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The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

by Washington Irving

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Ichabod Crane's Background, Characterization, and Fate in "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"

Summary:

Ichabod Crane, in Washington Irving's "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," is a tall, lanky, and awkward schoolteacher with a voracious appetite and a vivid imagination. He is depicted as a comical figure with crane-like physical features, such as a long neck and arms. Despite his sternness as a teacher, Crane is socially engaging, particularly with women. His greed is evident in his pursuit of Katrina Van Tassel, motivated by her family's wealth. Ultimately, his gullibility and materialistic desires lead to his downfall when he encounters the legendary Headless Horseman.

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Describe Ichabod Crane from "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow."

Crane is an oddball city man who is described as being "useful and agreeable"  with a "gentlemanlike personage, of vastly superior taste" in comparison to the male inhabitants of Sleepy Hollow.  This is only the superficial look at Ichabod.     

Ichabod was commonly invited to the homes of his pupils, especially those with attractive sisters.   He enjoyed the company of others but even more so, he is described as a lover of food with quite an appetite.  In addition, he imagines being involved in the cooking process: 

The pedagogue’s mouth watered as he looked upon this sumptuous promise of luxurious winter fare.

Ichabod possesses an insatiable appetite, which is also a reflection of his ulterior motives.  Though he appears as being the affable, educated school master, he is actually a man of hidden greed, particularly because of his great fondness for Katrina and his dream to have with her "a whole family of children" along with taking the land he'd inherit and "readily turn to cash."   

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Describe Ichabod Crane from "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow."

Crane is described as tall and thin, awkward and clumsy, and with a voracious appetite. He has large feet, long arms, and is overall a comical figure to see.  Washington Irving describes Ichabod Crane in great detail, and perhaps re-reading the first portion of the book where he is described would help you find all the details.  In addition, you can check out the links below for more information.

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How is Ichabod Crane characterized in "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"?

Authors achieve characterization through many techniques. Some among them include:

  • direct characterization, in which the narrator describes the character's personality
  • physical characterization, such as the character's look and manner
  • interactions with other characters
  • name symbolism

In "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," Irving uses name symbolism for Ichabod Crane.  The name Ichabod means "inglorious" in Hebrew, and a crane is a long-legged and long-necked bird.  Both apply to the character, as Ichabod Crane is described as "tall, but exceedingly lank, with narrow shoulders, long arms and legs, hands that dangled a mile out of his sleeves, feet that might have served for shovels, and his whole frame most loosely hung together." He also leaves Sleepy Hollow ignominiously.

Crane is described comically as having a voracious appetite: "he was a huge feeder, and, though lank, had the dilating powers of an anaconda."  He is characterized as greedy, and once he realizes the wealth and bounty of Sleepy Hollow, he becomes "wonderfully gentle and ingratiating" by helping the farmers and their wives by becoming an exacting but fair schoolmaster. Crane revels in being regarded as "Our man of letters. . . and was peculiarly happy in the smiles of all the country damsels." The Van Tassel farm is particularly appealing to Ichabod, and "from the moment Ichabod laid his eyes upon these regions of delight, the peace of his mind was at an end, and his only study was how to gain the affections of the peerless daughter of Van Tassel." Ichabod becomes dogged in his pursuit of Katrina and the dowry that comes with her. 

After his mysterious disappearance, Ichabod's earthly remains can be understood to symbolize his physical and moral poverty: "they consisted of two shirts and a half; two stocks for the neck; a pair or two of worsted stockings; an old pair of corduroy small-clothes; a rusty razor; a book of psalm-tunes, full of dogs’ ears; and a broken pitch pipe."

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How is Ichabod Crane characterized in "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"?

The other response to this question does a great job of explaining Ichabod's major characteristics and how they fit into the context of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." It is also worth dwelling on an implied characteristic of Ichabod, which is quite important to the way we view him as a protagonist. Generally, many readers find Ichabod sympathetic because he is the classic "underdog," a nerdy academic vying with Sleepy Hollow's resident "manly" man, Brom Bones. However, we must not forget that, in some ways, Ichabod is actually a greedy person. He is interested in Katrina Van Tassel partly because she is attractive, but he is also interested because her father is a wealthy farmer and the owner of a great deal of land. Continuously hungry and a creature of material comforts, Ichabod wants to marry Katrina in order to inherit her father's prosperous property. Seen from this perspective, it is harder to feel sorry for Ichabod when he encounters the headless horseman, as he is less of a sympathetic underdog and more of a greedy suitor who gets, in some ways at least, what he deserves.   

