The Legend of Sleepy Hollow
by Washington Irving

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow: Foreshadowing 1 key example

Definition of Foreshadowing

Foreshadowing is a literary device in which authors hint at plot developments that don't actually occur until later in the story. Foreshadowing can be achieved directly or indirectly, by making... read full definition
Foreshadowing is a literary device in which authors hint at plot developments that don't actually occur until later in the story. Foreshadowing can be achieved... read full definition
Foreshadowing is a literary device in which authors hint at plot developments that don't actually occur until later in the... read full definition
Main Story
Explanation and Analysis—Legendary Superstition:

Irving foreshadows Ichabod’s encounter with the Headless Horseman by introducing the Horseman’s story early on. Irving describes the apparition and the effect he has on the populace:

The dominant spirit, however, that haunts this enchanted region and seems to be commander-in-chief of all the powers of the air is the apparition of a figure on horseback without a head. It is said by some to be the ghost of a Hessian trooper […] Such is the general purport of this legendary superstition, which has furnished materials for many a wild story in that region of shadows.