Describe tom walker and his wife. What does the saying the Devil and Tom Walker mean? 2022-11-01

Describe tom walker and his wife Rating: 4,7/10 791 reviews

Tom Walker is a character in the short story "The Devil and Tom Walker" by Washington Irving. Tom is described as a miserly and greedy man who is married to a woman named Dame Walker, who is also described as miserly and greedy.

Tom and his wife live in a small, run-down house in the swamps near Boston, Massachusetts. They are both unhappy and constantly bicker with each other over money and possessions. Tom is particularly obsessed with getting rich and spends his days looking for ways to make money, even if it means cheating or stealing from others.

One day, Tom meets the Devil, who offers him a deal: in exchange for his soul, the Devil will give Tom a treasure that is buried in the swamp. Tom agrees to the deal and, after finding the treasure, becomes even wealthier and more miserly than before.

However, Tom's wife does not share in his wealth and becomes more and more unhappy as Tom hoards his money and refuses to share it with her. Eventually, she decides to go out into the swamp to find the treasure for herself. The story ends with Tom finding her dead in the swamp, having been killed by the Devil as punishment for her greed.

Overall, Tom Walker is a greedy and miserly character who is driven by his desire for wealth and material possessions. His marriage to his equally greedy wife is unhappy and filled with conflict, and ultimately ends in tragedy.

Describe Tom Walker and his wife.

describe tom walker and his wife

Tom Walker was a poor, miserly man, born at Massachusetts in 1727, and it is said that he sold himself to the Devil for wealth. Tom meets the devil, Old Scratch, at an abandoned Indian fort hidden away in the swamplands. But as the narrator tells us, it was an ill-chosen shortcut because it cost him eternal damnation. However Tom might have felt disposed to sell himself to the devil, he was determined not to do so to oblige his wife; so he flatly refused out of the mere spirit of contradiction. Tom Walker knows the rumors about the sacrifices made here to the devil, but he chooses not to harbor any fears about it. We also learned that Irving's story reflects the characteristics of the Romantic time period, including the use of the supernatural and the city as a dirty, corrupt place. What does the earthquake mean in the Devil and Tom Walker? In an empty, romantic spot in his mind, perhaps he wondered what would happen if he made a deal with the devil.

Next

What is the setting in Tom Walker?

describe tom walker and his wife

This situation causes a sort of power struggle between Tom and his mother. The events of the story can be divided into two locations: Tom Walker takes a shortcut through tangled, dark, and dingy swamplands, which are so dark and uninviting that they represent hell in the story. Plot Irving frames the story as an old legend, with witnesses who have passed the story down over the years giving it some validity for his audience. Old Scratch is really the Devil, and he offers Tom large sums of money in exchange for 'certain conditions. The narrator describes the state of the Walker house as being one with little amenities and decoration—Tom and his wife both want to keep their money rather than to spend it on anything extra. The characters themselves are symbolic.

Next

Describe Tom’s relationship to his wife.

describe tom walker and his wife

How does he behave when he is older nearing death? He illustrates this moral thought through the use of a literary device called an allegory, where the characters, objects and plot represent an idea. But when he starts getting religious the devil punishes him Irving 3 Irving is trying to show people that money does not always make you happy. He even felt something like gratitude towards the black woodsman, who he considered had done him a kindness. They would hide food and money from one another. Buy Study Guide "They lived in a forlorn-looking house that stood alone and had an air of starvation.

Next

What is the relationship between Tom Walker and his Wife?

describe tom walker and his wife

Tom hides behind the dollar signs that are associated with his name and, uses them as an excuse to treat others harshly. What does the black man say to Tom Walker? When Tom told her about his meeting with the Devil and the offer the Devil made him to sell his soul for money, she decided if he wouldn't do it, then she would. She even scratches him when they fight and she is the opposite of the women back then. What is the summary of The Devil and Tom Walker? The Devil told Tom about how he could receive money that Kidd the Pirate buried in the swamp. What was the futility of greed in the Devil and Tom Walker? He despises his miserly, abusive wife and has nothing to live for but the satisfaction of his desire for owning things.

