Radicals Changes and Identity Crisis in the United States

Radicals Changes and Identity Crisis in the United States

  • Submitted By: kkiran11101
  • Date Submitted: 10/29/2008 4:06 PM
  • Category: English
  • Words: 1154
  • Page: 5
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Radicals Changes and Identity Crisis in the United States


During the 1700¡¯s when America was under Britain rule, the nation was struggling to gain independence. In addition, when the country finally achieved liberty events around the United States started to change. The short story entitled ¡°Rip Van Winkle¡± written by Washington Irving explains how the country was trying to develop a new lifestyle. Now the people had the ability to govern the course of development however, the events of the radical changes left the nation and individuals uncertain of their own identity.
Before the Revolutionary War America was a calm and peaceful place. Near the Catskill Mountains of New York was a pleasant village that was found by the Dutch colonists. The villages had ¡°light smoke curling up from a village, whose shingle roofs gleam among the trees, just where the blue tints of the upland melt away into fresh green of the near landscape¡± (954). Moreover, during this time the nation was a passive place where the houses were surrounded with beautiful sceneries of green trees. A place where nothing was rushed, everyone worked on farms and a community that was rural and simple. During this era, the people had so much time on their hands. The inn was a place where people ¡°used to sit in the shade of a long lazy summer¡¯s day, talk listlessly over village gossip, or tell endless sleepy stories about nothing¡± (956). In addition, the inn was a place where people would go if they had nothing else better to do. This showed how the country did not have to deal with anxiety because there was not much going on. Individuals would just pass time by chatting about useless gossip. This was a lifestyle where the community was relaxed and did not have worries, but all that was about to change.
When Rip Van Winkle falls asleep and wakes up after ¡°twenty years¡± the nation has changed dramatically. As soon as he awakens, he observed that his environment it not what it...

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