How is imagery used in The Devil and Tom Walker?

How is imagery used in The Devil and Tom Walker?

Imagery in The Devil and Tom Walker Throughout the tale Irving uses imagery to show both Tom’s inner corruption and remind the audience of his damnation. For example, images of fire or sparks remind the reader that Tom’s soul will suffer from the flames in hell.

What literary devices are used in The Devil and Tom Walker?

“The Devil and Tom Walker” is no exception. The uses of simile, metaphor, personification, and onomatopoeia are abundant. A great lesson plan, after reading the story, is for students to create a scavenger hunt using the Storyboard Creator.

What literary significance does the Devil and Tom Walker have?

In summary, Irving’s story ‘The Devil and Tom Walker’ is a moral tale warning its readers against greed and corruption. Irving illustrates this moral through the use of an allegory, where the characters, objects and plot represent more than simple elements of the story.

What is the irony in the Devil and Tom Walker?

The dark and humorous irony in this passage is that normally nobody would willingly wish to sell her soul to the devil, and that the only reason Tom does not go through with the deal is simply to spite his wife rather than any concerns for his own welfare.

What does Tom Walker’s wife symbolize?

Tom’s wife can at least be said to represent greed or to be strongly driven by it. This is evidenced both by the narrator’s initial description of her as miserly, and unable to share even the simplest of things with her husband, and by her later insistence on making the deal with Scratch to acquire the treasure.

What metaphor and simile are used to describe how Tom exploits his customers?

Tom is described as pick his way through the forest “like a cat.” Another example is simile and personification, also a form of metaphor: “He [Tom] arrived at a firm piece of ground. . . like a peninsula into the deep bosom of the swamp.”

What happens when Tom says devil take me if I have made a farthing?

“The Devil take me,” said he, “if I have made a farthing!” This statement illustrates irony of situation. For, Tom Walker in his miserly way is simply mitigating his financial gain from the man, but the reality is that the Devil does actually take him.

What are the symbols of the Devil and Tom Walker?

The swamp near which Tom Walker and his wife live is a complex symbol for the world of matter (gold and silver), as well as worldliness (the base pursuit of earthly riches), and moral corruption… read analysis of Old Scratch’s Swamp Wilson, Joshua. “The Devil and Tom Walker Symbols.”

When was the Devil and Tom Walker written?

This is highly reflective of racial perceptions during the time period in which this story was published. Author Washington Irving wrote “The Devil and Tom Walker” in the early 1800s, and race relations in America were worse than ever at this time.

Why is Tom Walker not a likable character?

The negative relationship between he and his wife is an important factor of their characterization as well, as it shows that Tom is not satisfied with his current life situation and, naturally, will seek something greater when the opportunity arises. In contrast to protagonists of many other short stories, Tom Walker is not a likable character.

Where does the story of Tom Walker come from?

background The story of Tom Walker is a variation on the legend of Faust, a 16th- century magician and astrologer who was said to have sold his soul to the devil for wisdom, money, and power. Washington Irving reinvented the tale, setting it in the 1720sin an area of New England settled by Quakers and Puritans.