Title: Rip Van Winkle - eNotes.com
Headings: Rip Van Winkle
Rip Van Winkle
Rip Van Winkle
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Content: Valentine England
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Top subjects are Literature, History, and Social Sciences
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Washington Irving 's short story " Rip Van Winkle " tells the story of the titular character, who while beloved by his neighbors, children, and animals, is made miserable by his wife. When hunting squirrels in the Catskills one autumn day, Van Winkle encounters a strange little man dressed in antique Dutch clothes; Van Winkle assists him in carrying a keg up the mountain, where he sees a band of similarly attired little men. He then takes a few sips from their keg and falls asleep; when he awakens, he discovers that he has slept for many years, that his wife is dead, that his children are grown, and that the world has changed around him. Thematically, the story deals with conflict in marriage, the changes brought about by the American Revolution (through which Rip slept!), and the passage of time. Approved by eNotes Editorial Team
Jamel Bandy
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Rip Van Winkle is a short story about a lazy man who escapes his nagging wife by hiking to the Kaatskill mountains in 1766. Once there he falls asleep, and when he wakes twenty years later things appear different, and Rip is confused. The theme of the short story is change and the true meaning of the story is its underlying commentary of a pre-revolutionary and post revolutionary America.