Shaping American Identity

摘要

After the War of Independence, America stood out as a new country, while its literature was greatly influenced by those ofEuropean. In many people's eyes, Americans had no literature. Washington Irving, together with James Fennimore Cooper, firstbroke the dependence on English literature, and created plenty of works in the native style. In this article,"Rip Van Winkle"is an-alyzed to show how Irving revealed the American culture and style, which is mainly presented in the respect of American dream.