There is one image in "Rip Van Winkle" that is unchanged. What is it? And what is the meaning of the image?

“Rip Van Winkle” is the story of a henpecked husband who mysteriously falls asleep for twenty years. When he awakes, everything in the village is seemingly different. The only things that remain the same are the Catskill Mountains (called the “Kaatskill Mountains” in the text), revealing the significance of the mystical setting and indicating that the mountains have a profound influence over the events of the plot.
The story opens with an explanation of the setting. The opening line states, “Whoever has made a voyage up the Hudson must remember the Kaatskill mountains” (Irving). This is followed by an in-depth description of the “magical hues and shapes of these mountains” (Irving). The beginning of the story emphasizes the setting, calling it memorable and magical and effectively foreshadowing the strange events to come.
Later, after another disagreement with his wife, Rip escapes to the mountains. On his journey, he has “unconsciously scrambled to one of the highest parts of the Kaatskill mountains” (Irving). It is at this place that Rip meets the strange group of men and drinks from their flagon. He then falls asleep for twenty years. It is the enchanting backdrop of the Catskill Mountains that helps the reader suspend disbelief and instead see the possibility of the supernatural properties found in the mountains.
When Rip awakes, the village is completely altered, and he is very confused. Soon, however, he looks up, and “there stood the Kaatskill mountains—there ran the silver Hudson at a distance—there was every hill and dale precisely as it had always been” (Irving). It is only because of the Catskill Mountains that Rip can unquestionably recognize his home village and return to his life there.
Throughout the story, the Catskill Mountains are an important element, greatly affecting characterization and plot development. It is through the magical mountain range that Rip escapes from his miserable life, skips twenty years, and, in the end, regains a happy existence near the enduring Catskill Mountains.

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