How does Irving incorporate at least three of the characteristics into “Rip Van Winkle” what is the impact of these characteristics on the story or on the readers experience of the story?

Question

How does Irving incorporate at least three of the characteristics into “Rip Van Winkle” what is the impact of these characteristics on the story or on the readers experience of the story?

-They are set in the past, often in remote or exciting places and times

-They are filled with remarkable, strange, or exaggerated characters.

-They feature incredible, heroic, impressive, magical, or mysterious events and their consequences.

-They convey a positive message about a nation or its people.

Be sure to cite specific examples from the text in your response.

Answer 1

In “Rip Van Winkle,” Irving incorporates all three of these characteristics. He sets the story in the past, in the remote Catskill Mountains of New York. The characters in the story are remarkable, strange, and exaggerated. Rip Van Winkle is a lazy, good-natured man who falls asleep for twenty years and wakes up to find his village and family changed. The mysterious events of the story are the magical events that occur when Rip falls asleep, such as the strange men he meets in the mountains and the thunderstorm that wakes him up. These events convey a positive message about the nation and its people, as Rip is seen as a symbol of the American spirit of independence and resilience. The impact of these characteristics on the story and the readers’ experience is that they create a sense of wonder and mystery, as well as a feeling of nostalgia for a simpler time.