"The Legend of Rip Van Winkle" Washington Irving

"A half starved dog, that looked like Wolf, was skulking around it. Rip called him by name, but the cur snarled, showed his teeth and passed on. This was an unkind cut indeed - "My very dog" sighed poor Rip, "has forgotten me!" -Washington Irving

"British critics, especially, were surprised as well as delighted to see that an American writer was capable of creating good prose." - Book Rags

The story of Rip Van Winkle is one that is eminently fun to read. The story of a man who wanders off, takes a nap, and wakes to his world twenty years changed has been a part of American folklore for quite some time. It tells a story of the change of the face of the culture in America, so dramatically changed that a mere twenty years makes it nearly unrecognizable the protagonist, Rip Van Winkle. The reader is introduced to Rip in a formal fashion, describing his exact character, and Irving introduces the cartoons of supporting characters in a manner that Rip responds to them in the only way it is able to react to them. Most notably, Dame Van Winkle. This demanding women is the main reason for Rip's ominous trip to the woods, and the first person he thinks of when he wakes, though not in the manner a husband should think of his wife. Upon his arrival to town, he is discombobulated, and very nearly lost, though the details of the changes are not lost on him. He notices all the changes that have taken place, and observes them in a sort of wonder. He soon after settles back into a life of comfort, one in which his lazy mentality is finally accepted: the life of an old man.

One of the most important things to think about in this story that allows the reader to look deeper than famous and humorous American fable, is the context in which the book was written and when the story takes place. Though it was written about 150 years after the end of the American revolution, the American identity was separating itself rapidly from the British mentality that it had been born from. The twenty year slumber could represent the passing years between the war and the time when the story was written, and the change that occurs in the story representative of the nearly immediate change that occurred in the new nation that changed everything, from the fashion of dress, to, very appropriately, the literary identity that continues to this day. Towards the end of the story, Irving mentions the reaction of Rip to the "new" youth, and finds them favorable, as most of the elderly people do in the village. The change is favorable for all, even the people that usually have the hardest time accepting change. Even the suspicious Rip Van Winkle who is quick to accuse the mountain Dutchmen of drugging and thievery, soon accepts his new reality which he deems as pleasant, especially in the absence of his nagging wife.

Henry David Thoreau "Resistance to Civil Government"

"Is a democracy, such as we know it, the last improvement possible in government? Is it not possible to take a step further towards recognizing and organizing the rights of man? There will never be a really free and enlightened State until the State comes to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power, from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats him accordingly?" -Henry David Thoreau


"[Henry David Thoreau is] a self-contained, unsocial being, a troglodyte of sorts" -Brooks Atkinson (a conservative critic from the 1920's)

"Resistance to Civil Government" is an essay that mainly attacks the presence of an unreliable, soulless and futile government that does not allow for a way of living that a person with a true consciousness can maintain. According to Thoreau, it is amoral for a person to live in this type of environment have a responsibility "as men", or women to either change it, or to actively removes themselves from the system that dehumanizes their day to day life. He argues that even democracy at its core is flawed, because a majority does not have anything to do with morals or virtue, it is merely another way to express a number. He asks that, even at risk of imprisonment, that citizens not fund or acquiesce to the demands of the government.

Thoreau's main assumption, upon which all else is founded, is that the Government does more harm than good. In many ways, I agree with this sentiment. he separates himself from the "other anti-government" group by saying that he does not wish for an immediate cessation of government (though it is his future hope), but rather, (in the meantime) a better government. It seems to me that he understood, at least on these terms, that a certain compromise is expected to need to occur.

It is true that most of Thoreau's opponents stated that his main downfall was his unbridled optimism towards a Utopian fantasy which did not allow to compromise his beliefs, but, rather than setting out a direct "plan of attack", he instead takes the steps towards clearly identifying the flaws that illustrate the need for a change in the first place. I don't think that many people in the past or present would be able to encompass what Thoreau asks of them, and still lead a productive life. He, himself, said that he chose to live simply because it would mean that he had less to lose. With no family, he did not need to support any comforts other than his own. Not many breadwinners would make this type of sacrifice if it meant abandoning their families.

These unhappy remarks are not meant to take away from the significance of his ideas and the remarkable strength encompassed that is characteristic of an uncompromising man who follows his conscience. As a hero of the American intellectual and revolutionaries to come, his role in the history of the US is undoubtedly tremendously significant. He continues to inspire radical thinking towards government even till today. A personal favorite of mine, who was definitely influenced (and perhaps has taken it a few steps further), is Derrick Jensen (link to Jensen talking about civilization and enlightenment) who asks for the end of civilization as we know it in his work Endgame.

"Self-Reliance" Ralph Waldo Emerson

"These roses under my window make no reference to former roses or to better ones; they are for what they are; they exist with God to-day. There is no time to them. There is simply the rose; it is perfect in every moment of its existence. Before a leaf-bud has burst, its whole life acts; in the full-blown flower there is no more; in the leafless root there is no less. Its nature is satisfied, and it satisfies nature, in all moments alike. "- Ralph Waldo Emerson

"We are often not "in touch" with ourselves or trust ourselves enough to find these truths and so must often depend on others, books, etc. to express it for us, but it is somehow within us. " - Ann Woodlief

In Ralph Waldo Emerson's landmark essay "Self Reliance", the idea that man's path to happiness is living as truthfully as possible to his own nature. He asks for us to live out our ideas and to voice them, all the while not forgetting what is truly at hand. To stay in the present and to live "perfectly" attuned to our human nature is the goal. Not subscribing the words and thoughts of others before our own is paramount, and counting yourself as a being at the same level of "the greats" will allow you to become as successful as you can possibly be.


