NOTES+ON+IRVING

Background Notes: · First American esteemed abroad · Humorous essays and stories · Adapted from Germanic legend of Johann Faust (16th century)—sold his soul to the devil in exchange for worldly power and wealth · “The Sketchbook”—collection of his works—1819 (year for American literature) ·  Irving = brit and american copywrites for his work. This is huge since there was no such thing as international copywrites. Speaks volumes of his popularity. · American character in American setting o Caricature, rather than a three-dimensional character, who finds himself in extreme, but comic, predicaments o Still under influence-- take a work and make it American (your own)—similar to Shakespeare · Washington Irving—First AMERICAN writer · Rural America—not urbanized. · Continuity within mutability · After pub of sketch book, many of his stories entered classrooms as models of english prose. · books follow sketch book = less successful · In the 1820s he went to spain (for our purposes, it doesn't matter, but fyi = invited by american ambassador to write a book on columbus and the manuscripts were there) · returns to america in 1832 = critics felt that irving had been europeanized. Irving tried to disprove this by writing on american topics = american west, for example. · Hawthorne and Longfellow were influenced by Irving when they were in school. Our buddy Melville is also influenced by Irving; however, melville preferred Hawthorne more so.
 * Irving **** : **

//“The Devil and Tom Walker”// <span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Symbol; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: Symbol; msofontwidth: 0%; msolist: Ignore; msobidifontfamily: Symbol;">· Faust: A literary character who sells his soul to the devil in order to become all-knowing, or godlike; protagonist of plays by English Renaissance dramatist Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593) and German Romantic writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832). <span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: 'Courier New'; mso-list: Ignore; msofareastfontfamily: 'Courier New'; msofontwidth: 0%; msolist: Ignore;">o goethe is pronounced "gir-tay" or "gir-tee"---the first is what I generally hear critics think that Marlow could have produced a massive volume of classic work...but... he got into a fight and was killed.

//Rip Van Winkle// Mutability within continuity rapidity of change Characterization of Rip-Anti-Franklin? Folk Tale Transplant? Loyal subject of King George III

//Legend of Sleepy Hollow// How is the story "American"? How is characterization performed?