Everyday Canvas

Not So Sleepy Hollow

Prompt: In Washington Irving's story "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," Ichabod Crane attends an autumnal harvest feast, where he listens to local townspeople recounting ghost stories. Later that night, on his fateful ride home, he encounters the Headless Horseman. The ending of the story is left open to interpretation: Is the Headless Horseman a ghoulish spirit, or is it actually Crane's rival in love, dressed in disguise and further exaggerated by Crane's haunted, overactive imagination? It's your blog; have fun.

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I could say, “Who cares!” but my lit teacher in seventh grade would have my head for it. Also, I have no idea why we were made to read that story at such an impressionable age because I remember being hesitant to turn off the light in my room and possibly having a nightmare or two. But lo and behold! After many decades, I meet Ichabod again, in cyberspace…

Ichabod Crane, the eccentric, who is educated but not too clever and not much to look at, makes me sympathize with him. Yet, doesn’t the way he runs off from the headless horseman make him a comedic entity? It has to be that Washington Irving as a realistic author was poking fun at the beliefs of his time. I have to give it to the author that the way he exaggerated the atmosphere of the story was probably what had scared me during my dinosaur time.

As to the main character, here, did Ichabod Crane with his positive and negative assets nurture an impossible hope of getting a pretty girl who already had a beau in Brom Bones? If so, should we look down upon and sneer at every ugly person? I don't think so because some of the uglies can end up with handsome or pretty ones since beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.

It is certain to me that Brom Bones did do the prank. Just look at the name Irving chose for him. It was common practice among the authors of the time to make names hint at the actions and mental and emotional traits of the story characters. Then, there was the characterization of Brom Bones who told his own scary story to scare the impressionable Ichabod earlier in the night.

The pumpkin that was hurled at Ichabod the last minute was probably hurled by Brom Jones, and the rest of the story makes sense with Ichabod disappearing and years later reappearing as a judge in New York, which makes me wonder if this story points to some NewYorkers who have turned out to be educated, yet, eccentric and judgmental people who flee from hardships. If so, it explains our two front-runner presidential candidates, both seriously tied to NewYork.

Should we be scared?