Review

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Washington Irving. Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press. 2015. 51 pp. Presenting the antagonism between the rapid development of society and Dutch immigrant tradition in the early years of US, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is enough to be considered as a satire for some critics. As a work of Washington Irving, the Father of American Literature, it may be interpreted as a vehicle implying his yearning for precapitalistic period and rurality more or less. Deriving from a German folklore of headless knight, this fiction takes the time of fast transformation after the establishment of US as its context. It’s just the time of which the theme is seeking for wealth and stopping at nothing else, resulting from the nature of capitalism. And while the wave surging through every corner of the country, it contrasted profoundly the greed and filthy of capitalism and the simplicity and kindness of rural residents at the same time, which is demonstrated as the opposition between the sleepy hollow and the outside world. Moreover, with the consistent romanticism and mysticism of Irving, perhaps in this fiction hides some evaluation of him to the world then, that virtuous personality and precious legacy of the ancient stand in demand of promotion. In the fiction, Ichabod, a teacher from the outside world who is superstitious and greed, fell in love with Katrina, a well-off woman. But actually, what he fell in love with is the wealthy estate of Katrina’s family and the identity as the inheritor if he married Katrina. After a dance, he was played a prank on by Brom, his rival, by dressing up as the headless knight and scaring him on the way back home, and finally left the hollow. Apparently, Ichabod represented the capitalism and Katrina and Brom represented the rural residents. By composing characters like them, Irving revealed completely the shrewdness with also credulity and greed of the capitalists and praised the wisdom and courage of rural residents. It expressed his deride and exclusion to the rapid-developing American society as well. Just like A History of New York, which was Irving’s first masterpiece and satirized the native governor, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow maintains a satirical theme. Both of them exposed the defect of capitalistic US and offered us reference. The similar theme of being concerned about country and people remind me of Dufu, a patriotic poet. In the field of revealing social flaws, Dufu and Irving shared the same character. Contemporarily, with the prosperity of economics, the whole society is getting more and more impetuous and the number of people pursuing material enjoyment is more than ever before. In the meantime, methods to gain fortune and the form of temptation emerge in an endless stream. And all sorts of traps appear around us frequently. Facing this circumstance, reading masterpieces like these will help to set up correct values and recognize the reality behind the surface of the noise society. What’s more, they encourage us to pursue truth, goodness and beauty and provide us with strong spiritual power to conquer difficulties in daily life. In conclusion, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow satirized the reality of capitalistic society and praised the plain life in the quiet hollow. Though hundreds of years passed,