Christmas and the Father of American Literature

Send us Fan MailWhat is a way of remember the name Washington Irving (and not confusing him with other names!)Where do we get the legend of Santa Claus in America?What was Christmas like during medieval England?How was Christmas celebrated in America before the 1800’s?What is the first section of Old Christmas about in tone?00:10  Introduction01:15 Remembering Poe and other writers02:52  Remembering Irving06:49 Festive (and non-festive) Christmas10:15 Irving and Santa Claus12:00 Christmas (first section of Old Christmas)21:02 Future episodes26:02 Sources Sources for this episode include “The Sketchbook of Geoffrey Crayon” by Washington Irving, Complete Fictional Works of Washington Irving by Washington Irving, Washington Irving: The Definitive Biography of America’s First Bestselling Author by Brian Jay Jones, The Literary Adventures of Washington Irving by Cheryl Harness, Original Knickerbocker: The Life of Washington Irving by Andrew Burstein, Edgar Allan Poe: A Critical Biography by Arthur Hobson Quinn, The Poe Log: A Documentary Life of Edgar Allan Poe by Dwight Thomas and David K. Jackson, and The Reason for the Darkness of the Night. by John Tresch.Support the showThank you for experiencing Celebrate Creativity.