In Washington Irving’s “The Devil and Tom Walker,” Irving uses the setting as a gothic element through imagery and symbolism. Irving begins the story by providing a description of the forest. The author describes the setting as a “beautiful dark grove” on one side and a land that rises abruptly on the other with with “a few scattered oaks of great age and immense size” (Irving 2). The immense trees and breathtaking images of nature go along with David Punter’s definition of sublime in the video “The Gothic: A Lecture.” The landscape that Irving describes uses imagery to show that nature is more powerful than humanity and that humans are reduced in size when compared to the immense trees. Later in the story, when Tom first enters the swamp, Irving uses words like “dark,” “gloomy,” and “half-rotting” (2-3). These descriptive words provide a sense of darkness, suspense, and the unknown, …show more content…
The most obvious use of symbolism is the names carved on the trees (3). One tree is described as a “great tree, fair and flourishing without, but rotten at the core” (3). The description of this tree symbolizes the wealthy man who appears to be good and rich on the outside, but is terrible and rotten on the inside. This has a supernatural tone to it, which is a common theme in gothic literature. Another use of symbolism comes into play at the beginning of the story. Tom Walker begins the tale by taking a shortcut through the swamp (2). By taking this shortcut, he is set on the path that will result with the death of his wife and eventually his own death and release of his soul. The shortcut through the swamp symbolizes taking shortcuts in life, which usually do not end well. For example, Tom Walker took a short cut by making a deal with the devil to gain his fortune. In the end, he was paranoid and died alone. By taking a shortcut in life, Tom lived a wealthy life, but not a life rich with substance and
Good and Evil in The Devil and Tom Walker The concept of evil in the short story "The Devil and Tom Walker" can be shown in many ways, by Irvings' symbolism. In the short story, Tom Walker symbolizes all of mankind by portraying him as being "sinful" and evil. When there is an intent to destroy, then we get a different level of hatred.
Washington Irving’s “The Devil and Tom Walker” includes great examples of Romanticism, such as symbols in nature having links to the supernatural, the importance of the inner nature, and the emphasis of the individual. In the story, Tom Walker is a selfish man who cares more about money than he does about anyone else, including his wife. One day, while he is walking through the woods, Tom Walker comes across the Devil, who makes a deal with him to exchange his soul for the treasure that is buried in those woods. Tom declines and returns back to his wife and tells her that he has passed on an opportunity that could bring them lots of money. Tom’s wife, outraged by his actions, decides to strike a deal of her own with the Devil and after several attempts, she never returns from the woods. The next time Tom goes to the woods he finds that his wife had been killed by the Devil. He finally agrees to make the deal with him, now that Tom doesn’t have to share anything with his wife. Tom ignores the Devil’s suggestion of becoming a slave-trader and becomes a moneylender instead. He gets wea...
Washington Irving the author of The Devil and Tom Walker uses the setting of the story to convey that things with a good appearance can be deceiving and be putrid on the inside. He also creates the right atmosphere for the story, and gives precise details to the audience so they can predict the topic and how it will develop. In addition, he describes each character in a manner that the readers can infer who they are, their personal characteristics, and the decisions that they might make throughout the development of the story. Moreover, he provides a background for each character in order to understand their actions and their ending.
Can you imagine yourself locked up in a room with no doors? Similar to a room with no doors, there is no way out of hell if it was one's destiny. In the short story "The Devil & Tom Walker" by Washington Irving, the main character's fate is hell because of his wrong decisions in life, accepting a deal with the devil for earthly benefits. Irving reinforces his message about not making decisions that may damn your soul with the use of literary elements and figurative language. Wisely, Irving combines characterization, mood and point of view to perpetuate the theme of the story in the reader's mind.
Symbolism is used in many stories for authors to help convey a message for reader and for the story to have more value after it is read. The story “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst is a story filled with symbolism, and one symbol is where the two main characters went every day in the summer: Doodle and Brother. Another symbol used by James Hurst is the wagon. The story is about a relationship of two brothers with one being disabled causing him to be much weaker and not being able to do things such as swim, run, and go to school. The character, named Doodle,could not even stand up until his brother who is unnamed, help him learn after a lot of practice. The theme of the story would be to not be too prideful of yourself or someone else. James Hurst uses the swamp and the wagon as symbols to convey more meaning to the story.
One symbol is the treasure that is promised to Tom. The treasure symbolizes temptation, which Tom gives into. “The black man told him of great sums of money buried by Kidd the pirate, under the oak trees on the high ridge, not far from the morass. All these were under his command and protested by his power, so that none could find them but such as propitiated his favor” (Irving 354). Here is where Tom is first tempted to take the Devil’s deal. However, he refuses at this point and it isn’t until later when his wife dies. To me his wife dying is as if his values are set aside and he is free to do what he wants now. These symbols show us how staying true to yourself resists temptation.
