Similarities Between The Devil And Tom Walker

The Devil and Tom Walker
The Devil and Tom Walker was my favorite short story to read. This was probably due to the fact that I had no background on the events of the story like I did for Irving’s other works. Similar to Rip Van Winkle, The Devil and Tom Walker opens by explaining the setting of the pre-civil war town outside of Boston. This unnamed town is characterized the large swamp that runs through it. One day while traveling home through the swamp Tom Walker meets the devil while resting at an old fort deep in the swamp. The devil attempts to strike a bargain with Tom to make him rich. Tom does not accept the deal, and goes home and tells his wife about his encounter. Angered that he passed up on the opportunity of becoming

rich, Tom’s wife attempts to make a deal with the devil but he just ends up killing her. Tom feels obligated to accept the devil’s deal because he killed Tom’s hated wife. Ultiamtely by accepting the devil’s deal Tom becomes wildly rich but unhappy with his choice to sell himself to the devil. In his last day he is greedy, not compassionate, and a little crazy, the devil comes and takes Tom back to where they first met where Tom meets his demise.
I enjoyed this book because it did not follow the standard story of someone selling their soul to the devil.

Tom Walker initially turned down the devil’s deal because he did not support what he had to use the money for. I also enjoyed Tom because I found there to be an aspect of dry humor to humor to him. When faced with the devil --the most diabolical creature in the universe has managed to produce-- he is not even phased. His absence of a reaction is silly to me regardless of the evil he has been through with his wife. Irving did a good job when constructing Tom’s character, he pairs oddness with realism to create the perfect character. One crosses paths with Tom Walker like characters daily. Tom was always frugal with his money and when he becomes rich he still does not spend it. Tom reminds me of those people that you hear about that when they die the whole world finds out there are a millionaire. Overall I was impressed with this short story because it was a fresh view of the classic story of one selling their soul to the devil. Also, I found parts to be quite amusing making the story more enjoyable to read. I found many parallels between this story and Rip Van Winkle. Both Rip and Tom are heckled by their wife frequently. Because of this they share many similar qualities and behaviors. They also are similar in the fact that the main character foes through a life changing mythical event, Tom and the Devil, and Rip and his extensive nap. While told in

different ways Rip Van Winkle and The Devil and Tom Walker have similar messages. Both show that just because one wants something does not mean that it’s good for them. All Rip wanted to was relax all the time, but when he got to sleep for a couple decades he wasn’t too happy about it. Tom just wanted to be rich, but that brought him no further happiness either.
The original storyline made The Devil and Tom Walker more engaging. It is a mixture of historical fiction and fantasy. This line in particular was particularly amusing, “This, however, Tom resolutely refused; he was bad enough in all conscience; but the devil himself could not tempt him to turn slave dealer.” I found this funny because one would think that someone would be willing to sell their soul to the devil becoming a slave dealer would not be a big problem. This can also be viewed as Irving’s opposition towards slavery. Irving wrote this story to get his personal views out there. He wanted the public to realize that they had been living their lives incorrectly. Irving gets his message across effectively too. Unless one is looking for these underlying messages they won’t find them. I find this to be the most enjoyable part of the story, the complete harmony of all aspects of the story. Also his use of language throughout is impeccable, “the lonely wayfarer shrunk within himself at the horrid clamour and clapper clawing, eyed the den of discord askance, and hurried on his way, rejoicing, if a bachelor, in his celibacy.” Irving does not overdo the use of big words but gets it just right. This line is still understandable for most who can read but it still has an air of elegance.

The Devil and Tom Walker shows the battle that occurs between wealth and mankind. Tom thought that the only important thing in life was for him to be rich, but once he was nothing was better. Ultimately Tom escapes his life to only bring a worse one, having his soul become a slave of the devil. Tom never escapes his problem, but he serves as an example for us all on how to live our lives better.