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Interpretation of young goodman brown
Interpretation of young goodman brown
Interpretation of young goodman brown
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Finally, the bitter end of Young Goodman Brown and William Wilson illustrates that the inability to properly handle duality results in self-destruction. Brown ponders whether or not Faith, his wife and assumed moral guide, is dual in nature and has converted to the dark side. Brown’s experience in the forest convinces him that Faith is human after all and thus has duality. This shatters his fantasy that Faith is “a blessed angel on earth” (367). This is the moment in which Brown does not know who or what is his version of real and sincere. He therefore succumbs to questioning the reliability of humanity; consequently, he does not know who to trust and is suspicious of everyone. In turn, Brown will never be able to return to his old way of
life; thus, he must relearn how to live, or adapt, amidst a world he previously thought he knew so well. In essence, Brown sees human nature as flawed because of the contradictions that come with duality and therefore, the world is a place of pretenders. This revelation shatters his world, causing him to question those he can really trust at face value. Brown feels inescapably alone and loses his will to interact positively with his fellow community members. He is constantly paranoid by the actions and morality of others and now struggles with self-doubt and suspicion. The reality is that not everyone was purely Christian like Brown believed them to be, “He loses the ability either to trust the evidence of his senses or to dismiss it completely, for he is unable to decide between the evidence of sanctity he sees in the village by day and evidence of depravity that he sees in the forest at night” (398). Brown has come to accept the fact that individuals are not necessarily who they present themselves to be since they often share dual natures which are concealed in the depths of their hearts. Although Brown makes this realization, he exiles himself from his community members as he deals with his own conflicted notions and fallen nature. He ends up cynical and alone by his own decision to deny duality.
First, we will start with Goodman Brown. He is the main character in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story titled “Young Goodman Brown”. “Hawthorne could not escape the influence of Puritan society” (McCabe). I think that Hawthorne’s own past is and complications are reveled in his story about Goodman Brown. I believe that Goodman Brown has had a rough past and is trying to reach beyond his past in order to reach heaven. Goodman has some major problems with his wife, Faith, and everyone else in his community. I think that he is seeing everyone as perfect people, but he is having impure thoughts about himself and his past. In order to deal with these problems within himself, he is making up that everyone has this awful bad side. When he goes into the forest, he believes he is talking to the devil with 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 that he has no time to decide whether this type of life is right for him. So, in search for the answer to his questions about life, he turns to the devil and takes his...
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.
Unfortunately, Goodman Brown truly has lost his faith. Though his wife appears unchanged and wishes to welcome him with open, loving arms Brown rejects her. The reader is left slightly confused as to why, but perhaps Brown has given up hope that good can win over the enormous amount of sin or evil out there. He is unable to accept Faith now that he is forced to see her in her unclean or imperfect state. Brown can no longer see the good for the evil surrounding him, and has lost all hope. Although Brown tried to resist the devil, in the end he failed in his journey of exploring evil and returning to the side of good.
In Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story "Young Goodman Brown,” the author uses danger and mystery to represent the struggle of good versus evil. Young Goodman Brown journeys into the night and comes to realize an unforgiving truth. Everyone is in danger of abandoning their faith or is inherently evil. Nathaniel Hawthorne has filled this story symbolism, after reading this story the reader may have questions about Young Goodman Browns’ determination to journey towards his evil purpose. Nathaniel Hawthorne implies strong faith can endure but when that faith is destroyed, what view does a person have towards mankind? Let us take a look at Nathaniel Hawthorne’s use of significant symbols throughout “Young Goodman Brown.”
Faith can be defined, as a firm belief in something for which there is no proof. "Young Goodman Brown" is about a man who leaves his wife, Faith, at home alone for a night while he takes a walk down the road of temptation with the devil. Along the road he sees many people that he would never expect to see on this road, his wife included. He returns to his life in Salem a changed man. In "Young Goodman Brown" Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolism and characterization to imply that when individuals lose their faith in the goodness of mankind, they may begin to imagine that their peers have yielded to temptation.
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.
Goodman Brown does not emerge from the forest tougher or braver but hateful and spiteful because he becomes enlightened to the ways of world. He comes to terms with the reality tha...
Goodman Brown, a young man who was only married for three months, left his home and his wife, Faith, to go into the forest and spend the night on some mission that he will not explain. Even though Faith has strong feelings about his journey and begs him not to leave, Brown has made his decision and leaves everything behind. Faith is appropriately named, because she represents Browns faith and what he believes in. The name is genuine, religious and hopeful. It represents the good side of Brown and his hope for life. He feels bad for leaving her because he knows what he is about to do is evil and goes against his faith. Brown swears that after this night he will be good and not do anything evil again and vow his life to Faith. Brown is upset about leaving her because he knows that what he is about to do in the forest is evil and goes against his Faith. Hawthorne describes Browns journey as "crossing the threshold", meaning that he is going from one part of his life to another, he is leaving the genuine good side to go to the bad evil side.