Reading Emerson's essay again was a very good experience because it allowed me to get past the density of his writing and it gave me another opportunity to search through the multitudes of abundant his wisdom. Like, his critics, sometimes after too much Emerson, I begin to feel like the gown-up talking to his idealistic brother who never grows up. That is not to say that I disagree with him, rather I feel like his goals for humanity, rather they are beautiful and true goals, that if carried our may very well be the path to a perfect human existence, but unfortunately these goals are somewhat unattainable. So, as with most philosophical endeavors for the eager mind, I shall walk away with a general sense and belief in Emerson's Guide to a Realized Existence, but cannot see myself following through with all of his deeply supported and agreeable ideas, fully at least.

Life In the Iron Mills - Rebecca Harding Davis

"Do you know, boy, you have it in you to be a great sculptor, a great man?—do you understand?...to live a better, stronger life than I, or Mr. Kirby here? A man may make himself anything he chooses. God has given you stronger powers than many men,—me, for instance." -Rebecca Harding Davis, Life In the Iron Mill

"Life in the Iron Mills challenges the optimism of transcendentalism by showing how industrialism fueled by greedy capitalists destroys the natural environment and the human spirit." - NovelGuide.com

"Bartleby, The Scrivener" Herman Melville

"I might give alms to his body; but his body did not pain him; it was his soul that suffered; and his soul I could not reach." -"Bartleby, The Scrivener"

"The reader never knows who Bartleby really is; his spirit and motives remain a mystery... "Bartleby, the Scrivener" is a story about the physical and mental degeneration of a man, an alienation of an individual from his own humanity." -Associated Content

In this story, there are two characters with whom we are to be concerned with. First, introductions are made to the unnamed narrator in this story, only being told that he is an "old man". The narrator introduces the reader then to the protagonist of the story as the only man that he believes a biography could not encompass, and at a loss to society that will never read it. At first Bartleby is presented as a peculiar , but reliably hard-working copy-writer. As the story goes on, Bartleby, when asked to perform tasks for his boss, he begins to decline by replying that he would prefer not to, much to the chagrin and shock to his coworkers, but most of all his boss. The Lawyer becomes frustrated at his lack of will to help out around the office. To make matters worse, Bartleby stops working altogether after his boss realizes that he indeed lives in the office and never leaves. He asks him to vacate the premises, even going as far as to offer money to his in excess of what he is owed. When he does not leave, The Lawyer decides to do a good deed and let him stay. It is only after Bartleby's presence starts to have a negative effect on business that it becomes too much altogether. The Lawyer relocates without Bartleby, but not without qualm. When Bartleby's presence becomes too much for the old building to take they send him to jail. Having been the last person wot have had a connection to the "vagrant" they call The Lawyer to the jail. Though he has become an unneeded part of of his life, The Lawyer still tries to take care of Bartleby by paying one of the keepers to feed him. Eating ends up being something that Bartleby prefers not to do, and subsequently dies of starvation on the jail grounds.

It is in Melville's "Bartleby, The Scrivener" that the reader meets on of the most peculiar and thought provoking character to come out of literature of this time period. I have a certain fondness for unexplainable actions, and the absurd, so this story hit me in all the right places. My affection for this story goes only as far as the character as Bartleby and his affect on The Lawyer, and having found the generality of the other characters, I did not understand Melville's need to provide such in depth examination of each of them. By far, the heart of this story is, not in the interactions of the two main characters, but rather of the reaction of one to the other. Seeing as Bartleby was exceptionally taciturn and steadfast in him actions, the joy of reading this famous short story is seeing from seeing inside the person who was affected most deeply by those actions that defined the protagonist.

Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address

“Both read the same Bible and pray to the same God, and each invokes His aid against the other. It may seem strange that any man should dare to ask a just God’s assistance in wringing bread from the sweat of other men’s faces, but let us judge not, lest we be judged.” -Abraham Lincoln

“By identifying slavery as the cause of war, the speech stands as a testament to the transformative power of the Civil War - a war begun to defend the Union that became a war to end slavery. By focusing on God’s presence and agency in the war, the speech stands as Lincoln’s most definitive statement on the Civil War’s meaning to the Nation.” Primary Source Text And Expert Analysis

In this speech, Lincoln sought not to celebrate the victory that his side had gained in the civil war, but rather to mourn the loss that all had experienced in the 4 years of war that they had all been a part of. In Lincoln’s eyes, the real punishment was not just for the losers, but for both sides, and that these punishments were from God. He stated that both sides worked against each other, and that rather than fighting for a cause, they fought to destroy each other. When the war eventually became a war that was fought with cause, the cause became slavery, and the need to emancipate the slaves. At the end of his speech, when it would have been appropriate to tell his people that the Confederacy were the loser and to never forget who the real leaders of the new world were, he told them to forget those boundaries and to concentrate on making the United States, united again.

When I was reading this speech, I hear our president’s voice reciting Lincolns speech. I don’t do it intentionally, but I hear him nonetheless. And then I think, “How appropriate!” It sounds clichéd to say, but it is true, these words that Lincoln spoke 144 years ago, seem to be manifest today. We have accepted and fully preserved the sense that Lincoln wanted his people to feel. It is in this speech that the reader can really see the true feeling that Lincoln had for this war and slavery. And his modern sensibility towards people. He had higher expectations for his people, and that we can see in how he asks them to take the higher road, by letting them bring their confederate brothers back into their nation. He saw that in order to move past the horrors that both sides had created against the other, they had to "bury the hachett" and move towards the future together.