An analysis on The Devil and Tom Walker by Washington Irving

2. The Author: Washington
Irving
• An American Author and editor
• was born in New York City on
April 3, 1783.
• He was one of eleven children
born to Scottish-English immigrant
parents, William Irving, Sr. and
Sarah.
• He was named Washington after
the hero of the American
revolution (which had just ended)
George Washington, and attended
the first presidential inauguration
of his namesake in 1789

3. • Irving achieved international fame for his fictional
works,
including
the
stories Rip
Van
Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, as
well as for his biographies and historical writings.
• Irving served as the United States ambassador to
Spain and helped to promote international
copyright before his death in 1859.
• Irving died of a heart attack in 1859, eight months
after completing his significant biographical series
on George Washington. Appropriately enough,
Irving was buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery

4. Romanticism: Romantic Period
in America 1828-1865.
1. Belief in natural goodness of man, that man in a
state of nature would behave well but is hindered
by civilization.
2. Sincerity, spontaneity, and faith in emotion as
markers of truth.
3. Belief that what is special in a man is to be valued
over what is representative; delight in self-analysis.

5. 4.Nature as a source of instruction, delight, and
nourishment for the soul; return to nature as a
source of inspiration and wisdom; celebration of
man’s connection with nature; life in nature often
contrasted with the unnatural constraints of society.
5. Affirmation of the values of democracy and the
freedom of the individual.
6. Aspiration after the sublime and the wonderful,
that which transcends mundane limits.

6. ROMANTIC NONROMANTIC/CLASSICAL
Emotional Reasonable and
Practical
Individualistic
Public Responsibility
Revolutionary Conservative
Loves Solitude & Nature Loves Public, Urban
Life
Fantasy/Introspection
External Reality
The Particular The Universal
Subjective Perception Objective Science
Right Brain
Left Brain
Satisfaction of Desire
Desire Repressed
Organic Mechanical
Creative Energy/Power
Form
Exotic

7. • American Romantic
literature.
• we learn how
Washington Irving
uses an allegory with
symbols to create a
moral tale about
greed while
incorporating the
supernatural theme.

8. • 'The Devil and Tom Walker' is not as well
known.
• However, the story's plot is based on a very
famous German legend about a man
called Faust, who makes a deal with the
Devil in order to gain knowledge and
wealth.
• Irving creates a similar experience for Tom
Walker through the use of allegory and
symbolism.

9. Characters
• Tom Walker, the story's
main character, is a miser,
which means he rarely
spends money even when he
should. He doesn't give
anything to anyone, and that
includes his wife.

10. • Tom's wife is as miserly as
he is but with a temper. The
story explains that she is
regularly verbally abusive, and
the townspeople suspect she is
even physically abusive toward
Tom.

11. • Old Scratch is given
several names in the story,
including wild huntsman
and black woodsman. He
is the Devil; described as a
black man, but neither
Negro nor Indian. He has
a dirty, soot-covered face
and carries an axe. Keep in
mind that he is a physical
character in the story, like a
person with supernatural
powers.

12. Moral, Allegory And Symbols
Moral:
Irving wants us to see that greed and
moral corruption leads us down that wrong path.
• use of a literary device: allegory and
symbols

13. • The characters themselves are symbolic.
• Devil = temptation
• Tom and his wife represent greed.
• Later in the story, Tom
symbolizes hypocrisy when he is
attending church but still collecting
mortgages.

14. • swamp
= a shortcut (an 'ill-chosen' route/
figurative wrong path)
=shortcut to obtaining the wealth he wanted
• The Indian fort = a representation of hell.
• Tom's Bible = chance for salvation

15. SOURCES
• http://www.westga.edu/~mmcfar/AMERICAN%20ROMANTICISM%
• http://www.gradesaver.com/author/washington-irving/
• http://www.biography.com/people/washington-irving9350087
• http://americanliterature.com/author/washingtonirving/bio-books-stories
• http://learningenglish.voanews.com/content/a-23-200908-28-voa1-83143047/117088.html
• http://education-portal.com/academy/lesson/the-deviland-tom-walker-by-washington-irving-summary-andanalysis.html#lesson