Rip Van Winkle’’ is framed with commentary
from an unnamed writer. Before the story itself
begins, three paragraphs in brackets explain the
story's origin: The tale ‘‘was found among the
papers of the late Diedrich Knickerbocker,’’ a
man who dedicated much of his life to studying
and recording the history of the Dutch
inhabitants of upstate New York.
The tale itself opens with a description of the
Kaatskill (now called Catskill) Mountains,
beautiful and mysterious, at the foot of which is
the village where the central character lives. The
time is the late 1760s or the early 1770s, while
the area is still a colony of Great Britain under
the rule of King George III. Rip Van Winkle is a ‘‘simple, goodnatured fellow''
with a faithful dog, a son, a daughter, and a domineering wife. One autumn day,
wandering up the mountains with his dog, Wolf. Rip discovers a man dressed in
antiquated Dutch clothing, Although there is no conversation and Rip does not
ask the men who they are or how they know his name, he discreetly begins to
drink some of their liquor, and soon falls asleep.He awakes in unusual
circumstances: it seems to be morning, his gun is rotted and rusty, his beard
has grown a foot long, and Wolf is nowhere to be
found. …..
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” is a short story
that is popular around Halloween. Washington
Irving tells of Ichabod Crane, a school teacher
who comes to live in Sleepy Hollow. The town is
full of supernatural stories and old wives' tales
such as the Headless Horseman.Most of the
families have lived there for generations. Ichabod
enjoys hearing the tales and his job as a teacher
allows him to spend a lot of time in the various
households. Ichabod falls in love with Katrina
Van Tassel, who happens to be the only
daughter of one of the wealthier farmers in the
town. Ichabod ends up in competition with Brom Van Brunt, who is also
courting Katrina. Irving combines humor and suspense in his beloved story.