The Devil and Tom Walker contain many themes and lessons slightly concealed in a poetic and partially metaphorical way. It is a timeless tale that can be applied to any generation while never losing its message.It is about greed, curiosity, desperation, growth, regret, and ultimately consequence. The story first unfolds in Boston and brings in the backstory of hidden pirate treasure guarded by the devil. After placing this in the reader's mind, it skips to the introduction of Tom Walker and his wife in the year of 1727. Its first theme is the selfishness and ignorance of human nature. Tom and his wife hid property from one another, which is to be shared in a marriage, and genuinely wish to cheat each other out of money. This also …show more content…
This is expressed another theme of the story, pure human curiosity. While exploring more, he even comes across a skull with a tomahawk lodged in it. Once again being curious and dismissive of any red flags with the situation. The story then introduces the devil. Tom’s curiosity gets the best of him and begins to have a pleasant conversation with the devil. Once a decent amount of Tom’s curiosity has been quenched, his greed returns, although not so outright. He brings up the treasure, and the devil tells him only those who have earned his favor can have it. A mixture of Tom’s greed and curiosity rule over logical thought, and he receives the devil’s signature on his forehead, therefore, earning his favor. Tom blindly sealed his fate with this, and can’t wash off the signature, a thumbprint, no matter what.Tom tells his wife of his encounter, and she begs for him to sell his soul to live a wealthy and comfortable life. This continues the ongoing themes the story has shown so far. However Tom refuses, so the wife goes out on without him to speak with the devil. The encounter goes sour for the wife, showing another theme; the consequence of succumbing to greed and desire(which ties into what the story has built thus …show more content…
He finally meets with Tom, and reluctantly offers Tom what he had promised, showing none of the fondness he had originally had for Tom. The devil first wanted Tom to become a slave trader, but he refused, showing some empathy. He agrees to become a broker as instructed, and the story then climaxes with Tom selling his soul and finishing what he had started. Tom lives a comfortable and wealthy life, fulfilling his desire and greed. However, this brings in the second to last theme; regret and remorse over immoral action. Tom becomes a zealous churchgoer to try and reverse his wrongs and get him into heaven despite his transgressions. The story then wraps up with its final theme; consequence for serious and damning actions that we make. Tom’s attempts to right everything is futile and is dragged away by the devil to suffer eternal damnation. This concludes the story, wrapping all the themes together
Tom Walker’s devil is a dark-skinned man with red eyes, red sash, and an axe. Tom was a malicious, greedy person who dealt with the devil in order to gain some wealth. He and his wife would fight constantly day after day. Tom was not a wealthy person
Washington Irving displays a sense of humor throughout “The Devil and Tom Walker” about greed, marriage and religion to help the reader, become a better person. Tom Walker makes a Faustian Bargain, also known as a deal with the devil. Tom has a lot of problems with his abusive wife, his desire for riches and getting into the afterlife. Washington Irving tells us the story of Tom Walker in a humorous way. Irving does this to display a message to his readers.
Perhaps in both stories the role of the devil, whether truly present in the plot or only mentioned as figure of evil, is very central to portraying the Puritans. In “The Devil and Tom Walker,” the devil is simply a large man covered in soot. Irving describes him as, “a great black man” and “his face was neither black nor copper color, but swarthy and dingy, and begrimed in soot (Irving, 179).” Most Puritans would believe the devil is a fiery, red, horned man with a pointed tell and trident, but this is not the case. The devil is further established when he himself states, “I amuse myself by presiding at the persecutions of Quakers and Anabaptists; I am the great patron and prompter of slave dealers…(Irving, 180).
Soon he falls asleep and when he wakes up, he finds that he is on a table and a scythe is being lowered from the ceiling. The scythe is another symbol of death. As the scythe is coming down, he tries to find a way to get away from it. At the end of the story, he is saved at the last moment by " an outstretched arm caught my own as I fell, fainting, into the abyss." Washington Irving also talks about death and the devil in his short story "The Devil and Tom Walker." He writes more about the devil than he does death and he does not put himself in the place of the main character like Poe did. Tom, the main character, is a greedy person along with his wife. As he comes home one night, he goes through some woods and meets the devil. "Tom might have felt disposed to sell himself to the devil," but he was afraid to. On the other hand, his wife was not afraid and she disappears. Then Tom makes a deal with the devil, but soon "he thought with regret of the bargain he had made with his black friend, and set his wits to work to cheat him out of the conditions." He turns to religion and carries Bibles with him to keep the devil away, but it does
In Washington Irving’s story, The Devil and Tom Walker, Irving uses his imagination to convey his thoughts about the truth of life through symbols and characterization. In one specific instance in the story, the main character, Tom Walker, is walking home and “he took what he considered a shortcut homeward, through the swamp. Like most shortcuts, it was an ill-chosen route.” The path being “thickly grown with great gloomy pines” symbolizes the path of wrongdoings, bad decisions, and darkness. By taking this path, one then strays off the path of
Both “The Devil and Tom Walker” and “The Devil and Daniel Webster” are exemplary specimens of Faustian myths, and as such have very many similarities and concurrences. But, they also emphasize different aspects of the characters and their respective personalities. These two commendable stories serve as excellent chronicles of literature and as worthy examples of moral lessons for all ages.
