More Washington Irving

The Pocket University selection for January 2nd is an essay by Washington Irving called "Of The Dutch Paradise", describing a town called Broek, near Amsterdam.

While visiting Amsterdam, Holland, Irving decides to visit a village a short distance away called Broek, which is evidently thought by some to be paradise on earth.  Irving describes the village as immaculately clean, and talks about the polished stones, the scrubbed sidewalks, the freshly painted houses, even the clean dairy cows.  But he does not talk about, or even to, any actual village residents, just hears of them from his guide.  No vehicles or horses are allowed in the village, so the tour is on foot.

The essay strikes me as satirical, though I may be misunderstanding Irving's intent.

I feel ambivalent about the selection.  It does not speak to me particularly.  In the Pocket University, it is in volume 8, "Essays".  Originally published in the Crayon Papers, under the pseudonym Geoffrey Crayon, somewhere in the 1818-1820 time frame, I wonder if the essay has greater meaning in the context of whatever is around it in the original work.

Broek is a real town, is actually a short distance from Amsterdam, and is apparently known in the 17th and 18th centuries for its cleanliness and tidiness, just as Irving describes.  The residents were evidently quite prosperous.  Presumably before Irving's visit, the town was a shipping center. During Irving's visit the town was famed for dairy cows and cheese.

Guided tours are available today, on various internet sites.

I have to admit, I did not get much value from this reading. Perhaps I missed something.

Comments are welcome, though moderated.