Next

Describe the marriage between Tom Walker and his wife

describe tom walker and his wife

This objectification of Daisy further highlights the overall dehumanization of women. Romantic Characteristics In addition to its use of We can also see evidence of the Romantic view that the city is a place of moral corruption. The swamp was thickly grown with great, gloomy pines and hemlocks, some of them ninety feet high, which made it dark at noonday and a retreat for all the owls of the neighborhood. The fact that the Devil is real and that you can do things for him for money etc. Gradually squeezed his customers closer and closer. Because of the stinginess and mistrust of both Tom and his wife, the house was as bad inside as it was out.

Next

The Devil and Tom Walker Quotes and Analysis

describe tom walker and his wife

How does Tom encourage his own destruction? Tom's wife is as miserly as he is but with a temper. Walker runs into the devil and sees that the devil is cutting down someone else's timber. Some say she just got lost; others say she ran off with the silver to another province. How does Tom encourage his own destruction? So, after a conversation where Tom agrees to be a corrupt usurer someone who lends money , he leaves for Boston where he lives a life of wealth and corruption. This leaves him free to make his deal with the Devil without having to share anything. It seemed to me that the thing for Daisy to do was to rush out of the house, child in arms — but apparently there were no such intentions in her head.

Next

What character traits do Tom Walker and his wife share?

describe tom walker and his wife

It is not only Tom's shortcut home, but it was his shortcut to obtaining the wealth he wanted. Tom and his wife love nothing so much as riches, not even themselves, both would rather sell their souls to Old Scratch—the devil—and burn in everlasting hellfire, than miss out on an opportunity to profit. What does Tom do to cause the narrator to call him a violent churchgoer? Old Scratch is given several names in the story, including wild huntsman and black woodsman. Where does the story take place in the Devil and Tom Walker? It is implied that the Devil will get his soul. Inside, though, there is no furniture, which proves that he is still his same stingy self.


Next

What does the saying the Devil and Tom Walker mean?

describe tom walker and his wife

Tom walks through the swamp on the way home because it was a shortcut. Tom paused to rest at an old fort. The Devil is temptation and Tom and his wife represent greed. When the devil suggests he charge 2 percent per month, Tom says no he will charge 4 percent instead. What does Irving use to symbolize hypocrisy? When was the Devil and Tom Walker written? Tom acquisitiveness drew him to darkness that he could no longer escape. Later on the greed gets the best of her proving that she and her husband are greedy people. After searching through the woods, all he finds is her heart and liver tied up in her apron, and he knows that she is dead and he's rather happy about that.

Next

What human flaw does tom walker and his wife represent?

describe tom walker and his wife

Keep in mind that he is a physical character in the story, like a person with supernatural powers. Next, the Devil offers answers to problems that Tom and his… Devil and Tom Walker Modernized Tom Walker sat at his bedside feeling rather melancholy for he had not much to do but be chided at by his notorious witch of a wife. Adjectives like "forlorn" and "straggling," as well as phrases like "emblems of sterility," paint a picture for readers of the kind of life these two characters are living and the relationship they have with each other. She took the silver teapot and spoons and every thing else they had of value. Because of the stinginess and mistrust of both Tom and his wife, the house was as bad inside as it was out.

Next

Describe Tom's house in "The Devil and Tom Walker."

describe tom walker and his wife

Of course, Tom's Bible represents the other side of that - the chance for salvation. The text states several reasons why the couple has a relationship filled with many flaws. By building a lavish house for himself, Tom displays his riches outwardly so that everyone can see. What we also learn from the text is that both Tom and his wife are materialistic and greedy. According to Old Scratch, Deacon Peabody's hypocrisy will land him a one-way ticket to hell if he doesn't change his ways.

Next