In Young Goodman Brown there is a significant loss of faith while the Bible is about gaining faith. Throughout the story Goodman Brown realizes that all the people around him carry a great amount of evil on their shoulders. Therefore, Goodman Brown lets the world of the evil overcome him because he feels like there is no good left. “There is no good on earth, and sin is but a name. Come, devil! For to thee is this world given” (para.50). Eventually he realizes that he too should embrace the devil now that he knows everyone else and everyone close to him are not what they seem. After embracing the devil, Goodman Brown’s life changes for the worst; “A stern, a sad, a darkly meditative, a distrustful, if not a desperate man did he become. . . for his dying hour was gloom” (para. 72). These traits are what make up Goodman Brown’s character after he goes through this experience of meeting with the devil. His life becomes sorrowful and filled with loneliness once he states; “My Faith is gone” (Para. 50). In the story, this is the point when Goodman Brown realizes that there is no hope left in the world, so why should he have faith is no one else has It. After his faith is diminished, his wife--Faith-- seems to change into a completely different person, she is no longer the “innocent” girl “wearing pink ribbons”. And with that, his internal faith and physical Faith
It is surprising, in a way, to discover how few of the many critics who have discussed "Young Goodman Brown'' agree on any aspect of the work except that it is an excellent short story. D. M. McKeithan says that its theme is "sin and its blighting effects." Richard H. Fogle observes, "Hawthorne the artist refuses to limit himself to a single and doctrinaire conclusion, proceeding instead by indirection,'' implying, presumably, that it is inartistic to say something which can be clearly understood by the readers. Gordon and Tate assert, "Hawthorne is dealing with his favorite theme: the unhappiness which the human heart suffers as a result of its innate depravity." Austin Warren says, ''His point is the devastating effect of moral scepticism." Almost all critics agree, however, that Young Goodman Brown lost his faith. Their conclusions are based, perhaps, upon the statement, "My Faith is gone!" made by Brown when he recognizes his wife's voice and ribbon. I should like to examine the story once more to show that Young Goodman Brown did not lose his faith at all. In fact, not only did he retain his faith, but during his horrible experience he actually discovered the full and frightening significance of his faith.
At the beginning of his journey, Goodman Brown’s will and pride were both embedded in the belief that he was a pious man. Goodman’s pride in piety evidently fails him, as he discovers that his faith was based on the principles of individuals who had sworn allegiance to the devil. This deplorable truth destroyed his conviction, and in this sense the devil prevailed against Goodman Brown.
Set in Salem during the early witchcraft day of then, Young Goodman Brown’s experience in the dark, evil forest correlated and would have been recognized by Puritans as a symbol of mistrust of their own corrupt hearts and faculties. Just as man could not trust the shadows and figures he saw hidden in the forest, he could not trust his own desires. Those desires had to be tested through his journey into the forest. Those evil spirits constantly tortured the Puritan, constantly reminding him of his sin and the battle in his own heart. Hawthorne used the presence of this demon in "Young Goodman Brown" by demonstrating, through Brown, the Puritan Journey towards Justification. Going through the forest towards Justification was marked by the disappearance of the self. In place of the self, was the awareness of helplessness and the illusions of sin. This awareness would then assist the moral man to no longer depend upon material things or people, but to put his faith solely upon God. Hawthorne’s knowledge of the historical background of Puritanism combined with the personal experience of his early life and the history of his own family merge into the statement that "Young Goodman Brown" makes. A system in which individuals cannot trust themselves, their neighbors, their instructors or even their ministers cannot create and atmosphere where faith exists.
Young Goodman Brown goes through a fundamental transformation in Young Goodman Brown, as he loses his faith in humanity through one surreal experience he encounters. At the beginning of the novel, Goodman Brown is a God-loving Puritan who lives with his beloved new wife, Faith, in the town of Salem. He is on an unknown errand, and travels into the woods in the middle of the night. Goodman Brown meets up with a shady companion, and together they travel deeper into the woods, where they witness a satanic gathering containing the minister, priest, Indians, and everyone in town. Goodman Brown sees Faith being inducted as a newest member of this satanic cult, and screams f...
In Ambivalence in “Young Goodman Brown”, Walter J. Paulits argues that Hawthorne draws on the point of ambivalence of the main character, rather than focusing on the main character is just doubtful throughout the story. Paulits begins his argument with a quote from Angus Fletcher, author of Allegory: The Theory of a Symbolic Mode, to explain what Hawthorne uses as allegorical intent. Paulits even incorporated another one of Hawthorne’s works, “Rappacini’s Daughter” to state that Hawthorne has done this method of writing in other works of his. Paulits states that the first evidence we have as readers of ambivalence is in the beginning of the story. It is where Goodman Brown is torn between leaving his wife Faith and meeting the Devil in