Tom Walker is an outrageously self-confident, greedy person. Tom Walker is a common man with miserly tendencies, living an unhappy life with his wife, who is just as miserly as he is. As he is known for his greed, he is strongly tempted by the devil's amazing deal, which ultimately results in his downfall. The first example of an archetype is the swamp, where Tom Walker meets the devil for the first
"About the year 1727, just at the time when earthquakes were prevalent in New England, and shook many tall sinners down upon their knees, there lived near this place a meager miserly fellow of the name of Tom Walker." (Irving) “The Devil and Tom Walker” is a short story written by Washington Irving in about 1824. The story is about a man who sells his soul to the devil in exchange for Pirate Kidd’s hidden treasure. The man, named Tom Walker, is a greedy, selfish man who thinks money is more important than his wife. “The Devil and Tom Walker” is the best short story example of Romanticism. The story uses escapism, nature as a form of spirituality, and imagination, which are all tenets of Romanticism.
We see that good vs. evil has been a theme that is ubiquitous in many writings. The story "The Devil and Tom Walker" is a story about a man who lives an immoral life of greed. Walker lives in a wooded area, where it is solemn, and quiet area of New England. Walker runs into the devil and sees that the devil is cutting down someone else's timber.
I must say that Tom Walker truly deserves what happened to him. In Tom’s mind he believed happiness in life can only come by money and wealth. During this time, life was not doing too well for Tom, in any case, he does deserve his fate. I truly believe he deserved what happened to him because Tom had made an agreement with the devil for some wealth in return. Also while making the arrangement the DEVIL had agreed to give him money "only on certain conditions" (Irving 325). To protect himself from all the consequences of the devil, Tom carries a bible around him at all times as a shield from the devil. Making an arrangement with the devil was the most awful choice Tom had made. In addition, selling your soul to the devil will make you have nothing
How would one feel if one came face to face with the Devil himself? Would one run away screaming or would one let the Devil change their views of the world? Gary and Goodman Brown both had different experiences with the Devil resulting in some of the best works of fiction ever wrote. Gary met the Devil as a young boy who feared him unrelentingly, but Goodman Brown talked to the Devil and let the Devil change his life and the viewpoints of people he knows. I plan to discuss on how Gary, from the short story “The Man in the Black Suit”, and Goodman Brown, from “Young Goodman Brown”, dealt with the Devil and compare their encounters together.
Brown begins the journey believing that his forefathers are innocent, good men, but the devil tells Brown that he has been, "…well acquainted with your family as with ever a one among the Puritans; and that’s no trifle to say" (Kelly, 192). Brown's forefathers become equated with the devil. The people of the town are also displaced as the devil. The devil tells Brown, "I have a very general acquaintance here in New England. The deacons of many a church have drunk the communion wince with me; the selectmen of divers towns make me their chairman; and a majority of the Great and General Court are firm supporters of my interest, The governor and I, too----But these are state secrets" (Kelly, 192-93).
One romantic theme in The Devil and Tom Walker is supernatural and spiritual. In The Devil and Tom Walker the devil is described as a physical character that interacts with other characters in the story. For Example, when Tom saw the devil in the forest he is described as, “...the stranger was neither negro nor Indian. It is true he was dressed in a rude Indian garb, and had a red belt or sash swathed round his body; but his face was neither black nor copper-color, but swarthy and dingy, and begrimed with soot, as if he had been accustomed to toil among fires and forges.” (Irving) Another example is when all of Tom’s fortune is turned to ash and shavings
People put too much value on their possessions. Like the character Tom Walker dose in the Devil and Tom Walker. This short story took place in Boston, Massachusetts during the year 1727. In the short story the devil and Tom Walker, written by Washington Irving Tom Walker’s possessions make him a very selfish and miserly person.
Irving, Washington. “The Devil and Tom Walker”. Elements of Literature: Fifth Course. Austin: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2008. 175-185. Print.