2。 The sources of Washington Irving’s escapism

When giving a look at Washington Irving’s literary works, without any difficulty we can find his escapism and which, as far as I’m concerned, can be traced back to the social environment and his family background。

2。1 The social sources

Throughout the history, escape was very popular on the land of America, which could be traced back to the discovery of the New World。 Since then, American continent became the destination for millions of immigrants。 Between 1620 and 1635, England held the major source of escapers in the New World。 After 1680, more and more Europeans fled their homelands to North America, mainly to avoid exploitation and oppression。 (Huang，2011:30)来*自-优=尔,论:文+网www.youerw.com

On April 3, 1783, Washington Irving was born, the same week city residents learned of the British ceasefire that ended the American Revolution。 With the victory of the American Revolution, America was admitted as an independent country by the British。 After the war, American society also experienced a great many changes。 

In 1783, New York was in a rather turbulent situation。 It had just been destroyed by war during the revolution: trade did not exist except in the clumsy boats that brought vegetables from Jersey and the islands。 The outbreak of the Independence War devastated the American economy; the disruption of long-existing trade pattern with England sent American commerce into depression。 Troublesome issues such as inflation, taxation and debt deepened the conflicts between citizens。 More than that, the living condition in New York made residents care-laden。 (Huang，2011:20)

In 1812, the breakout of the war in 1812 allowed the situation of New York no optimism。 The period before and after the Independence War witnessed one of the mass escape in New York history。 (黄浩平，2011:21)During the war, people at that time were living in an unstable condition, which forced them to escape frequently。