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How is Ichabod Crane characterized in "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"?

Ichabod is characterized in many different ways, the first being physical. Irving tells us that Ichabod is tall and skinny, with gangly hands and shovel-sized feet. We are also told that he is neat in his grooming and appearance, and that his nose is of considerable size, looking like a weathervane attached to the pinnacle of a barn.

The second way he is characterized is by personality. We know that he is superstitious, and that he believes in ghosts, witchcraft, and other spectral arts. We are told he is a fair disciplinarian in his classroom where he teaches, and that he is a "huge feeder," meaning he can really put away the food when eating.

He is portrayed as gentlemanly and scholarly, but at the same time, he is seen as one of the weaker characters in this story. His presence is not one that is formidable physically or situationally speaking. In fact, ladies feel most comfortable around him due to his lack of intimidating stature, among other reasons.

These are just a few of Ichabod's characterizations seen in "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow." For more information, visit the link below.

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How is Ichabod Crane characterized in "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"?

One of the famous characters of American folklore, Ichabod Crane is best remembered for his lanky appearance and his gullibility and fear as he believes he is chased by the headless horseman.  In Washington Irving's charming, humorous, and slightly terrifying tale, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," Ichabod Crane arrives from Conneticut in Sleepy Hollow, the enchanted land and "place of nature." His featues befit his surname Crane:  He has a long neck and legs; his head is small and flat at the top; he has large ears, large glassy eyes, and a long nose.  His likeness to a scarecrow, too, is remarkable. Irving describes him,

To see him striding along the profile of a hill on a windy day, with his clothes bagging and flutering about him, one might have mistaken him for the genius of famine descending upon the earth, or some scarecrow eloped from a cornfield.

Crane is the schoolmaster, and a harsh one at that.  But, he

administered justice with discrimination rather than severity; taking the burthen off the backs of the weak, and laying it on those of the strong.

He always tells the boys that he whips that they will long remember it and thank him for the whipping later on. Yet, when school was finished, Ichabod Crane was the playmate of the larger boys.  But, he was known for accompanying the smaller boys home if they had pretty sisters or a mother who could cook.  To assist his salary, he would help the farmers to make hay, and he was not against letting the children play with him or hold a little one on his knee.

As the schoolmaster and singing instructor, Crane holds a respectable position in the community.  The ladies consider him erudite and he is certainly knowedgeable in the history of New England Witchcraft.  He loves to feed his imagination with his book on witchcraft and with the wives' tales.  But, after he exchanges tales, Crane is fearful as he walks home until he encounters Katrina Van Tassel.  So, desirous of marrying her, Ichabod visits her home where there is always "wonderful food" on the table.

However, when Crane decides to court Katrina, Brom Van Brunt, "the hero of the county round," becomes his foe.  So, Ichabod pretends that he is giving Katrina singing lessons and visits the farm frequently.  But, the redoutable Brom Bones, as he was called, becomes Ichabod's rival; for a while, Brom plays practical jokes on Ichabod in order for him to turn into a figure of ridicule.

 Ichabod vows to ask Katrina to marry him; he borrows a ghastly looking horse named Gunpowder, who, though old and broken down, has a "lurking devil in him." Toward evening he sees that Brom Bones has ridden his own horse named Daredevil.  After the meal, people gather and tell stories of the headless horseman of Sleepy Hollow.  All the tales affect Ichabod, who tries to talk with Katrina before leaving.  But, mysteriously, Ichabod leaves looking desolate and dejected at "the very witching hour."  With no signs of life, Ichabod fearfully recalls all the ghost stories he has heard as he approaches a gnarled tree that is connected to a tragic story of a Major Andre who was taken prisoner nearby. Then, when his horse will not run over the bridge, Ichabod sees something "misshapen, black, and towering."  The headless horseman rides alongside Gunpowder. Ichabod holds on and outruns the horseman, who hurls his head at ichabod.

