Washington Irving Washington Irving American author essayist

Washington Irving

§Washington Irving American author, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat of the early 19 th century.

§ He is best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works include biographies of George Washington, Oliver Goldsmith and Muhammad, and several histories of 15 th-century Spain dealing with subjects such as Christopher Columbus, the Moors, and the Alhambra.

§ He made his literary debut in 1802 with a series of observational letters to the Morning Chronicle, written under the pseudonym Jonathan Oldstyle. After moving to England for the family business in 1815, he achieved international fame with the publication of The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. in 1819 -20. He continued to publish regularly—and almost always successfully—throughout his life, and completed a five-volume biography of George Washington just eight months before his death, at age 76, in Tarrytown, New York.

§ Irving, along with James Fenimore Cooper, was among the first American writers to earn acclaim in Europe, and Irving encouraged American authors such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and Edgar Allan Poe. Irving was also admired by some European writers, including Walter Scott, Lord Byron, Thomas Campbell, Francis Jeffrey, and Charles Dickens. As America's first genuine internationally best-selling author, Irving advocated for writing as a legitimate profession, and argued for stronger laws to protect American writers from copyright infringement.

§ Washington Irving's parents were William Irving, Sr. , originally of Quholm, Shapinsay, Orkney, and Sarah (née Sanders), Scottish. English immigrants. They married in 1761 while William was serving as a petty officer in the British Navy. They had eleven children, eight of whom survived to adulthood. Their first two sons, each named William, died in infancy, as did their fourth child, John. Their surviving children were: William, Jr. (1766), Ann (1770), Peter (1772), Catherine (1774), Ebenezer (1776), John Treat (1778), Sarah (1780), and Washington.

§ Irving studied law, engaged in journalism. In 1804 he traveled to Europe, where he met with centuries-old European culture, which many read as a child. Thus was formed the main feature of creativity Irving combining elements of the old and the young European cultures.

§ In 1809 Irving invented the literary hoax that led to the publication of the book "History of New York. " In the evening the New York newspaper was reported on the search for an elderly man named Dietrich Knickerbocker, who was considered mad by the traveler. Soon it was reported that if he was seen actually. Fictional characters became more real. Finally, there was an announcement stating that in order to repay outstanding hotel bills will be printed manuscript that allegedly belonged to this traveler. So a "History of New York. "

§ Irving was very well acquainted with the literature of Europe. Original way reflected in some of his writings motives of the German Romantics (opov. "Ghost Bride"), gave him a lot of familiarity with historical novels V. Skotta. But his work is not without its national identity. One of the first in American literature, Irving turned to folklore. Themes and images of oral traditions of Indian tribes and settlers from England, France, Holland, settled on American soil, combined in his works showing the reality of modern American writer. Place of Irving's stories - Hudson coast, slopes Appalachia, American prairies, New York, who built up rapidly, but the event a number of works by American writer occurring outside the United States - in Spain and England.

literary heritage

§ Letters of Jonathan Oldstyle 1802 § A History of New York 1809 § The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. 1819– 1820 § Bracebridge Hall 1822 § Tales of a Traveller 1824 § The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus 1828 § The Chronicles of the Conquest of Granada 1829 § of the Companions of Columbus 1831 § Tales of the Alhambra 1832 § "The Author of the Sketch The Crayon Miscellany § Astoria 1836 § The Adventures of Captain Bonneville 1837 § The Life of Oliver Goldsmith 1840 § Biography and Poetical Remains § of the Late Margaret Miller Davidson 1841 § Mahomet and His Successors 1850 § The Life of George Washington 1855– 1859 1835

§ Recent years Irving spent on his estate near Sunnyside New York. He still enjoyed an outstanding reputation in the literary world. The writer is fully converted to biographical genre, the biography written by English writer - educator A. Goldsmith and President George Washington. W. Irving died in 1859

§ In the history of world literature W. Irving came as a founder of the American novelistyky, with its characteristic features: visual story, zaintryhovanist a combination of serious and comic, romantic irony and explicit rational beginning. Some works of Irving translated in Ukraine and R. G. Chykalenko Dotsenko. Romantic nature of creativity Irving is most evident in the most famous stories, written for 20 - 30 years of the XIX century.