " Rip Van Winkle " and " The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. " In the Sketch Book, Irving describes the Catskill Mountains along the Hudson River north of New York City.

For subjects, he chose the most dramatic aspects of American history: the discovery of the New World, the first president and national hero, and the westward exploration. His earliest work was a sparkling, satirical History of New York (1809) under the Dutch, ostensibly written by Diedrich Knickerbocker.

Rip Van Winkle plot summary: http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/Guides3/Winkle.html

The story is similar to the German folktale "Peter Klaus" by Johann Karl Christoph Nachtigal, which is a shorter story set in a German village.

Rip Van Winkle is an exceptional hero in the exceptional circumstances. He is out of the society.

There is a clear parallel on the history of the USA:

After Rip awakens from his long sleep and returns to the village, he does not recognize the people he encounters. But not only their faces are new but also their fashions and the look of the village: It is larger, with rows of houses he had never seen. His own house is in shambles now with no one living in it, and the inn he frequented is a hotel. His wife and old Vedder are dead. Everything is different, it seems; nothing is as it was. There has even been a revolutionary war (1775–1783, hello, American history) in which America gained its independence from England and became a new country.

Still, when Rip looks beyond the village, he sees that the Hudson River and the Catskill Mountains are exactly the same as they were before his sleep. He also begins to encounter people who knew him long ago. At this point in the story, Irving’s main theme begins to emerge: although radical changes are sometimes necessary to move society forward, such changes must not eradicate old ways and traditions entirely. New builds on the foundations of the old. There must be continuity – and it is there.

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