Rip Van Winkle and Romanticism :: Rip Van Winkle Essays

Rip Van Winkle and Romanticism    In the world of literature, there are many types of writing that an author can take to express his ideas. Their topics can be explained through life experiences, biographies, poetry, or other forms of literature. One of the forms that authors use is Romanticism. There are many qualities that define the different viewpoints of Romanticism.   Rip Van Winkle, “Thanatopsis,” and “The Cross of Snow” are all examples of writing from the period of Romanticism.        Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Rip Van Winkle is a story written by Washington Irving.   This was a story mainly about a lazy man who did not want to do any type of work, at home or at work. He was said to be useless on his farm, his land and property falling to pieces.   Irving says, “The great error in Rip’s composition was an insuperable aversion to all kinds of profitable labor”(p. 156 1st paragraph), which was just one of Irving’s many uses of inflated language.   Madame Van Winkle would always nag on Rip constantly, to do work around the house and possibly even help to raise their children.      Perhaps the nagging of his wife and his dread of labor is what Rip escaped from when he spent a good amount of his time at the village’s small inn in town.   “Here they used to sit in the shade, through a long lazy summer’s day, talking listlessly over village gossip, or telling endless sleepy stories about nothing.” (p.157) Even in the security of his peers, his wife would track Rip down, and scold all the men for being among each other, instead of being at home with their families.   These surprise visits are what led to Rip’s escape into the Kaatskill Mountains.    After wandering with his gun and his close companion Wolf, Rip tracks himself into the upper parts of the Mountains.   Soon after, Rip comes across a stranger who was carrying what looked like a keg of liquor.   So with the help of the Hollands, which is Dutch Gin, and a whole day of hiking, Rip fell into a deep, solemn slumber.   But when he woke up, he did not know how long he had slept or where both of his companions had gone off too.   He rises from his spot, and with his aged gun, he heads back to town, trying to find an excuse for his angry wife as for why he had been gone for so long.