Christmas Day

Irving, Washington, 1783-1859Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

4.0

Word count: 26K words
Chapters: 3

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Christmas Day by Washington IrvingAuthor: Irving, Washington, 1783-1859,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Jun 17, 2016

Editor's review

Washington Irving was a major figure in early American literature, known for his essays, travel writing, and legendary tales. His elegant, unhurried style bears clear marks of 18th- and 19th-century British and American prose. Christmas Day comes from his tradition of Christmas writing; it is short and focuses on atmosphere, customs, and feeling rather than plot. It serves as an accessible introduction to how the modern literary imagination of Christmas took shape, and it lets readers feel the rhythm and rhetoric of old-style prose. Since it is a free Project Gutenberg ebook, readers can approach the original text at little cost. Read slowly and notice how the author builds festive atmosphere through scene, food, conversation, and etiquette; if you are unfamiliar with classical English prose, first grasp the gist of each paragraph, then return to the details. It is more a cultural essay to savor than a story to finish in one sitting.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in Christmas culture and traditional customs
Readers who enjoy 19th-century British and American prose style
Learners who want short English materials for close reading practice
Enthusiasts studying Irving's work and the origins of Christmas literature

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking strong plot and fast-paced narrative
Those who need a modern plain-language translation or extensive notes
Beginners with little patience for classical prose syntax

Reading tips

Read it in two or three sittings, focusing each time on one scene or custom.
Read several paragraphs aloud to feel the rhythm and tone of old-style prose.
After reading, list the holiday customs mentioned and make cultural comparison notes.
Read alongside other Christmas short stories to observe differences in technique.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this work a novel or an essay?

From the materials, it belongs to Irving's Christmas writing and is closer to an essay with narrative and descriptive touches, focusing on holiday atmosphere and customs rather than complex plot.

Is the original English hard to read?

Irving's prose syntax is somewhat classical, with many long sentences, so it poses some difficulty for readers unused to 19th-century English. It is advisable to first grasp the gist of each paragraph, then review details, or work through it paragraph by paragraph with a dictionary.

Is it suitable for reading during Christmas?

Very suitable. It is short and atmospheric; you can read it in several sittings around the holiday as light reading to experience traditional Christmas writing, and it is also easy to compare with contemporary holiday texts.

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About the author

Irving, Washington, 1783-1859 Author

Washington Irving (1783–1859) was an important early American author known for his essays, stories, and historical biographies. The library holds 32 of his works, including The Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, The Alhambra, Old Christmas, and The Life and Voyages of Christopher Columbus. His writing often blends travel observations, folk legend, and historical narrative, with a leisurely, elegant style rich in nostalgia and humor, and has had a lasting influence on American literature and the essay tradition. It should be noted that public information on details of his life, such as his nationality and exact dates, is limited; this introduction is based only on the works recorded in the library.