11. In “The Devil and Tom Walker,” what feeling about the setting does Irving want to arouse?…
"The Devil and Tom Walker" by Washington Irving, "The Minister's Black Veil," by Hawthorne, and The Crucible, by Arthur Miller all share similar themes and they all use different genres and forms to help express the story's theme. The three stories all comment on Puritan beliefs and the nature of man, and they deal with the fear of the unknown and not wanting to face the truths. "The Devil and Tom Walker" is a folk tale, which uses satire to describe Puritan beliefs. "The Minister's Black Veil" is a parable and an allegory, where the people and objects in the story all symbolize something. The Crucible is a historical drama, which deals with Puritan beliefs directly and in a serious matter.…
Even though Romantic Literature is concerned with nature, the inner world of human nature and the past, Washington Irving only focused on the past and nature in The Devil and Tom Walker. Irving expresses nature when Tom meets the devil in the forest. He depicts the forest by saying…
Irving, a nonreligious man, wrote this fictitious story that causes its audience to really consider their lives and to question what is possible in the future. His anti-Puritanical writings, while frowned upon by many, led to a new period of American Romanticism and inspired many new authors, such as Edgar Allen Poe, to follow in his footsteps. Without discussion, "The Devil and Tom Walker" is one of the many short stories that follows a Romantic style, and it clearly exhibited the huge shift in style that America went through in the 19th…
The duality of human nature between the characters; Tom Walker, Young Goodman Brown, and Connie are revealed vastly contrarily and similarly throughout the each short stories. Tom Walker, a greedy, lazy, materialistic man throughout the short story “Devil and Tom Walker” by Washington Irving as he makes his way through the muddy unpleasant swamp. Young Goodman Brown, an innocent, guilty, follower who is a victim of the Devil, in the story “Young Goodman Brown” written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. He has a harsh time when he is tempted by the Devil in the woods. Lastly, Connie, a neglected, verballed abused, attention seeking young girl from “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by Joyce Carol Oates has been constantly compared and internally diminished by her mother from jealous for years. Each character while having similar experience all seem to also have similar personality traits as well.…
In the story of “The Devil and Tom Walker” by Washington Irving, tells about three characters that portrays human behavior in the real world. Tom is a greedy, selfish, and foolish character that wants everything without working for it. Walker’s wife is also selfish, greedy, and foolish in her own way, by not caring about her husband and wanting everything for herself. Old Scratch is smart, evil and he always keeps his promises.…
Washington Irving’s “The Devil and Tom Walker”, shows us that greed and hypocrisy will only haunt you in the end. The story takes place in New England in the late 1700’s. The narrator tells a story about a man’s encounter with the devil or “Old Scratch”. While most people don’t believe the wild story, the narrator swears that the story is indeed true.…
In the short story “The Devil and Tom Walker,” written by Washington Irving, the characteristic of Romanticism that is prominent throughout the story is symbolism. “He thought with regret on the bargain he had made with his black friend (Devil), and set his wits to work to cheat him out of the conditions. He became, therefore, all of a sudden, a violent churchgoer.” (358) Tom Walker didn’t want to spend his time as a usurer for the rest of his life, so he became a forceful and extremist Christian to ward off the Devil. Symbolism is important because it requires the reader to delve into the true meaning of what he/she is reading.…
Although his immorality is clear, Walker himself cannot see the error in his ways. Irving means this as a warning to the audience, to look carefully at their choices in life. Once again, Irving’s Romantic and humanitarian inspiration is evident, as Romantics believed success came from strong moral and ethical values (“Historical”). Obviously, Walker, does not hold these same values, and he ultimately meets his demise. Immoral decisions may not be extremely obvious, but over time the escalation of corruption may result in…
As Goodman was walking into the woods, Hawthorne wrote, “It was all as lonely as could be; and there is this peculiarity in such a solitude, that the traveller knows not who may be concealed by the innumerable trunks and the thick boughs overhead; so that, with lonely footsteps, he may yet be passing through an unseen multitude.” This passage sets the stage for a creepy feeling of seclusion and suspense. Without the isolation within this story, Goodman would not be witnessing everyone passing by without them knowing, rather, he would be engaged with them. This would cause him to be influenced by the other characters within the story, and we would no longer be able to see Goodman inevitably succumb to the temptation of the Devil by himself (the loss of his innocence), which is the overall theme of the…
Nathanial Hawthorne had a way of intertwining imagery and symbolism into one. He could put the two together to create an ominous mood throughout his story “Young Goodman Brown”. The focus on the use of symbolism and imagery helps imply the theme, that no one can escape sin, in the story. Hawthorne uses this theme to denounce puritan attitudes and hypocrisy.…
In “The Devil and Tom Walker” by Washington Irving, the reader experiences many different settings to help support Characterization! The author painted a clear picture in the reader’s head that portrayed sounds, physical sensations, and sometimes tastes and smells, that helps the reader figure out what was happening currently in the story. The imagery in this short story affects the characters and the way they act, also the mood of the reader as they read the story.…
The story Young Goodman Brown by Nathaniel Hawthorne is heavily based on the idea of symbolism. Nevertheless, without the use of symbolism it would have been difficult for the author to get his point across. The theme of the story also revolved around the symbolism. The significant symbolism used in Young Goodman Brown portrays the theme used by Nathaniel Hawthorne that the temptations of the devil can challenge one’s faith.…
In a Journey, a traveller can gain new perspectives of themselves and the world around them by taking on opportunities to learn. The novel ‘Raw’ by Scott Monk demonstrates these ideas by writing about a young boy named Brett, who hates authoritative figures such as the police. A change is perspective is shown in the late chapters when Brett is at the farm, meeting new friends and learning how lucky he is. What also changes Brett’s attitude to himself, other people that are the friends that he makes during the novel and a girl that he is willing to meet, even if he goes the prison. Brett’s punish for escaping from the Farm has change view of making decisions. Instead of judging and disliking a person, Brett has shown to change his views of other people on his journey. The Poem, ‘The road not taken’ by Robert Frost also exhibits the opportunity to gain new perspectives in the poem, through the use of an extended metaphor about the journey of life. This is shown in the poem when the persona apologises for not being able to take both sides of the road. Disappointment is shown when the persona gives a ‘sigh’. This shows how melancholic he is by giving a deep audible breath. A personal voice is used in the poem to create immediacy.…
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s, “Young Goodman Brown” the author retells the Adam and Eve story a twist. The temptation of evil and the search for knowledge are evident in "Young Goodman Brown." However, Hawthorne's biblical references to Adam and Eve, are inverted..…