Goodman Brown
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In Young Goodman Brown, the main character, Goodman Brown has a bout with his own faith. He ends up losing this battle because of the wickedness in everyone elses hearts. He begins by wanting to be the evil one, then progresses to be the faithful one as the night in the woods goes on. His name has a lot to do with the character in the story. The “Young” in his name is to symbolize innocence, and “GOODMAN” is pretty self-explanatory. He goes off in to the woods and comes with a lost faith in everyone else in the town.
Goodman Brown decides he wants to go off into the woods for one last night of evilness before married life really kicked in. He says, “What a wretch am I, to leave her on such an errand!ÐWell; shes a blessed angel on earth; and after this one night, Ill cling to her skirts and follow her to heaven.” Goodmans father and grandfather were devout Christians. They knew that the evils of the real world hid in the forest, as did Goodman. But he still went in! He let this man with the serpent staff keep him from turning around, and getting out of the woods. On page 274 the evil man says, “We are but a little way in the forest, yet.” Goodman responds, “Too far, too far,” but didnt realize he was still walking farther into the woods! He says he has walked too far into the woods, but is still going! He is being overtaken by the evilness of the woods.
Just when I thought he was turned to the evil side, Goodman sees his wifes hair-ties. This is where he starts to turn back to the good side of life. On page 277, Goodman says, “Come witch, come wizard, come Indian powwow, come devil himself! and here comes Goodman Brown. You may as well fear him as he fear you!” This is where Goodman turns back to the good side, when he finds out the devil is consuming his Faith. When Goodman and Faith are on the evil altar, Goodman says, “Faith! Faith! Look up to Heaven, and resist the Wicked One!” Obviously Faith was evil-hearted because she was at this gathering with the devil. She went there to be inducted into the group and Goodman tried to stop her. This wasnt a dream he was having because on page 280 it says, “while a hanging twig, that had been all on fire.” There was a twig on fire and it brushed against his cheek.
Faith is an appropriate name for Goodmans wife. It symbolizes the loss of Goodmans faith in everyone in the town. He loses Faith, his wife, to the evil side. At the end of the story it says he grows and has an uneventful, drab life. I think the point Goodman is trying to make is that everyone has an evil side in them, even if they say they believe in Christ.
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“Revealing the Mistakes of Puritanism”
Proverbs 10:28 implies the idea of the universality of sin in saying “The prospect of the righteous is joy, but the hopes of the wicked come to nothing.” In “Young Goodman Brown”, Nathaniel Hawthorne illustrates this through Browns actions. When Brown lives a righteous life with good faith, his thoughts remain pure and happy. He has a wonderful wife, and he enjoys the presence of everyone. As he takes his walk into the forest and into evil ways, his hopes and faith disappear. He no longer loves his wife in the same way, and he despises everyone whom people consider were holy. When he loses his faith, he loses his happiness. To regain his happiness, Brown must find his righteousness again. Puritans believe there is no hope for a sinner. Hawthorne uses a variety of writing techniques to condemn the rigidity of Puritanism.
For example, Hawthorne uses a wide variety of diction to create a mystical and hopeless mood. As Brown walks into the “dreary” forest, an “uncertain” feeling comes over him as he looks ahead to the “gloom” awaiting him. The forest is very dark and dreary and these words help create the eerie mood. These words create an insecure and unsure feeling in the readers
mind. The reader feels as if he stands right there on the outskirts of the forest along with Brown.
That type of feeling scares even the bravest of men. Hawthorne also describes the events taking
place in the forest as “devilish,” “horrid,” and “evil.” Evil completely surrounds Brown in the
forest. It puts a thought in him which drives him crazy. These words give a very insecure
feeling to the reader. No one likes the feeling of evil, which Hawthorne portrays all throughout
the story. The evil feeling adds to the dreary mood, and it also gives a hopeless feeling to the
reader. Nothing good comes out of evil, and these words tell the reader that something horrible
might happen. He then describes Brown as “stern,” or “sad,” or even a “desperate man,” who
needs help. Browns experiences horrify him. They eventually change him to a stern and sad
man. He can never see his friends and loved ones the same. When you think of hopelessness,
disparity often comes to mind. Brown feels desperate and hopeless about his future. He doesnt
know what to do about this nightmare. The thought of losing his wonderful past frightens him.
Also, symbolism plays a large role in promoting the idea of universal capacity for sin. For instance, the name alone of Young Goodman Brown stands for every Puritan man. He, like all others, must eventually face sin. Browns wife Faith also represents belief in Calvinism. When his passion and love for his wife rage like a fire, his faith rages as well. Both his faith and love change throughout the story. Faiths pink ribbons stand for the attractive guarantee of salvation. The red for sin, and the white for purity. When these ribbons fall to the ground, his faith has essentially hit rock bottom. Also, the traveler that Brown meets reflects the devil. In earlier years he walks with both Browns parents and grandparents. His serpentine staff suggests evil. As the two walk down the path into the forest, more symbolism occurs. The path represents the way of life. Brown can either turn around and go back the right way towards God, or he can stay with the traveler and walk into the forest of evil. The forest implies