Wednesday, October 2, 2013
21st century Rip Van Winkle
Before Rip was lost in the woods the political climate was pretty secure, there were rumblings of oppression towards the British, but nothing too serious. Fast forward twenty years and the entire political scene had changed, the British had been removed from power following a revolutionary war. It was a lot for Rip to take in, everything he had known had changed. Based purely on the political climate, if Rip were to be alive in our time would he be bewildered by our political landscape today? Two political ideologies miles apart in their beliefs in how the United States should be governed, in his day it was the revolutionaries and the British, in ours the republicans and the Democrats. Here recently the political landscape has gotten very bitter and personal, just as it was leading up to the revolution. I am not hinting at a revolution, I am just implying how the political atmosphere is relevant to the latter.
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There is a lot to be said for studying history. Remember that old saying credited to George Santayana, who, in his Reason in Common Sense, The Life of Reason, Vol.1, wrote "Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it." Usually the quote is paraphrased into "those who don't study history (remember past events) are doomed to repeat it (them)." True, very true. Good relevant post connecting what we are reading to today, Jake!
ReplyDeleteNow that I've looked at it closer, I can see where you're coming from in the comparison you made. Like the days before the American Revolution, there are two political parties fighting a bitter war. This is a classic example of how history repeats itself, and of how the very thing we fought against is what we have become.I feel that classic literature, such as Rip Van Winkle, was written to show us what we don't always see in every day life. We could learn a great deal from these examples, should we choose to pay attention to them.
ReplyDeleteIt's very interesting to see how periods of political unrest seem to bring out the best in a writer's work. I think that the struggle brings out a pure emotion that is hard to replicate for writers with an easy life. It is hard to tap into a feeling that you are unaware of or have never experienced. Hard times seem to be an author's great muse.
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