Washington Irving does a wonderful job conveying different themes into “Rip Van Winkle.” His attention to detail in writing makes his story exhilarating and a pleasure to read. There is no doubt that his writing was one of the first true American Myths. Irving does a great job setting up a picturesque town beneath the Kaatskill Moutains. His town is inviting and magical. “At the foot of these fairy mountains, the voyager may have descried the light smoke curling up from a village, whose shingle-roofs gleam among the trees, just where the blue tints of the upland melt away into the fresh green of the nearer landscape.” (Ch.2 Par. 2 – Irving) One key element of a great myth is the setting. “Rip Van Winkle” is set in a scenic village settled by the Dutch when George the Third was in power. The story describes gleaming roofs among the trees and smoke curing up to the sky from this village. …show more content…
He had exaggerated characteristics like laziness and a lack of skill for everything, but, Rip was also a kind and generous man. He was very childlike and often played with all the children in the village. He had a wife who nagged too much and was friends with everyone. “The children of the village, too, would shout with joy whenever he approached. He assisted at their sports, made their playthings, taught them to fly kites and shoot marbles, and told them long stories of ghosts, witches, and Indians.” (Ch. 3 Par. 1 –Irving) He met some mythical men on his hike who had given him an enchanted liquid that he fell asleep