Nostalgia and the Past

Where it surfaces

• The Author’s Account of Himself

  The narrator longs to wander over scenes of renowned achievement and lose himself among the shadowy grandeurs of the past.

• Rip Van Winkle

  Rip's return highlights the disorienting passage of time and the loss of familiar faces and customs.

• The Boar’s Head Tavern, Eastcheap

  Crayon's quest is driven by a longing for the vanished world of Shakespeare's tavern and the merry roisterers of old Eastcheap.

• Rural Funerals

  The chapter laments the loss of poetic funeral customs in modern society and cherishes the lingering traditions of the olden time.

• Westminster Abbey

  The chapter is steeped in a melancholic longing for former ages, as Crayon contrasts the grandeur of the past with the inevitable ruin of time.

• Christmas

  The narrator fondly recalls old Christmas customs and contrasts them with modern times, expressing regret at their fading.

• Christmas Eve

  Frank Bracebridge's fond memories of childhood, the squire's devotion to old customs, and the preservation of ancient architecture and traditions.

• Christmas Day

  Mr. Bracebridge laments the loss of old English games and customs, and the narrator reflects on the fading traditions of hospitality and community celebration.

• The Christmas Dinner

  The squire's attachment to old customs and his reminiscence of Oxford college days highlight a longing for bygone times.

• Little Britain

  Little Britain is portrayed as a fragment of London's better days, preserving antiquated folks, fashions, and holiday customs of yore.

• The Legend of Sleepy Hollow

  The narrator fondly recalls his youthful days in Sleepy Hollow, and the story itself is framed as a nostalgic tale from a bygone era.