Irving, Washington
Irving, Washington (1783–1859),American author of essays, travel books, biographies, and true and legendary histories. His first notable success, A History of New York (1809), supposedly written by the fictitious Diedrich Knickerbocker, created a legendary history for his native city while satirizing both its early Dutch inhabitants and contemporary American politicians. Irving's strong interest in folklore also influenced The Alhambra (1832), which incorporates several Moorish legends, gracefully retold, into an account of his stay in Granada. He is most famous for two stories included in The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. (1819–20): ‘The Legend of Sleepy Hollow’ and ‘Rip Van Winkle’. While the ‘Legend’ pokes fun at Ichabod Crane's superstitious credulity, ‘Rip Van Winkle’ is a genuine fairy tale—the first with a distinctively American flavour. Irving successfully transposed the European...
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