Comparing Sleep Hollow, Ichabod Crane And The American Identity

Most people tend to practice old ways, never challenging the thoughts or beliefs they’re following in fear of being viewed as different. The American Identity is an idea of being a strong, generous person with their own views and opinions without looking to others for guidance. In the story Sleep Hollow written by Washington Irving, Ichabod Crane and the American Identity are complete opposites. Director Tim Burton put his own twist on the movie Sleepy Hollow. Although in both the movie and story Ichabod is a vulnerable character, in the movie Ichabod is great representation of the American Identity. In the story, Ichabod wants to be rich but is extremely lazy and has no desire to work. Opposed to the movie where Ichabod wants to help the town progress with his science, which he succeeds in. Ichabod conquers the evil and gets the girl he wants. Unlike the written story where Ichabod is the unworldly moron who believes every story he hears which ends up getting him killed, proving he isn’t …show more content…
At first people are suspicious of Ichabod’s ways but he proves himself to the towns people and they respect him. Ichabod being the extempore hero in the movie proves he deals and understands the American Identity entirely. In the story by Irving, Ichabod is the moron who gets killed by his worst fear. Ichabod is power hungry and abuses the little power he has by whipping his students, knowing they can’t do anything about it. “The appalling sound of the birch as he urged some wrongheaded Dutch urchin along the flowery path of knowledge.” (Irving 6). Ichabod knows the students must honor him no matter what he does, hence why they are the only people he can push around. Ichabod’s inability to stand up for himself ends up getting him killed by the Galloping Hessian. In Sleepy Hollow most town’s people have jobs and money from farming. Ichabod’s laziness and ironically a pumpkin results in his