Paper One Essay
Ichabod Crane is the main character in The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. He is the rounded dynamic character and very much lifelike. He is described as gangling, small head with huge ears. He owned a large one room schoolhouse in New York. As the schoolmaster, he taught the children of the surrounding area. In addition, he was also the singing-master of the neighborhood. As much as he did little income was earned. He had such an enormous appetite that he found other ways to eat. His character was friendly among the town but self-seeking. He was only sociable so that the people would offer him food. As the narrator states, “but to help out his maintenance, he was....boarded and lodged at the houses of the farmers, whose children he instructed. With these he lived successively a week at a time.”(pg.650) So not only was he selfish, but also he used people to fulfill his appetite. He was somewhat industrious, for example, “ H e assisted the farmers occasionally with the lighter labors of their farms; helped to make hay; mended fences; took the horses to water; drove the cows from pasture; and cut wood for the winter fire.” (pg.650) Although he was helpful in a way, he still comes off as selfish because he doesn’t help out of kindness. He just wants to win the peoples’ approval in order to gain their acceptance. Due to his choice of helping out with the lighter labors portrays him to be weak. The narrator proves by stating, “ But Ichabod was too conscious of the superior might of his adversary to enter the lists against him.” (pg657) He let his imagination and gullibility het the best of him. There are two events that prove this: one is when the story states, “how often was he thrown into complete dismay by some rushing blast, howling among the trees, in the idea that it was the Galloping Hessian on one of his nightly scourings!”(pg652) Two, the most memorable event, is when he was pursued by what he believed to be the Headless Horseman. He knew that...