Comparison Of Rip Van Winkle And The American Revolution
Rip Van Winkle and the American Revolution
Rip Van Winkle, the protagonist of the story, was a simple, good-natured man who is defined by many as “lazy”. In fact, his name is often used to refer to anyone who is content to sleep their life away or who spends too much time in a sleepy state. People of the town see him more as a productive type of man that is always willing to lend a hand to his neighbors. He is a very generous man when it comes to helping the community, but could care less about taking care of his farm or his family. Consequently, his wife, Dame Van Winkle, agitates and hounds her husband constantly. After Rip is finally driven out of the house by her constant nagging, he goes to the Catskills and sleeps through the next twenty years of his life. He sleeps through the American …show more content…
Throughout the story, much like America at the time, Rip struggles with his identity. After returning and finding that his son, Rip Van Winkle Jr., who was determined to be just like his father had succeeded in doing so, avoiding succeeding in much of anything else in the process. This is an epiphany for him because it finally validates for him that he was and is in fact a lazy, slacker but that it is okay and comes to terms with his identity. Subsequently, when his daughter finds him and invites him to live with her he learns that his dictatorial wife died many years ago. With her out of his way, he is finally able to live out the rest of his life peacefully as a storyteller. Rip Van Winkle, similar to the newly founded United States of America, could relish in the newly granted liberty and freedom that they had fought for. The story of Rip Van Winkle is indirectly paralleled to the struggles between Great Britain and the American colonies around the time of the Revolution. He represents the American society trying to escape the tyranny of the mother country, in his case his wife, Dame Van
Rip Van Winkle, the protagonist of the story, was a simple, good-natured man who is defined by many as “lazy”. In fact, his name is often used to refer to anyone who is content to sleep their life away or who spends too much time in a sleepy state. People of the town see him more as a productive type of man that is always willing to lend a hand to his neighbors. He is a very generous man when it comes to helping the community, but could care less about taking care of his farm or his family. Consequently, his wife, Dame Van Winkle, agitates and hounds her husband constantly. After Rip is finally driven out of the house by her constant nagging, he goes to the Catskills and sleeps through the next twenty years of his life. He sleeps through the American …show more content…
Throughout the story, much like America at the time, Rip struggles with his identity. After returning and finding that his son, Rip Van Winkle Jr., who was determined to be just like his father had succeeded in doing so, avoiding succeeding in much of anything else in the process. This is an epiphany for him because it finally validates for him that he was and is in fact a lazy, slacker but that it is okay and comes to terms with his identity. Subsequently, when his daughter finds him and invites him to live with her he learns that his dictatorial wife died many years ago. With her out of his way, he is finally able to live out the rest of his life peacefully as a storyteller. Rip Van Winkle, similar to the newly founded United States of America, could relish in the newly granted liberty and freedom that they had fought for. The story of Rip Van Winkle is indirectly paralleled to the struggles between Great Britain and the American colonies around the time of the Revolution. He represents the American society trying to escape the tyranny of the mother country, in his case his wife, Dame Van