The personae that Irving creates is a that of a story teller reminiscing on the past of early America. In this personae, he creates story telling characters that take on his voice of reminiscence. When compared to Benjamin Franklin, he is more of a fairy tale storyteller while Ben is more of a non-fiction American storyteller. Ben also takes on a personae to describe his hardship in reaching is goal as the first American success story; his is that of an idealistic freedom seeker of class and monetary status in the midst of a new born country. Irving's is lamenting the future of a new untamed country and remembering the old stable country. This theme outwardly plays out in the story of Rip Van Winkle. Irving's Sleepy Hollow reminisces on an age of fairy tale like male heros and the fairy tales that are an integrate part of the old country. When Irving and Franklin's work are compared, there is a distinct difference: Irving is lamenting the new and Franklin is lamenting the old.
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