American Literature

The need to feel free is inherent in every person. As Fra Lippo Lippis song implies, people will sleep and avoid trouble if they are free they will not work or do anything to bother themselves. This idea of evading pain or suffering is reflected in escapist literature, particularly in Nathaniel Hawthornes (n.d.) Wakefield and Washington Irvings (2001) Rip Van Winkle. With escapist themes in their stories, both authors exude the troubles borne by people in the 19th century and their various attempts to escape reality.
    
When faced with too many problems, people are tempted to escape their present situation in order to find comfort. There are different ways of evading reality. Some use their pens to write about their feelings and dreams, others who become delusory commit suicide or become insane. Still, others go on a journey and just run away from their responsibilities, without word or reason. When a person decides to break free from the present, there is always a valid reason. However, in Wakefield, Hawthorne expounds on the idea of escaping ones current situation without much reason at all.
The story opens with Hawthornes overview of the situation of the protagonist, and an invitation to reflect on the characters experience. Hawthorne posts the question, What sort of man was Wakefield  to imply the mystery in the protagonists behavior and experience. Like every man who is endowed with troubles, readers may speculate that the protagonist runs away from home due to common reasons such as finding another love, working to earn for a living, or even escaping domestic problems but as Hawthorne points out, these speculations are unfounded. This leads to the question, Why does he leave his home How does the characters experience relate to Hawthornes time

Written in the 19th century, the experience of the character projects the troubles that people faced during the time the story was written. History reveals to us the industrialization and capitalism that arouse during the 19th century, which affected people in the way they deal with others and themselves. In Wakefield, Hawthorne emphasizes feelings of alienation and isolation. In the story, the major character, Wakefield, leaves his wife without a word for 20 years. Such action demonstrates the characters isolation of himself. Also, as the narrator reveals, Wakefield himself, be it considered, has no suspicion of what is before him. This shows the inability of the man to understand his motives, and to reflect upon his purpose in life, thus implying alienation. There is no mention of severe labor situation on the part of Wakefield that could make him develop feelings of isolation and alienation. However, as the narrator reveals, it could be the absence of challenges, his inactivity that makes Wakefield feel the way he does.

According to the narrator, Wakefield is just an ordinary man. He was intellectual but not actively so his mind occupied itself in long and lazy musings, that tended to no purpose, or had not vigor to attain it. From this ordinariness, readers can imagine the character sitting at home, doing nothing so important all day for countless hours of his life. This boredom or lack of purpose is what moves Wakefield to decide to leave his wife. By securing dwelling in the next street, he finds challenge, something uncommon to the ordinary life he lives. His attempts to take a peak at his wife distract his sluggish routine. At that instant, his fate was turning on the pivot. As his heart pounds for fear of being caught, Wakefield finds his new life with adventure. Later on, his disguises serve as other challenges that make him cling to his newfound life but such challenges, as they become customary for twenty years, also lead him to return to his wife.

The feeling of boredom or sluggishness is likewise seen in Irvings Rip Van Winkle. However, Rip does not resist this sluggishness. If left to himself, he would have whistled life away in perfect contentment. Living in a farm, he shares Wakefields simple life, but not too simple and plain as the others. He is a favorite character in his place. The children of the villagewould shout with joy whenever he approached. He assisted at their sports, made their playthings, taught them to fly kites and shoot marbles, and told them long stories of ghosts, witches, and Indians. Everyone loves him and enjoys his company, except his wife who nags at him often. It is this fate that leads Rip to dislike his fate. In a word Rip was ready to attend to anybodys business but his own but as to doing family duty, and keeping his farm in order, he found it impossible. This lack of responsibility makes it better for him to sleep in the mountains, for without him, life will continue the way it should. True enough, when he finally wakes up, his kids have grown up, and the American Revolution has taken place.

Rips disappearance can be viewed in different ways. On the one hand, it is beneficial for him because that way, he avoids the nagging of his wife. On the other, he misses a lot about life, especially his childrens growing up. Also, his disappearance does not bear any effect on the world, for he is nothing especial. This notion of being too ordinary as to not to have any effect on others is likewise seen in Wakefield. Both stories show that life for the wives continue despite the loss of their husbands. Of course readers can suspect the wives longing to find them, but the emphasis of the stories is not on the emotions of the wives. Rather, the authors would like to imply the sluggishness of life in the 19th century, the lack of challenge that could raise up a mans spirit, and the unimportant role played by the common peoplethose who do not have power or position in society. These people, as seen in Rip Van Winkle take the world easy, eat white bread or brown, whichever can be got with least thought or trouble, and would rather starve on a penny than work for a pound. Having nothing to give society, they are better asleep than awake, and isolated from their wives who can carry on and play dual roles of being a father and mother to their children.

The idea of the wife being able to carry on without the husband is really striking, considering that the authors are male. Ironically, as they focus on the mans life, they imply to us the ability of the women to live without support from their husbands. Hence, the stories suggest not only the irresponsible behavior of the men, but likewise the ability of the female gender for survival. Gone to the wars, the fields, or nowhere, the husband leaves behind their responsibilities to his family while the woman assumes these and successfully lives on. Such scenario implies the authors hint on the importance of women in the 19th century society. While both authors dwell on the inefficiency of the men in fulfilling their roles, they make their readers sympathize with the women. This foreshadows the rise of women in power in politics and literature, such as Queen Victoria, and in literature, with authors Jane Austen, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, among others.

The plain and simple life that Hawthorne and Irving expound in their stories can still be felt in our times, and like the characters in the stories, some people still have escapist attitudes when dealing with their situation. Some escape reality by isolating themselves, and running away from their responsibilities just like Wakefield does. Also, like Rip Van Winkle, some try to elope by resorting to imagination and not facing their problems squarely. However, unlike Rip who does nothing but dwell in the mountains and sleep, many people attempt to forget their troubles by smoking pots or taking drugs. Realizing the way people tend to digress from their realities, modern readers should see the important message that Hawthorne and Irving imply, that in order to effect change people must always bear courage to face their situations, and do something to improve their lives.