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An assignment on the character of young goodman brown
An assignment on the character of young goodman brown
Hawthorne's view on sin and evil in the scarlet letter
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Does Young Goodman Brown Achieve Goodness?
Nathaniel Hawthorne often emphasizes the ambiguous nature of sin, that good and evil do not exist in parallel with each other but at many times intersect with each other in his fiction. In "Young Goodman Brown," Hawthorne applies what he believes is the virtue of recognizing cosmic irony of taking into account the contradictions inherent in the human condition, to his portrayal of Young Goodman Brown.
According to Hawthorne's view, Browns failure to recognize the inherent sinfulness in himself as well as the rest of humanity, results, not in a rewarding life of reveling in righteousness, but in isolation and obscurity. Hawthorne juxtaposes the village of Salem, Massachusetts in
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He becomes suspicious of all the members in his community who he deems as completely sinful. As a result of his clinging to the doctrinal viewpoint he becomes "a distrustful, if not desperate man" (75). Brown's only rewards from his rejection of sin are isolation from his community and family. Even at his death Brown is remembered only as a stern man: "they carved no hopeful verse upon his tombstone; for his dying hour was gloom"(75). Hilda from _The Marble Faun_ also loses a sense of her own humanity by clinging too closely to the idea of the mutual exclusivity of virtue and sin. Hilda, in devoting herself to prescribed Puritanical values, forces herself to reject the friendship of her closest confidant, Miriam because she refuses to effectively deal with the ambiguity of sin in the guise of justified murder. Hilda's inability to deal with the ambiguity of sin is made evident in the chapter entitled "Beatrice" in which Hilda and Miriam comment upon the character of Hild'as copied portrait of Beatrice Cenci, a woman who murdered her own father. While Miriam's compassion causes her to remain unsure of Beatrice's sinfulness "it may have been because her nature was too feeble for the fate imposed upon her," Hilda characterizes Beatrice as a woman whose …show more content…
Hilda's cold detachment from the nature of human suffering as a result of sin almost makes her appear as an elevated angelic and inhuman presence that wields cold judgment upon the human beings below. Hilda's insistence to remain above the battle of the human being with the evil within all of human nature by living in her tower, to refuse to see the darkness below the "sunlight on the mountaintops," creates a distance between herself and the humanity around her, in a similar manner to Young Goodman Brown who isolates himself first from his community, then from his family, and finally, from his own humanity (462). Rather than acknowledging one's human nature, both Young Goodman Brown and Hilda internalize a highly Puritanical doctrine in which the lines between a life of goodness and a life of sinfulness are clearly drawn in parallel, and residing on the side of goodness means isolating oneself from the rest of humanity. As a result of their own self-exile, each of their fates lie in ignorance and
Smoking is a current issue, it has been there and it is here till now. It is the second major cause of death in the world; it kills nearly 6 million people each year. That is one person every 6 seconds. It’s responsible for the death of a one in ten adults and kills up to half of its users. Since it’s the leading preventable cause of all deaths, there is need to prevent it. Despite the negative side effects of smoking like; smoking kills, its exacerbates poverty, contributes to world hunger by diverting lands use to its production, its production damages the environment and reduces economic productivity, many people still smoke tobacco every day. It...
In "Young Goodman Brown," Nathaniel Hawthorne, through the use of deceptive imagery, creates a sense of uncertainty that illuminates the theme of man's inability to operate within a framework of moral absolutism. Within every man there is an innate difference between good and evil and Hawthorne's deliberate use of ambiguity mirrors this complexity of human nature. Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown, is misled by believing in the perfectibility of humanity and in the existence of moral absolutes. According to Nancy Bunge, Hawthorne naturally centers his story upon a Puritan protagonist to convey the "self-righteous" that he regards as the "antithesis of wisdom"(4). Consequently, Young Goodman Brown is unable to accept the indefinable vision of betrayal and evil that he encounters in the forest. The uncertainty of this vision, enhanced by Hawthorne's deliberate, yet effective, use of ambiguity, is also seen in the character of Faith, the shadows and darkness of the forest, and the undetectable boundaries that separate nightmarish dreams from reality.
The setting of Young Goodman Brown is in Salem, where the Salem witch craft trials were held in the 1600’s. This is the first symbol Hawthorne uses throughout the story as a test of who is innocent at this present time and who is not just as they did during the witch trials. Brown set off to the forest for an unknown ceremony leaving his new wife Faith behind. The name Faith symbolizes his personal faith in his own life and in his spirituality. Faith represents youth and innocence that was carried in his childhood. As we get further into detail the pink ribbons she wore in her hair were of some significance to the tale being conveyed. The pink ribbons exemplify the mix between red and white: red meaning evil and white innoce...
