Washington Irving was born April 3, 1783 in New York City. Irving first began his writings under the name of Johnathan Oldstyle. Irving as he got older, ventured out into law but later found that it was not his true calling. Irving felt more comfortable expressing himself through his creative writings. According to Biography.com Irving was “considered perhaps the first true American writer,” (Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 23 Nov. 2015. ). One of Irving’s best pieces he has written was Rip Van Winkle created in 1819. Rip Van Winkle is about a man named Rip who is considered an easy going husband until one day he wanders into a mountain and meets a mysterious group of men and begins to drink with them only to have been put into a deep sleep. He then awakens twenty years later to find out that everything he has known before has changed. His wife is dead as well as many of his friends or they have all moved towns. Irving in this particular story makes is evident that his message is time waits for no one. Making Rip Van Winkle one of the most read …show more content…
Emily Dickinson was born December 10, 1830 in Amherst, Massachusetts. Emily Dickinson lived in her home most of her life because of that she had time to read different types of literature as well get involved with writing her own works. It is said her romantic spark came from a Reverend named Charles whom she seemed to have a romantic interest in. Because Emily was living in her home her family also influenced her very much. Her father and mother were both involved with the practice of politics so that greatly influenced her writings. Emily’s writings hold romantic features because Emily like other romanticists believed in her own writing she seeked individuality. Another characteristic of romanticism found in her writings is her addressing many concerns that many other writers refused to cover. She wrote about death and sense of identity (Kannan, Ashley. N.p., 24 Nov. 2012. Web. 24 Nov. 2015. ). One of Dickinson’s well known poetry is I felt a Funeral, in my Brain. This work of poetry is most famous for its acknowledgement of mental health issues. This poem incorporates the theme of death and the afterlife. This poem is said to resemble Dickinson and her health issues. Her nephew was diagnosed with epilepsy while she, as far as we know, had agoraphobic tendencies meaning she had a fear of places that would cause embarrassment or panic. Which can relate back to why she never really left her