The Political Metaphors in Washington Irving's "Rip Van Wink
Throughout "Rip Van Winkle," Washington Irving creates a feature of a henpecked husband, Rip, who goes to the mountain to avoid his wife, but finds that he has slept for twenty years and wakes after the American Revolution. While reading "Rip Van Winkle", I found that it goes through in a comical way. What attracted me most is that there are some points very similar to Chinese stories, such as the henpecked characteristic and the time change. At first, it seems to me that I am reading a funny Chinese story! In addition, when I read it second time, I found that besides "comicality", there are many serious political metaphors in the story: "'Rip Van Winkle' especially offers political satire masked in the form of entertainment" (Michelle Hornick). To my surprise, under such a comical plot, there also exits some political metaphors whether are images or satire. Therefore, this paper discusses the political metaphors in the story. Totally speaking, this story is divided into two parts, before and after Rip's twenty-year nap in the Kaatskill Mountains, roughly between 1760s and 1780s. In other words, we can say that the American Revolution divides it into two parts. It is interesting that Rip sleeps through the American Revoluti
Rip's Dog---Wolf Rip's dog, Wolf, is also playing a political metaphorical role in the story. Therefore, Rip could only go to the Kaatskill Mountains with his gun and his faithful dog, Wolf, to find refugee. "Certain it is that he was a great favourite among all the good wives of the village, [. Irving describes that people are filled with a newfound energy looking forward to the next elections and are talking loudly by using political terms. Rip, as a henpecked husband, is willing to help all the people in the village instead of doing his own responsibilities, and he is lived under the discipline of his dominant superior wife. Moreover, because of the help from Rip, people like Rip very much. This shows that the people are getting used to the new government. However, after revolution, America is independent and has its own political rights. This shows that, "England was very domineering in their everyday lives and not willing to allow America its freedom. It shows that a quiet rustic place under the dominant of the Crown now changes to an independent country that has its own flag, the American flag. Because of the dominant of the Crown, Americans do not have their freedom in politics, economy or other respects. Irving describes the changes by depicting the features of the pictures: He recognized on the sign, however, the ruby face of King George under which he had smoked so many a peaceful pipe, but even this was singularly metamorphosed.
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