The Legend of Sleepy Hollow: Comparison of Video and Reading Material - Research Proposal Example

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow: Comparison of Video and Reading Material Reading material is a good source of making films: more and more videos are made on the basis of the plots, characters and books themselves. The thing that unites these two forms of activity is that they both belong to art and operate almost the same means to reach their goals. There are, however, differences between the printed and the filmed version of certain stories which is done for different purposes. This phenomenon is a source of permanent debates whether the screenplay should exactly repeat what has originally been written or some minor changes may be introduces as per the editor’s discretion. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow: Comparison of Video and Reading Material Introduction Washington Irving’s novel “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” is a literary work of art which makes interest for the readers because of its plot and the way the events and the characters are described. The author used his attention to details as his main means, and this imparted a certain degree of realism to his novel. In the same time, his use of legends and tales in realistic setting was another thing that caught the readers’ attention and made it popular. This popularity led, as it often happens today, to the film making on the basis of the novel, and there are doubts whether the film made by Pierre Gang and the original novel have any differences, which will be investigated in the present paper. Methods The method used in this research paper is the comparison of the film and the novel, precisely, the comparison of the plot, the character (the chosen one is Ichabod Crane) and the setting of the two works of art. Hypothesis The hypothesis of the present paper is that there are differences between the two works of art which, however, do not distort the perception of the original ideas of the author of the novel. Results The research has given the following results which will be given in the following order: the plot and its differences in the two works of art, the character of Ichabod Crane and the differences, and the setting of the two works and the differences between them. The Plot and The Related Differences in the Two Works of Art. The plot of the novel narrates about a legend of Sleepy Hollow which is transferred over the generations. The legend has it that, in the time of the Independence War, there was a warhead in this place who led his soldiers to the battle against the British army. In the battle his head was cut off, but he went on riding his horse and inspiring his soldiers on combat actions which resulted in their victory and defeat of the British. Much time passed since then, but the phantom of that headless horseman still appears in the hollow of this village, and there are many witnesses (they at least tell stories about their meeting the strange phantom) of this supernatural phenomenon. One day, a man named Ichabod Crane who looks for a job as a teacher reaches this village and reaches success: he is offered an occupation in the local farmers’ school. The results of his work are more or less satisfactory, but the earning is insufficient and he finds a resolution to the problem of his eternal poverty – he decides to marry a daughter of one of the local richest farmers, Katrina Van Tassel. There emerges a rivalry between him and the second candidate – Brom Bones, a radically opposite character: strong, big, farmer from the birth, and this rivalry ends with the defeat of Crane. After his fail, he meets the headless horseman who throws his head and punches Ichabod, and after this meeting no one has ever seen Crane. (Irving, 1820 [2012]). The film describes the same events and the characters as the novel, but there are some differences with the original story. First, the meeting of Crane and the headless horseman in the film demonstrates Crane’s finding out the person of the phantom – this is Bones who wants to get rid of his rival in such a way which he successfully manages to do. Second, there are two horsemen without heads in the film end – one of them is the mentioned Bones, and the second is the phantom who throws the pumpkin which, also in comparison with the novel, does not reach Crane’s head. The Differences in the Character of Ichabod Crane in the Works of Art. This is one of the central characters of the two works of art and is the one most often described. The novel represents this man as a complete embodiment of his name and surname – Ichabod is related to the name of the Bible character who is poor (Ichabod has not many clothes along and he has to live with the farmers because of having no own room), and Crane reflects his appearance: long, thin, scrawny. This man is a teacher who is well educated and skillful in the church singing, which makes it possible to conclude that he is positive. The fact is that he strives for rich life and is even ready to marry a rich man’s daughter to reach his goal, which is not the correct behavior of a religious person. He is also a person who comprises controversies: his appearance creates an image of a humble person, but in reality he is keen on eating which is his passion and imagining himself a successor of Balt Van Tassel and the owner of his rich farm – in his dreams, he enjoys this treasure and believes this is his ultimate goal. Within the course of the development of the plot, Crane uses his charm and education for making his dreams come true, and this measure brings its benefits. (Irving, 1820 [2012]). The description of Crane in the film enforces his above mentioned features, negative most of all, because of the excellent choice of the actor – his appearance poses him as a mean man ready for anything to get rich. It is possible to say that there is no difference between the Crane in the novel and the Crane in the film – they both have the same features, traits of character, and the film contributes to the complete and proper perception of this character by means of visual presentation by an appropriate actor. The Setting of the two Works and the Correspondent Differences. As per the original novel, the actions take place in the village of Sleepy Hollow, a place originated by the Dutch settlers and where their descendants now live. This place is geographically located in the eastern part of the United States. The inhabitants are mainly farmers and live a usual village life: the adults take care of the farm and the land, and the children help them in their activities and do not attend school. The farms are well run because they are the primary source of living for the farmers; the adults have little time for the other activities and do not support the ideas of education and anything which comes from the cities referring to this as to hostile things. This society respects such people as Brom Bones because they are fit to living in such conditions: as it happens in the final, they want to reach everything by themselves and they have all the possibilities for this. The locals cherish sincerity, truth, readiness to help and other positive features and do not like the antipodes. In the same time, they are proud of their ancestors and honor the fallen in the Independence War which evidences their traditions maintenance. (Irving, 1820 [2012]). The film provides the same setting as the original novel, and, the same way as in the above mentioned case of Crane, it enforces the perception by providing well created visual material with a high degree of realism of the described setting. This means that there are no differences between the novel and the film in regards to their presenting the setting of the plot. Discussion The findings of the present research have demonstrated that the original novel and the film based on it have some differences which are in the way the plot is developed. The novel narrates about the meeting of Crane and the headless horseman as about the fatal meeting for Crane and there are only two characters: Ichabod Crane and the headless Hessian. The difference is also that the pumpkin is thrown by the horseman, whereas the film demonstrates that this action is performed by a phantom after Crane’s discovery of the living pursuer, Brom Bones; the pumpkin in the novel reaches Crane’s head and makes him fall faint, whereas the pumpkin thrown in the film falls on the ground and smashes in pieces making Crane fall faint from fear. The two other components investigated in the present paper, the character of Ichabod Crane and the setting of the story, have no differences, and the benefit of the film is that visual material and the way it is made contributes to complete understanding of the character and his negative traits which are most important and the setting which brightly reveals the locals’ attitude towards different types of people. It is necessary to mention that the above mentioned differences do not distort the way the information is perceived; moreover, the fact that Crane falls from fear in the film complements the set of his negative traits of character and proves his being mean and selfish. (Irving, 1820 [2012]). Conclusion The present research has found several differences between the novel of Washington Irving and the film by Pierre Gang, and the differences are about the way the plot is developed in the two mentioned works of art. The differences do not significantly distort the perception of the idea of the authors’ messages, moreover, the film enforces perception of Crane’s negativism, which proves the hypothesis of the research: the differences between the film and the novel do not prevent the reader from proper perception of the information. References Irving, W. (1820) [2012]. The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. http://www.gutenberg.org/files/41/41-h/41-h.htm Read More