Analysis Of Ichabod Crane And Brom Bones In The Legend Of Sleepy Hollow

In the short story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Washington Irving, the characters Ichabod Crane and Brom Bones compete in their courtship of Katrina Van Tassel. In The Courtship of Miles Standish by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Miles Standish and his friend John Alden both want to gain the hand of the virtuous Priscilla Mullins. Throughout both works, the characters use their own strategies to achieve their goals. Each of their strategies varies in success and expresses different parts of Romanticism. Ichabod Crane and Brom Bones are both trying to woo Katrina Van Tassel, the daughter of the successful farmer, Baltus Van Tassel. Ichabod Crane and Brom Bones differ in that Ichabod wants to woo Katrina for her great inheritance and Brom wants to woo her for who she is.

Although Brom is interested in forming a romantic relationship with Katrina, it is an idealized romance that he wants based on his following of knight-errantry. In this way, Brom’s courtship represents Romanticism in its idealism. “This rantipole hero had for some time singled out the blooming Katrina for the object of his uncouth gallantries….” (The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, paragraph 29) His view of their relationship was unrealistic and incorporated a sort of wishful thinking, which can be compared to the values of Romanticism. In Ichabod Crane’s courtship of Katrina, he tries to satisfy his greed. A large theme in Romanticism is the satisfaction of one’s desires. In Romanticism, the do not shy away from showing these desires. Ichabod’s goal is to satisfy his hunger. He wants to exploit Katrina for her inheritance and property. Furthermore, Ichabod romanticizes the outcome of this