The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

by

Washington Irving

Head of the Headless Horseman

The Headless Horseman, of course, is a major character in “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.” But the ghostly rider—and, especially, his head—also symbolize the tension between reality and imagination, between the natural and…

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Cotton Mather’s “History of New England Witchcraft”

As the town schoolteacher, Ichabod is both admired and mistrusted for his knowledge. Though many of the women in the town consider him a perfect gentleman, some of the farmers who send their children to…

read analysis of Cotton Mather’s “History of New England Witchcraft”