As promised, here is part two of our interview with Brian Jay Jones, author of An American Original, an Irving biography. Brian is coming to Sunnyside on Saturday as part of Historic Hudson Valley's Legend Daytime program. He'll be speaking at 11:30 and 2.
HVBlogger: how did your interest in Washington Irving begin?
Brian Jay Jones: I got into Washington Irving because I'm a Christmas junkie. About ten years ago, I was reading Stephen Nissenbaum's The Battle for Christmas, a terrific book all about the origins of American Christmas traditions.
HVBlogger: I love that book!
Brian Jay Jones: Yes yes yes! Well, as you know, in that book, Nissenbaum says that many of the things we assume are old Christmas traditions-Yule logs, sleigh rides, wassail bowls-were actually never old traditions; we just think they are because Washington Irving made them up and told us they were. Well...I had never heard that before, so I found Irving's Christmas stories-which are buried in plain sight right in the middle of The Sketch Book-and read them. I loved them-and what really surprised me was how modern Irving's voice was, and how funny he could be. I read the rest of The Sketch Book-which I will blushingly admit to having never read-and loved it as well. I wanted to find out more about Irving . . . and immediately hit a dead end. Not only were no biographies in print, but the last one had been written in 1935-and that particular bio was written by a Yale professor who clearly didn't like Irving very much.
HVBlogger: We call that the Biography of Which We Do Not Speak
Brian Jay Jones: So, at that point, I began reading everything I could about, and by, Irving, with the intent of writing a modern biography-more of a character study, of sorts, and one that truly appreciated all that he accomplished. He really was an extraordinary guy.
HVBlogger: So why does Irving matter to 21st-century Americans?
Brian Jay Jones: He matters because he made our literature matter. Before Irving, no one took Americans very seriously as writers. Similar to the debate Jefferson was having with Europeans who claimed that our wildlife was smaller, and therefore inferior, to their European counterparts, so too did Europeans regard our literature as smaller and inferior. Irving proved to them not only that Americans could write, but that we could make our own literature, thank you very much. Irving also led the way in determining how American writers could secure and protect their copyrights, as well as how to promote and market a book. So, he's not only the Father of American Letters, he's pretty much the Father of the Modern Book Industry.
HVBlogger: Not to mention that whole inventing Christmas traditions thing...
Brian Jay Jones: Absolutely. If you love holidays like Halloween or Christmas, you can thank Irving for that, too. Irving all but invented the trappings of good autumn ghost stories, and he almost single-handedly rescued Christmas from oblivion.
HVBlogger: What will you be talking about at Sunnyside on the 17th?
Brian Jay Jones: I want to have a bit of fun and talk about Irving and Sunnyside as a kind of 19th century Elvis and Graceland. One of the things that makes Irving really cool is that he was really famous-with lots of famous friends-and Sunnyside was considered one of the great places in the United States. I mean, it was on postcards and sheet music, one of the most recognized buildings around. So, I want to talk about Irving's life as a celebrity. You'll hear all sorts of famous names. It'll be fun. Trust me.
HVBlogger: Color me convinced! Are you a Halloween fan in general
When can you enjoy tours and cultural activities at four of Westchester's historic sites, all for free? For just one day, doors at Historic Hudson Valley will open with FREE admission to select sites with special activities to boot. Free Arts Day is this Sunday, December 6, and will take place at Washington Irving's Sunnyside, Philipsburg Manor, Union Church, and Van Cortlandt Manor (full listings below), as well as other cultural attractions throughout Westchester.