Brianna-Walker

=Tom Walker = == ==

== Tom Walker  is a character from Washington Irving's short story, "The Devil and Tom Walker". Tom  and his wife argue and fight with each other both physically and verbally. The only similarity they have is their love for money. While walking through a swampy area and Indian burial ground, Tom  meets Old Scratch (the Devil) and makes a deal with him. Tom  decides to sell his soul to Old Scratch for riches and becomes a worker of Old Scratch. As years go by, Tom  cheats people out of their money, but then the reality of his fate begins to sink in. His fear for his fate causes <span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(181,23,23);">**Tom** to carry a Bible with him at all times. When <span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(181,23,23);">Tom  <span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);">is confronted by a man who says  <span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(181,23,23);">**Tom** took his money,  <span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(181,23,23);">Tom  <span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);">replies by saying, "The devil take me if I have made a farthing!" A black man (the Devil) with a black horse comes and takes <span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(181,23,23);">Tom  <span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);">away, and he is never seen again. <span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(181,23,23);">**Tom** 's house burned to the ground by lightning, and some say that <span style="color: rgb(0,0,0);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(181,23,23);">**Tom** haunts the old Indian burial ground on stormy nights. ==


 * <span style="color: rgb(204, 25, 25);">Tom Walker **'s character is similar to Faust, the main character of a German legend, that deals with a man selling himself to the devil. The story lines are similar, but Washington Irving makes "The Devil and Tom Walker" unique and one of the first American stories by adding American characters in an American setting. This story causes a separation in literature from Europe, and gives patriotism in America.

<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'Palatino Linotype', 'Book Antiqua', Palatino, serif;">__References__
Notes taken in class http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_works_which_retell_or_strongly_allude_to_the_Faust_tale http://classiclit.about.com/library/bl-etexts/wirving/bl-wirving-devil.htm

<span style="color: rgb(240,76,209);">
[|Video of Tom's Story] media type="youtube" key="ZTwCsHLtTV8" height="344" width="425" [|Song similar to Tom's Story] media type="youtube" key="cDm_ZHyYTrg" height="344" width="425"