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The symbols used in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter
The symbols used in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter
The symbols used in Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter
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Furthermore, Hawthorne uses the snake, staff, and the devil as symbols to depict Brown’s descent into corruption. When his acquaintance states that his snake-like staff will “help him along” (5), it foreshadows what will happen to Brown. Once he has a revelation of the true nature of mankind, Brown calls out for the Devil (6), knowing that there is no longer any good in the world. Hawthorne strategically incorporates the snake, staff, and devil. These symbols are generally associated with evil, which further enhance the corruption within the story. As such, Brown’s once-naive viewpoint towards people is now tainted with cynicism; Brown rapidly develops a pessimistic view of his wife, colleagues, and humanity in general. Due to his horrific
Throughout history individuals or groups of people have responded to power in a multitude of ways. Hoping for religious freedom, the Puritans left England for America starting in the 1620s. The Puritan community chose to withdraw in response to conflict with the higher power in England. Coincidentally, Hawthorne wrote about a Puritan Community in the Massachusetts Bay Colony during this period of migration, and in this community like all others there is always conflicts revolving around power. Hawthorne uses power imbalances in the Scarlet Letter to characterize and transform Hester, Reverend Dimmesdale, and Roger Chillingworth.
Another sign that upholds the fact that the traveler is the devil is the staff that he carries. It bears "the likeness of a great black snake" and it seems at times to move "like a living serpent" (Hawthorne 384). Ever since the beginning of time, serpents have been an accepted symbol of evil. In the Garden of Eden, Eve was tempted by the devil in the form of a snake; and when she gave into the temptation, she caused all of humanity to fall into the bondage of sin. In the same way, the fellow-traveler tempts Goodman Brown by constantly persuading him onward into the forest, which in turn would crush his Faith.
Fifteen years separate Washington Irving’s short story “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” with Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story, “Young Goodman Brown.” The two share an eerie connection because of the trepidation the two protagonists endure throughout the story. The style of writing between the two is not similar because of the different literary elements they choose to exploit. Irving’s “Sleepy Hollow” chronicles Ichabod Crane’s failed courtship of Katrina Van Tassel as well as his obsession over the legend of the Headless Horseman. Hawthorne’s story follows the spiritual journey of the protagonist, Young Goodman Brown, through the woods of Puritan New England where he looses his religious faith. However, Hawthorne’s work with “Young Goodman Brown” is of higher quality than Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” because Hawthorne succeeds in exploiting symbols, developing characters, and incorporating worthwhile themes.
...ssed though the use of setting, foreshadowing, and symbolism. William Graham Sumner once said “Men never cling to their dreams with such tenacity as at the moment when they are losing faith in them, and know it, but do not dare yet to confess it to themselves.” (brainyquote.com). This statement holds many truths to the thoughts and actions of the young Goodman Brown in Hawthorne’s allegorical story. Brown was quick to go on his foreboding quest, knowing what his meeting with the devil may lead to, and only when threatened and scared attempted to turn back to hold on to both Faith physically and psychologically. Whether his journey into the forest was an illusion or not, Brown’s perception of faith in society have been dramatically altered, as he may have lost all faith in humanity.
As stated earlier, Hawthorne’s goal is to show the discovery of evil can lead one to utter desperation and cynicism. Brown is the medium through which he is able to achieve this goal. He is successful in teaching his audience a moral lesson; which is that in denying the idea that good exists and is capable of overpowering evil, Brown has committed the worst sin of all. Bereft of spiritual faith, “his dying hour was gloom” (2216).
The next character is the man who Brown meets up with in the woods. This man is described as, "one who knew the world, and who would not have felt abashed at the governor's dinner table or in King William's court" (Kelly, 191). This man can be seen as the devil. He possesses features that illustrate him as the devil. For example his walking staff is described as having "the likeness of a great black snake, so curiously wrought that it might almost be seen to twist and wriggle itself like a living serpent" (Kelly, 191-192).