In many ways Hobbes and Locke’s conclusions on man and society create a polarizing argument when held in comparison to each other. For instance the two make wildly conflicting assertions concerning mankind’s capacity to foster and achieve organized society. Hobbes asserts humans cannot be trusted to govern themselves lest they fall into war and chaos; Locke, on the other hand concludes almost the exact opposite. Despite the polarity in each man’s train of thought, both philosophies share a common ancestor: a state defined by total equality where no human is superior or holds dominance over another. Although this is the base of both theories, it is the only similarity between the two. This commonality can be illustrated when tracing each argument deductively from their conclusions, the comparison reveals that the heaviest and most base opposition in each mans philosophy is his assertions regarding the nature of human beings.
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. “Young Goodman Brown”. Literature and the Writing Process. Elizabeth McMahan, Susan X Day, and Robert Funk. 6th ed. Upper Saddle River: Prentice, 2002.
In conclusion, Japan tried to isolate themselves, and China tried to compete with them, using their land, and excess of population. Documents one through ten were all about China, and documents eleven through sixteen was about Japan. Documents one, two, three, and seven was talking about if China was prepared for the European countries, and documents five, six, and nine talked about whether or not China compared to the European countries. Documents twelve, fourteen, and sixteen all talked about negative interactions between Japan and the European countries. So, as a total, I think that neither way from both China or Japan will work in the long run, but that they will recover from it.
...n a man is tremendous. Brown feels so overwhelmed by learning of the sins that alleged pious leaders commit, that he forgets his own sins. Lastly, Hawthorne’s description of Browns quest, epitomizes the amount of change one goes through when discovering the truth. It is seen that while at first he is able to withstand the temptations of the devil, the realization that others around him have fallen victim to the devil’s plots, just sends Brown over the edge. He comes out of his quest a more educated man, with a completely different mindset. He finds that all people are hypocrites of who they say they want to be, and cannot be trusted in anything they say. It gives a more Calvinist view that all people deserve hell, and cannot do anything to escape it. However, if Brown had not gone on his journey, how long would it have taken to escape his previously clouded mindset?
In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown”, Goodman Brown struggles with staying pure and not giving in to the devil. Hawthorne utilizes allegory and ambiguity to leave unanswered questions for the reader.
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "Young Goodman Brown." 1835. The Heath Anthology of American Literature. Ed. Paul Lauter et al. 2nd ed. Vol. 1. Lexington: Heath, 1944. 2129-38.
Trauma focused treatment is tricky to begin with, but when you add the additional difficulties presented by the foster ...
A hero is a person who is admired because of who they are. They do not have to possess physical strength and power. The strength and power of a hero is in the will to endure, to overcome to the point they inspire and encourage. They don't have to be active. A passive hero speaks abundance when it comes to the essence of a hero. A hero does not have to be famous nor possess abundance of money. A hero makes due with what they have and their status comes by way of being a leader and motivating others to make a positive change in life. A hero has many faces, attributes, and abundance of inspiration.
Hawthorn, Nathaniel. "Young Goodman Brown" The Norton Anthology of American Literature. Vol. I. Shorter Seventh Edition. Ed. Nina Baym. New York: W.W. Norton and Co., 2008. 620-629. Print.
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary a hero is an individual who is admired for great bravery or fine qualities. To me a hero is so much more than a person who shows great bravery. When I think of a hero many fine qualities come to mind; intelligence, courage, altruism, compassion and great bravery.
Webster’s New World dictionary gives one definition of a hero as “the central figure in any important event or period, honored for outstanding qualities.” Anyone you ask can name someone they view as their hero (from a parent, sports figure, fictional superhero, to a movie star) but very few people would actually define the word hero the same. A good general definition of a hero is a person who is idealized or admired for outstanding achievements, courage, bravery, noble qualities, and unselfish acts for others (Goins, 2012).
Ultimately, a hero does many sacrifices. They do sacrifices for many people, actually. A hero just does not have one goal, but they can have any goals that they want to achieve. Some heroes do not do the good. They can be bad at first, but soon make their own way to turn good. A hero can not always do whatever the people please, but they can give it a try. The worse things that they can do are not to care or not even try, at all. Some traits of a hero are different than others, but they all mean the same thing. You can say that a hero is basically your inspiration, and the light in your life to keep moving on.