Response Essay
The story “ Young Goodman Brown” by author Nathanial Hawthrone begins, with a sense of agony or fear right before the departure of Faith’s husband Goodman Brown. It became a little suspenseful as the theme became more climaxed and mission just before Goodman proceeded into the forest. However, before entering the forest I felt sympathy for Goodman as the reader. It almost seemed as if Goodman just wanted to continue being holy and stay on his start and narrow path to Christ. As a reader, I could tell Goodman wanted to commit no sins, however, how common are promises made to our savers that this will be are last sin?
I congratulate the author, Nathanial Hawthorne for his genuine job of describing the forest. While reading the story, I actually got a visual idea of how the forest may look. While reading the tale I visualized a forest that is uncivilized, with darkness surrounding, and a personality of pain, struggle, and misery that would be unsociable abnormal. Just before Goodman enters the forest he meets a figure, which is very familiar to him, with the exception of a snaked staff. Right after, the author does a wonderful job foreshowing the story. “There may be devilish Indian behind every tree…. What if the devil himself should be at my very elbow” (Nathaniel, Hawthrone pg.326). With the Brown making this accusation it opened my mind for several ideas that might take place during the story. One being, is Goodman Brown going to confront evil face to face, or is evil in man going to be revealed? However, through a psychoanalytic approach, the reader easily realize the text spoke little truth while Goodman Brown encountered the forest. “Far more than this. It shall be yours to penetrate, in every bosom, the deep m...
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...conclusion that the events that took place in the forest actually happened to some degree. While Goody Brown was midway through the forest he saw his wife’s ribbons in the area. Usually, when a dream goes into the climax the dreamer wakes up. However, Goody Brown panicked and scream for his wife safety and nothing seemed to happen. “Faith! Shouted Goodman Brown, in a voice of agony and desperation…… The cry of grief, rage, and terror….” (Nathaniel, Hawthrone pg. 326) if this was a dream I think Goody Brown would have woke up. However, I cannot be completely sure due to the end of the story. Goody Brown, had a hard time deciding if the events that took place were reality or a dream, then break the camel back Goody Brown had passed away. “It was a dream of evil omen for young Goodman Brown…. became from the night of that fearful dream” (Nathaniel, Hawthrone pg. 334).
Irving and Hawthorne both explore the role the forest has on their Puritan communities and main characters. Irving’s story focuses the forest as a place where the devil is while cutting and burning trees. Irving’s depiction of the forest is very dark, and the forest itself is more a swamp than a traditional, lush forest. Irving describes it as, “thickly grown with great gloomy pines and hemlocks, some of them ninety feet tall, which made it dark at noon-day…(Irving, 178).” He also uses adjectives like “stagnant”, “smothering”, “rotting”, and “treacherous” to describe his story’s forest.
The biggest symbol in Young Goodman Brown is the idea of faith. Before he goes on his “errand,” he is talking to his wife, promising he will come back, but in actuality he is talking to his faith, as in religion. He subconsciously knows he is going against his faith on this errand, but will return. “My love and my Faith,” replied young Goodman Brown, “of all nights in the year, this one night must I tarry away from thee. My journey, as thou callest it, forth and back again…” When Brown says later in the story “I am losing my Faith”, he is not only about his wife, (which is shown through her pink ribbon in the tree), but more about his religion, which is flashing before his eyes. This errand was a test of Goodman Brown’s faith. When Brown hears people singing hymns in swears, it is a symbol of the corruption of the church. The name Goodman Brown I think is very ironic. Is he a good man after this errand?
Within “Young Goodman Brown”, the naive and malleable character’s intoxication of grief and dread lead him upon the revelation of the town’s hypocrisy. The fact of the initial impact upon Brown’s mentality and changed outlook of the town’s people revolves around the imagined forest meeting which leaves him bitter and spiteful. Satan’s true intent was to make him: “A stern, a sad, a darkly meditative, a distrustful, if not a desperate man, did he become, from the night of that fearful dream”. Whether the forestry scene did in fact occur is truly a matter of the readers insight, however the overall impact that the scene had upon the story’s primary thematic detail of hypocrisy does evolve around the secrets of which the townspeople in turn remain to hold to themselves. Hawthorne’s works primarily emphas...
In reading Nathaniel Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown, many issues come up that arouse interest in topics of knowledge, evil, reality, amongst other things. During my experience reading this text, how Goodman Brown's outlook changed based on information revealed to him that may not even be the "reality" of the people he knows was fascinating. That knowledge gained outside traditional and physical realms can affect the mind and the perception of the world is a fascinating subject. I also found this interesting in conjunction with some of the concepts of literary critics we reviewed this week, as the question of what literature is and what it should do becomes important in the discussion of what happens to Goodman Brown, but subsequently what happens to the reader of his story.