For days, people search for Ichabod.  But, no trace of him can be found.  The old wives say Ichabod was "spirited away."

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How is Ichabod Crane characterized in "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"?

Like most people, Ichabod Crane has a different reputation in different sections of society. In introducing the schoolmaster, Washington Irving concentrates on how he is received by the women of Sleepy Hollow. His position as the schoolmaster already leads them to consider him as a sophisticated and learned man, "of vastly superior taste and accomplishments to the rough country swains." He adds to this reputation by having "read several books quite through." Thus he is always welcome at tea parties and other such entertainments, since he carries gossip as well as learning from house to house. Besides his relative erudition and his agreeable social manner, he is known as an excellent singer and as a music teacher.

Irving stresses the strength of Ichabod's reputation among the women, partly because they are the leaders of society. However, there is a strong implication that Ichabod is less popular with the men of Sleepy Hollow. The "country bumpkins" are envious of his superior airs, while the higher-class locals, such as Brom Bones, do not associate with him outside of large gatherings such as the Van Tassels' party. Meanwhile, the schoolchildren of the village, with whom Crane is concerned in his professional capacity as schoolmaster, regard him as a stern disciplinarian, perhaps even a harsh one, since he is always eager to maintain order by beating them.

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In "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," how is the character Ichabod Crane developed?

Ichabod Crane is the tall, gangly schoolteacher in Sleepy Hollow, a town north of New York City, on the Hudson River. The author develops his character into a geeky-type of country school teacher, not very manly, who is prone to a wild imagination. His name, "crane", describes his physical characteristics because he is talk and gawky and has a neck like a crane (a bird). He has long arms and legs, and a pin head. His ears are big and stick out.

He was tall, but exceedingly lank, with narrow shoulders, long arms and legs, hands that dangled a mile out of his sleeves, feet that might have served for shovels, and his whole frame most loosely hung together. His head was small, and flat at top, with huge ears, large green glassy eyes, and a long snipe nose, so that it looked like a weather-cock perched upon his spindle neck to tell which way the wind blew.

He looks like a scarecrow coming from a distance, the author tells us. He was a strict teacher who did not "spare the rod and spoil the child." However, he was not very fair. Since he himself was wimpy, whenever he had to discipline a wimpy child and the child cried, he let up on that child and instead took out his discipline and anger on the stronger, Dutch children. He was a man with issues.

He played with the older children, and took some of the younger ones home, especially if they had pretty sisters. He was looking for a woman. He was also the singing master for the community. He was poor, having to live with the families of his students, and although skinny, he had a huge appetite:

had the dilating powers of an anaconda

Since he was a schoolteacher, he had some degree of respect in the community and liked to impress the young ladies with his knowledge while the other country bumpkins, uneducated, would stand around jealously. It is this show-off, prideful type of attitude that got him in trouble with people like Brom Bones.

Crane liked to read, and one of his favorite works was Cotton Mather's "History of New England Witchcraft." The region in which he lived, and which Washington Irving wrote about, was the Hudson Valley, settled by the Dutch. The region was awash with all sorts of myths and superstitions, and Crane was a fan. So it was easy to manipulate him into thinking that the Headless Horseman was real.

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Where and how does Ichabod Crane live in "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"?

Ichabod Crane lives in Sleepy Hollow, and he works as a school teacher for all the children who live there. As was the custom of the town and time, according to the narrator, Ichabod "was [. . .] boarded and lodged at the houses of the farmers, whose children he instructed." In other words, then, the teacher would live with the family of each of his pupils for a week at a time, sleeping there at night and eating dinner with them, too. Apparently, the job does not pay much, and this is one of the ways of maintaining the teacher without having to offer additional financial remuneration. Further, Ichabod is a big eater—the narrator compares his ability to expand to an anaconda's!—and so he likes to rub shoulders with the mothers who are the best cooks in town so that he can feed his great appetite. Thus, he lives this way both out of tradition and preference.

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