The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

Ichabod Crane is different from the Dutch farmers who have lived in Sleepy Hollow for generations. How do the farmers and their wives treat Ichabod as an outsider and how do they regard him, both positive and negative? How does the author depict Ichabod as an outsider?

Teaching Suggestion: It may be useful for students to work in groups to complete a chart about this prompt before the discussion. The character could ask students to find evidence of Ichabod’s “outsider” status being viewed in a positive light, and evidence of it being viewed in a negative light. It could also be helpful for students to highlight language in the text that emphasizes Ichabod’s status as an “outsider.” The discussion may include the following: the author depicting Ichabod as scrawny, greedy, and all-devouring in contrast to the bounty of the county, the women admiring Ichabod for his education and “sophistication,” Ichabod’s greed and the way he curries favor with the influential people of the neighborhood, and the way he views Katrina as food. This discussion relates to the theme of Dutch Colonization and Heritage in New York.

Differentiation Suggestion: For students who finish preparing for the discussion early, it may be helpful to assign a brief research project about the early Dutch settlement of the Hudson Valley region and the culture of those settlers.