Symbolism “acts as webbing between theme and story. Themes alone can sound preachy, and stories alone can sound shallow. Symbolism weaves the two together” (Hall). Symbolism uses the story to convey the theme. Darkness is used in the novel to show the secrecy and lies that the story has. The whole story involves secrecy among two women and a man. Without symbolism the story would just have a very dark house and two very mysterious and disturbed women. Instead there is a feel of secrecy right from the beginning. Symbolism gives the story excitement, while also providing the reader with a good read. The author can read the first few pages and determine the story is not a happy
Each author sets a gothic tone first and foremost by the techniques used to describe setting and characters. Irving and Hawthorne set their stories in ghostly mysterious forests. Each author uses phenomenal to truly connect the reader with the stories. Hawthorne’s use of similes to tie in what the forest was like gives a sense of letting the readers feel like they are there with young goodman Brown, “ . . . surrounded by four blazing pines, their tops aflame, their stems
The next use of symbolism is the setting of the journey and meeting in the woods. Early Americans looked at the woods as a test of strength, bravery and endurance. It took a lot of courage for someone to enter the forest because it was unknown territory and they would not emerge the same. ?He had taken a dreary road, darkened by all gloomiest trees of the forest?that the traveler knows not who may be concealed by the innumerable trunks?he may be passing through an unseen multitude.? (197) Goodman Brown does not face the dangers of Indians but faces the danger of reality and truth.
Washington Irving once said, "The sorrow for the dead is the only sorrow from which we refuse to be divorced. Every other wound we seek to heal- every other affliction to forget: but this wound we consider it a duty to keep open- this affliction we cherish and brood over in solitude."(brainyquotes.com). In the book's The Devil and Tom Walker and Rip Van Winkle, there are multiple similarities between the two stories. In the book's The Devil and Tom Walker and Rip Van Winkle, Washington Irving makes many comparisons through the setting, male protagonist, female antagonist, and mystical characters to show they are alike.
“Sometimes it’s not the people who change, it is the mask that falls off ” (Unknown). This quote shows that in real life people try to hide imperfections they have by putting on a “mask” that will make them seem flawless. This quote shows that eventually the masks of perfection that people put on, fall off and they are exposed for who they really are. In the the short story, “The Devil and Tom Walker” and the episode of the Twilight Zone, “The Masks” it shows that you can not hide your true self with a mask because eventually that mask will crack and your true self will be shown. This proves that no matter how hard you try to conceal your darker traits, the truth always comes out in the end.
Irving, Washington. “The Devil and Tom Walker”. Elements of Literature: Fifth Course. Austin: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2008. 175-185. Print.
In the short story “Young Goodman Brown”, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses Gothic symbolism to evoke a sense of disillusioned trust that Brown comes to experience, as he ventures further and further into the hellish forest. In the beginning of the story, the reader comes upon Brown as he is bidding his wife, who is ideally named ‘Faith’, goodbye as he is about to venture off into the deep, dark, and gloomy forest that is outside of his village in Salem. As Brown continues into the forest, the reader is introduced to a key element that is brought about in Gothic symbolism, the concept of evilness. Brown constantly expresses how ‘evil’ the forest is, “There may be a devilish Indian behind every tree!” (Hawthorne 640). Hawthorne also extends the use of the concept of ‘Evil’ when he describes that Brown “Felt himself justified in making more haste in his present evil purpose.” Thus, meaning that Brown is on a quest to seek out Evil for help.
Not too many stories have so much symbolism like Ambrose Bierce uses in his short story. The way he can use a piece of rope from the noose to represent a snake showing similarly to make sense as Satan to which he had done a wrong thing. He practices symbolism all through the story to create foreshadowing. Many examples are used like how he says “a piece of dancing driftwood” referring to a joyful time in life. The soldier takes
In this poem, I think that one example of symbolism is “the Ivy green” (stanza 1). I believe it represents all the social issues and bad in the world taking over. The other possibility is that as the Ivy good, and is simply holding the world up straight while everything else crumbles and falls. Another word in the poem is “the huge Oak Tree” (stanza 2). I guess that the Oak Tree portrays the world. I say this because the Ivy is slowly creeping up the tree until it’s completely enrobed. This would mean that the issues and everything are gradually taking over the world until everything is complete chaos, or that as the world is crumbling and the little bit of good is growing to try to stop the world from corruption. I see imagery in this poem