Showing results for "Washington" in Classics

In the secluded Dutch territory of Sleepy Hollow, nebbish schoolmaster Ichabod Crane competes with the town hero for the hand of Katrina Van Tassel, the 18-year-old daughter and sole child of a wealthy farmer. As Crane leaves a party at the Van Tassel's farm one autumn evening, he is pursued by the Headless Horseman, an apparition said to be the ghost of a Hessian trooper snuffed out by a stray cannonball.

Rip Van Winkle lives in a nice village at the foot of New York's Catskill Mountains. One autumn day he escapes his nagging wife by wandering up the mountains. After encountering strangely dressed men, rumored to be the ghosts of Henry Hudson's crew, who are playing nine-pins, and after drinking some of their liquor, he settles down under a shady tree and falls asleep. He wakes up 20 years later and returns to his village.

When Ichabod Crane sets his sights on the beautiful Katrina van Tassel (and her father's large estate), he's determined that nothing will stand in his way - not even brawny Brom Bones, his love rival. Ichabod is many things: a stern school teacher, a confident singer, an eligible bachelor. One thing he is NOT is brave, and there is far more to fear in Sleepy Hollow than Brom Bones. Especially at night... Washington Irving's atmospheric masterpiece of early New England and the fabled Headless Horseman has thrilled and inspired generations.

In The Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon (1820-21), Irving explores the uneasy relationship of an American writer to English literary traditions. In two sketches, he experiments with tales transplanted from Europe, thereby creating the first classic American short stories: "Rip Van Winkle" and "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow".

A wealthy spinster receives a proposal from a dashing suitor, and her father threatens her with disinheritance if she accepts, in Henry James's masterful exploration of the moral consequences of a tender heart's ruthless manipulation.

In the Dutch settlement of Tarry Town, New York, in a secluded glen called Sleepy Hollow, Ichabod Crane arrives to educate the children of the region. This lanky schoolmaster fancies the idea of marrying the Katrina Van Tassel, but there is a problem with his plan. Abraham “Brom Bones” Van Brunt has already set his heart on marrying her. This rivalry climaxes one autumn night with the appearance of the legendary Headless Horseman, allegedly the ghost of a Hessian trooper....

You are probably familiar with the popularized versions of Rip Van Winkle and The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, but have you ever heard the original, unabridged stories by Washington Irving? The skillfully written and colorful original tales have much more meaning and depth. In Rip Van Winkle Irving makes a profound social comment about the changes then happening in America.

Embark on a journey to the heart of 19th-century New York society with "Washington Square" by Henry James. This audiobook takes you into the world of Catherine Sloper, a young woman navigating the complexities of love, family, and societal expectations. With James' exquisite prose and keen insight, the narrative offers a compelling exploration of character development and the human condition. It delves into themes of inheritance, self-discovery, and the clash between individual desires and social norms.

In 'Washington Square' James treats on a subject about which he was passionate - the relationship between parents and their children. Dr Sloper, a wealthy man, is in a difficult position. His son has died aged three years old. His wife also dies within two weeks of giving birth to their surviving daughter Catherine. She is a plain awkward child, yet capable of giving immense affection. She becomes fascinated by would-be man of the world Morris Townsend, falling in love with him very swiftly. Is Morris a fortune hunter?

Catherine Sloper, the heroine of this tragicomic tale set in mid-19th century New York, is absolutely ordinary in every way except for her exceptional capacities in love and loyalty. These latter qualities are of no interest to her father, the successful society Doctor who is constantly disappointed by his daughter's failure to be brilliant, either physically or intellectually. For this reason, he is highly suspicious when Morris Townsend begins to woo her and is convinced the handsome young man's interest is only in the fortune Catherine will eventually inherit.

Washington Irving (1783-1859) was a short-story writer, essayist, biographer, historian, and diplomat. The short story "The Devil and Tom Walker" is about a miserly man who makes a deal with the devil. Irving’s fictional character Diedrich Knickerbocker is a Dutch-American historian and narrator of "The Conspiracy of the Cocked Hats" and the “golden age” of Wouter van Twiller, the Dutch Governor of New Amsterdam.

Wealthy heiress Catherine Sloper has always been plain and rather simple, though very sweet. She is drawn by the attentions of handsome gentleman Morris Townsend, the only man who ever even noticed her. But is he more interested in her fortune than Catherine herself? When they get engaged, despite protestations from her brilliant physician father, Catherine has to choose between her inheritance or love.

The battle between a father and a daughter is usually portrayed in literature as a struggle between a headstrong but feisty girl and a tradition-bound lead weight of a father. Henry James, of course, had to do it somewhat differently. He tells a story of an intelligent man riding the turn of the tide in mid-19th-century New York and watching what he sees as his numbingly dull and conventional daughter making the mistake of her life in her choice of husband.

This novel tells the story of Catherine Sloper, the plain, obedient daughter of the widowed, well-to-do Dr. August Sloper of Washington Square. When a handsome, reckless man-about-town proposes to Catherine, her father forbids the marriage because he believes the man to be after Catherine's fortune and future inheritance. The conflict between father, daughter, and suitor provokes consequences in the lives of all three that make this story one of James's most piercingly memorable.

"Er hat die Selbstsicherheit eines leibhaftigen Teufels" - so das Urteil des angesehenen und wohlhabenden Arztes Austin Sloper über den Lebemann Morris Townsend, der um seine unscheinbare Tochter Catherine wirbt. Die junge Frau ist verliebt, der Vater misstrauisch - diese Konstellation ist in der Literatur erst einmal nichts Neues. Doch Henry James näherte sich mit psychologischem Röntgenblick einem scheinbar bekannten Thema und entwickelte daraus ein spitzzüngiges und messerscharfes Porträt der amerikanischen Gesellschaft um 1850.

Washington Square tells the poignant and gently comic story of Catherine Sloper, a sweet and unassuming young heiress, and her fortune-seeking suitor Morris Townsend. Set in New York City during the 1840s, the story follows Ms. Sloper's conflicts with her concerned father, who attempts to thwart Mr. Townsend, and her busybody aunt, who encourages the attachment. But amid all the duplicity and folly, Ms. Sloper slowly grows towards independence and maturity, and begins to make her own decisions.

Originally published in 1880 as a serial in Cornhill Magazine and Harper's New Monthly Magazine, "Washington Square" is a structurally simple tragicomedy that recounts the conflict between a dull but sweet daughter and her brilliant, domineering father. The plot of the novel is based upon a true story told to James by his close friend, British actress Fanny Kemble. The book is often compared to Jane Austen's work for the clarity and grace of its prose and its intense focus on family relationships.

Henry James’ stories are classic gems of subtle wit and irony. Set in the exacting social landscape of New York City at the turn of the century, Washington Square is the tale of a wealthy but shy young woman caught between conflicting family expectations. John McDonough’s warm narration traces her remarkable inner journey.

On New York City's Washington Square lives Catherine Sloper, a shy and plain-looking young woman who is tyrannized by her wealthy, overbearing father. When young Morris Townsend begins to court her, Dr. Sloper, distrusting his motives, threatens to disinherit Catherine. In accordance with her father's suspicions, young Townsend disappears, leaving Catherine to humiliation, heartache, and lonely spinsterhood.

Washington Irving's tales of romance, travel, biographical discourse, and literary musing introduced such classic fictional figures as Rip Van Winkle, Ichabod Crane, and the Headless Horsemen of Sleepy Hollow. A sage, storyteller, and wit, Irving earned his preeminence in early American literature with these masterpieces in miniature.