During Goodman Brown’s journey, he recognized Goody Cloyse, his catechism teacher, the preacher, and Deacon Gookin is going to the devil’s meeting. However, after seeing his church members at the devil’s meeting, Goodman says, “My Faith is gone! and There is no good on earth; and sin is but a name. Come devil! for to thee is this world given” (Hawthorne 27). “But, where is Faith?”, asked Goodman Brown (Hawthorne 29). As hope came into his heart, he trembled when he found the pink ribbon of his wife, Faith, in the forest. At that moment, Goodman Brown lost his faith in his family and church members. Goodman becomes unforgiving of others and believes only evil can be created from evil and there is nothing that anyone can do to change it. Here, Hawthorne demonstrates that a naive faith in our family, friends, and church member’s righteousness could lead to distrust. While, “Young Goodman Brown” lives a long life with Faith, he never loses his meanness toward humanity and the evil in the world, “for his dying hour was gloom” (Hawthorne
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.
He uses contrast as a means to portray the village as good and the forest as bad. This adds significance to the fact that Brown begins his journey in the town and proceeds then to the forest. The use of imagery captures the appearance of the forest as well as lending a sense of foreboding towards the impending evil. Hawthorne says of Brown, “He had taken a dreary road, darkened by the gloomiest trees of the forest…It was all as lonely as it could be” (2208). Immediately following this description, Brown speculates that he may not be ...
This is another setting where a plot of evil happens within the forest. Also, the forest is where the Black Man resides. The book keeps bringing up the Black Man, which can be looked at as ultimately the Devil. The Devil is most of the time considered on the of the atrocious evils in biblical terms, and the Black Man being in the forest aids in the theme of the nature of
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?" (Matthew 14:31) The manner in which Goodman Brown based his faith is a very good example of how not to base one’s faith. The strength of Goodman Browns faith was based on his wife’s faith, his trust in his neighbors, and his personal experiences. The strength of one’s faith is one of the most important aspects of any person, and it is especially important in the story Young Goodman Brown.
When he goes into the forest, he believes he is talking to the devil and looks much like his grandfather. The devil is feeding him bad thoughts about everyone he knows, even his own father and his wife, Faith. Next, I believe that Goodman Brown has had a rough past and in order for him to overcome this within himself, he must search for attention. This attention may not be needed from his wife or community members, I believe it is needed from him. He is feeling overwhelmed with obligations from his wife and peers, and he has no time to decide whether this type of life is right for him.
Goodman Brown’s wife, Faith, not only represents Goodman Brown’s wife but also his religious faith. This dual purpose of Faith only makes it harder for Goodman Brown to enter the forest and leave Faith behind (Haddock). On his way into the forest, Goodman Brown is unsure of his decision. To demonstrate this is when he states to himself, “What a wretch am I to leave her on such an errand! She talks of dreams, too. Methought as she spoke there was trouble in her face, as if a dream had warned her what work is to be done tonight. But no, no; ‘t would kill her to think it. Well, she’s a blessed angel on earth; and after this one night I’ll cling to her skirts and follow her to heaven.” (Young Goodman Brown). When Goodman Brown meets up with his so called leader in the forest he says, “Faith kept me back awhile…” (Young Goodman Brown). This quote shows the reader that Goodman couldn’t decide between the devil and faith. During the journey, he experiences many moments of uncertainty and sinfulness and wants to turn back, it was at these times, Faith was more important to him than the traveler (Haddock).
...to the woods transforms him from an overly trusting, naïve man into a cynical, and corrupted man. Before his life changing journey, goodman Brown is unknowing of all the sin that goes on around him. He believes that everyone he knows is perfect and without sin. This changes when he takes a trip through the forest. His eyes are opened in a sense, but maybe too wide. Goodman Brown becomes paranoid about everyone in the village including his wife, Faith. He also becomes corrupted and unable to focus on his religious activities that he has always done before. Fundamentally, faith is something that Brown gave away freely to anyone but, rather, should be given moderately.
The primary setting of “Young Goodman Brown” is the forest. The Puritans believed that the woods were evil because of the presence of Indians and witches, that they believed performed satanic rituals in the forest. Goodman Brown says to himself “There may be a devilish Indian behind every tree” (317). Goodman Brown also tells his fellow traveler “My father never went into the woods on such an errand, nor his father before him. We have been a race of hon...
In the beginning of the story Hawthorne uses the name Faith for Young Goodman Browns’ wife. Faith is a symbol of her husband’s strong faith in God. Young Goodman Browns’ own name is a symbol for the innocence of young, good men, and the journey represents the loss of their innocence. Faith urges him to stay and not journey into the forest, but Goodman Brown reassures her by saying “Say thy prayers, dear Faith, and go to bed at dusk, and no harm will come to thee”(cite) Goodman Brown believes his faith will help him overcome what the devil has to offer and while still maintaining his puritan faith. Puritans believe the forest to be inhabited by the devil and the woods in "Young Goodman Brown" are an obvious symbol of his journey into sin and darkness. Even Goodman Brown supports this idea when he says to himself as he is walking along, "There may be a devilish Indian behind every tree... What if the devil himself should be at my very elbow!" As Goodman Brown enters the forest he meets a traveler who is waiting there for ...
In Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story, Young Goodman Brown, Brown goes on a journey through the forest that drastically changes him. While we never know the real reason why Brown went to the forest, the experience in the forest caused him to become a bitter, sad, and lonely man who couldn't look at life the same after that night. There were many events that occurred in the forest that caused this change in him.