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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This is a 3 page paper that provides an overview of marriage in Irving's "Rip Van Winkle". Evidence for the marriage's symbolic representation of the American/British Revolutionary conflict is presented. Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Page Count:
3 pages (~225 words per page)
File: KW60_KFwinkle.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
listed below. Citation styles constantly change, and these examples may not contain the most recent updates. Allegory of Marriage in Irvings "Rip Van Winkle" ,
10/2010 --properly! Washington Irvings "Rip Van Winkle", like many literary works of early America, is awash with allegory and symbolic meaning.
Ostensibly, the story tells the tale of a somewhat lethargic yet good-natured farmer by the name of Rip Van Winkle who is married, but not happily, for his wife constantly
bemoans his lack of industriousness, stressing that a mans duty is to care for his wife. In an effort to escape what he views as "nagging", Van Winkle sets out
into the foothills of the nearby Catskill Mountains, whereupon he encounters a band of merrymakers and samples their potent liquor, a tincture which puts him into a slumber lasting two
decades. Van Winkle awakes to find that not only has his wife died, but that the entire social and political landscape of America has changed, the Revolutionary War against Britain
having transpired during his prolonged nap. On the surface, this is merely a fantastical tale, perhaps an early precursor to later science fiction works involving time travel. An allegorical reading,
however, clearly reveals the symbolism at work in the story, especially in regards to Irvings use of the institution of marriage as a symbol for the relationship between Britain and
the early American colonies. While the twenty year nap is the most famous element of the story, the relationship between Van Winkle and his wife is actually at the
core of the narrative. This relationship is symbolic of the precarious ties held between Britain and the American colonies immediately before and after the Revolutionary War. Consider the particulars of
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