The inherent and transcendent nature of the union between truth and reality is displayed through the hemorraging death of the Dame Van Winkle...Rip Van Winkle conveys succesfully the concept that no matter how the exterior of a concept or situation is changed, its soul stays the same.

This portion of the study includes a comparison between American Vs European literary tradition and the role Washington Irving plays in establishing an American tradition. This analysis focuses on three points:

1. The author mentions that Americans have no great monuments or known personalities to write about, but Rip Van Winkle has a unique revolutionary topic which is just as great or greater.

2. The main character of the story is used to establish an American tradition by transforming his past experience of the Dutch colony into a new life under the American "flag"

3. It is apparent that Washington Irving has drawn from his own experience to write the story. He spent about twenty years "asleep" in Europe before he returned to America.

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Irving's Rip Van Winkle demonstrates the change in America's ideals due to the experience of the American Revolution. This story gives insight into the internal personalities of the American colonists and how the passage of time changes a society.