Anti Heros
Let's face it, in the American society we're only used to one thing. Happy endings. No matter how bad things seem to get, nor how impossible it might seem, we will always get our happy ending. However, apon the fortune of hearing this claim, writers now like to smash our American ideology, creating scences where there is no happy ending. Why? Because they love the satisfaction it gives them.
Take the commonly know show Family Guy for example. The Fox Broadcasting Company insted on killing Brian, a main character in the show. However, our society would not allow it. We could now allow for them to kill a main character on a well know show. Not that way. With all the feed back from fans, The Fox Broadcasting Company gave in, and brought Brian back into the Family Guy life, avoiding the wrath of the American people. Even then, we got our happy ending. But how is it possible to keep things intresting if we know that in the end, everything will turn out well for our heros? Well that's where Anti-Heros come into play.
Anti-Heros, are not typical heros as you can guess from their name. They're heros with flaws. Refering back to Family Guy, Peter Griffan would be an Anti-Hero. Despite his attempt to do good, he often makes the situation worse for himself and those around him. Ichabod Crane also shares the graceful tittle of Anti-Hero.
But Here's the thing: with "Sleepy Hollow," Irving is making fun of Gothic, Romantic, and Romance literature all in one fell swoop. Irving is doing all he can to make us see that Ichabod is not a noble knight or Superman. He's not going to be saving any princesses—heck, he's too afraid of the dragon. And this guy isn't the devil-may-care Byronic anti-hero, like Batman. No, Ichabod is the uncool kind of anti-hero.
Although the relation between the Ichabod Crane, and Peter Griffan is very distinct, they both employ an amazing aspect to their corresponding stories. If we were to switch them with a cliche hero, that's perfect in ALL aspects, how intresting would the story be? How could you keep yourself entertained knowing exactly what the character will do, and how his actions will be affect the rest of the story? Anti-Heros are great to keep our American intrests in check, without disrupting our happy ending.
