Rip Van Winkle
by Washington Irving
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At a glance:
- Author: Washington Irving
- First Published: 1819
- Type of Work: Short fiction
- Type of Plot: Tall tale
- Setting: New York State
- Characters: Rip Van Winkle, Dame Van Winkle
- Genres: Short fiction, Regional fiction, Folklore, Fantasy, Tall tale
- Subjects: Husbands, New York, North America or North Americans, Northeast, U.S., United States or Americans, Wives, Philosophy or philosophers, Magic or magicians, Marriage, Villages, Time travel, Eighteenth century, Storytelling, Adultery, Fantasy, Drinking or drunkenness, Fairy tales, Sleep
- Locales: United States, North America, Catskills, New York
The Story:
Along the reaches of the Hudson River, not far from the Catskill Mountains, there is a small, Dutch town. The mountains overshadow the town, and there are times when the good Dutch burghers can see a hood of clouds hanging over the crests of the hills. In this small town lives a man named Rip Van Winkle. He is beloved by all his neighbors, by children, and by animals, but his life at home is made miserable by his shrewish wife. Though he is willing to help anyone else at any odd job that might be necessary, he is incapable of keeping his own house and farm in repair....
(The entire page is 2227 words.)
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