Scan barcode
A review by brianlokker
Old Christmas by Washington Irving, Randolph Caldecott
4.0
Old Christmas is a collection of five short stories that Washington Irving originally published in January 1820 as the fifth American installment of The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. All are told from Crayon’s first-person perspective as a traveler in England.
The first piece, “Christmas,” is an introductory essay in which Crayon reflects on the meaning of Christmas and the celebration of the holiday. “Amidst the general call to happiness, the bustle of the spirits, and stir of the affections, which prevail at this period, what bosom can remain insensible? It is, indeed, the season of regenerated feeling—the season for kindling, not merely the fire of hospitality in the hall, but the genial flame of charity in the heart.” He is unabashed in his love for Christmas, especially the old English Christmas traditions and customs that he saw were, sadly, fading away.
In the other four stories in the collection, Crayon illustrates his observations about English Christmas festivities with anecdotes of a Christmas that he spent in the English countryside. While traveling in a coach, he meets his friend Frank Bracebridge, who invites him to spend Christmas with his family at their country manor, Bracebridge Hall. The patriarch of the family, old Squire Bracebridge, is careful to preserve his ancestral estate in its original state. And when it comes to Christmas, he insists that his family and friends celebrate it in the authentic old English style.
Crayon participates in the festivities and enjoys them, but he also describes them with the keen observational eye of the experienced traveler and social chronicler. Some aspects of the goings-on amuse him. Looking around the table at dinner, for example, he notes that by comparing the diners with the family portraits on the walls, he could have “traced an old family nose … handed down from generation to generation.” But he’s a polite guest: “There were several dishes quaintly decorated, and which had evidently something traditionary in their embellishments; but about which, as I did not like to appear over-curious, I asked no questions.” In describing the choir at church, he says that “everything went on lamely and irregularly until they came to a chorus beginning ‘Now let us sing with one accord,’ which seemed to be a signal for parting company: all became discord and confusion.”
Crayon admires the squire’s kindness and benevolence, but he pokes some fun at his belief in the power of the Christmas traditions to pacify the peasants. “‘Our old games and local customs,’ said he, ‘had a great effect in making the peasant fond of his home, and the promotion of them by the gentry made him fond of his lord.’” Crayon doesn’t say so explicitly, but it’s clear that as an American, he finds this noblesse oblige attitude a bit condescending—and probably delusional.
This short book (an excerpt really, as described above) helped ease me into the Christmas spirit. The descriptions of the old English Christmas traditions were quite interesting and educational. And Irving’s writing is lively and amusing. I enjoyed the book, and if you’re looking for a quick holiday read, I’d recommend it.
The first piece, “Christmas,” is an introductory essay in which Crayon reflects on the meaning of Christmas and the celebration of the holiday. “Amidst the general call to happiness, the bustle of the spirits, and stir of the affections, which prevail at this period, what bosom can remain insensible? It is, indeed, the season of regenerated feeling—the season for kindling, not merely the fire of hospitality in the hall, but the genial flame of charity in the heart.” He is unabashed in his love for Christmas, especially the old English Christmas traditions and customs that he saw were, sadly, fading away.
In the other four stories in the collection, Crayon illustrates his observations about English Christmas festivities with anecdotes of a Christmas that he spent in the English countryside. While traveling in a coach, he meets his friend Frank Bracebridge, who invites him to spend Christmas with his family at their country manor, Bracebridge Hall. The patriarch of the family, old Squire Bracebridge, is careful to preserve his ancestral estate in its original state. And when it comes to Christmas, he insists that his family and friends celebrate it in the authentic old English style.
Crayon participates in the festivities and enjoys them, but he also describes them with the keen observational eye of the experienced traveler and social chronicler. Some aspects of the goings-on amuse him. Looking around the table at dinner, for example, he notes that by comparing the diners with the family portraits on the walls, he could have “traced an old family nose … handed down from generation to generation.” But he’s a polite guest: “There were several dishes quaintly decorated, and which had evidently something traditionary in their embellishments; but about which, as I did not like to appear over-curious, I asked no questions.” In describing the choir at church, he says that “everything went on lamely and irregularly until they came to a chorus beginning ‘Now let us sing with one accord,’ which seemed to be a signal for parting company: all became discord and confusion.”
Crayon admires the squire’s kindness and benevolence, but he pokes some fun at his belief in the power of the Christmas traditions to pacify the peasants. “‘Our old games and local customs,’ said he, ‘had a great effect in making the peasant fond of his home, and the promotion of them by the gentry made him fond of his lord.’” Crayon doesn’t say so explicitly, but it’s clear that as an American, he finds this noblesse oblige attitude a bit condescending—and probably delusional.
This short book (an excerpt really, as described above) helped ease me into the Christmas spirit. The descriptions of the old English Christmas traditions were quite interesting and educational. And Irving’s writing is lively and amusing. I enjoyed the book, and if you’re looking for a quick holiday read, I’d recommend it.