...ed by the devil tempting Brown to join the dark side. The way in which the devil lures Brown is by convincing him that his relatives and town's people have already crossed over to the dark side and denied their faith. The struggle that Brown is now facing is whether to follow is relatives and town's people or to follow his faith in god and deny the devil, that is Brown's internal conflict. These internal and external conflicts are what turned Brown into a dynamic character by the end of the story. Instead of believing and trusting that his relatives and friends are godly, he now knows that they have all been tempted by the devil and many have crossed over to the dark side; he went from being trusting to skeptical of his friends and his faith.
Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolic imagery throughout his story Young Goodman Brown to impact the theme of good people sometimes do bad things. Hawthorne takes us on a journey of truth and realization. Goodman Brown was not open to the truth or the reality that the world is filled with evil and people are imperfect. His perception of the world was it was a fun loving happy place and when he was exposed to reality he turned away from people and lost faith in them. His faith should have been in God because God will never let you down but his faith was in people and people are imperfect and subject to disappoint you.
Once Brown enters the forest he meets the devil, who resembles his father. The representation of his father as the devil symbolizes that even Browns own blood is evil, and that everyone has some evil inside themselves. It shoes how far back evil goes, and that...
Many American writers have scrutinized religion through their works of literature, however none had the enthusiasm of Nathaniel Hawthorne. A handful of Hawthorne's works are clear critiques of seventeenth century Puritan society in New England. Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown and The Scarlet Letter illustrate his assessment by showing internal battles within characters, hypocrisy in religious figures, atypical punishment for crimes, and accenting women's roles in Puritan society. Firstly, Hawthorne's literature often stresses internal battles in main characters. In both Young Goodman Brown and The Scarlet Letter, these battles are between morals and sin (both past and future). In Young Goodman Brown, Brown goes into the woods and meets Satan. Satan, in the form of Brown's deceased grandfather, asks the weary Brown to take his staff. The staff "bore the likeness of a great black snake... almost be seen to twist and wriggle... like a living serpent" (Hawthorne 1237). The comparison of the strangers' staff as a snake is very reminiscent of the Bible's story of Eve and the serpent in the Garden of Eden. "Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God made" (Genesis 3:1) and as we know Eve ate the fruit from the forbidden tree and succumbed to the serpent's temptation. However, unlike Eve, Brown did not take the serpent-like staff because he knew he was being tested. Goodman Brown was also ethically confronted when he sees his wife, Faith, among a group of high standing community and church members in a circle of religious converts who plan to switch to Satanism. Seeing his adored wife ready to worshi...
Hawthorne’s story, “Young Goodman Brown,” appears to be a story about original sin with a lot of symbolism tied in to make it an allegory. An allegory is a story that can be interpreted in different ways to find the hidden meaning behind the symbolism in the story. The three things focused on throughout the short story is Faith, the forest that Goodman Brown takes his journey through, and the staff, which the old man who leads Goodman Brown on his way carries. The short story, “Young Goodman Brown,” uses several symbols such as: Faith, the forest, and the staff to contribute significantly to the allegory.
Hale, John K. “The Serpentine Staff in ‘Young Goodman Brown.’” Nathaniel Hawthorne Review 19 (Fall 1993): 17-18.
At some point in time everyone is faced with the inevitable loss of innocence. A lot of people have a hard time accepting that, just like the main character of “Young Goodman Brown”. Some people feel they have lost their innocence when they find out that Santa Claus or the Tooth Fairy are not real people. Others may feel that they have lost their innocence when they figure out how cruel the world really is. Goodman Brown loses his innocence when he ventures into the forest and takes the devil’s staff. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown”, the devil’s staff is used to symbolically represent Goodman Brown’s temptations and path toward evil.
At this stage in the story the reader still has hope for the goodman who must now deal with what he feels is his duty honor-bound. A "good man" in Hawthorne's day was a person who came from a proper lineage. This very lineage Hawthorne exploits as he begins the goodman's discourse with the devil. The goodman claims that he is from a family of good men that have never been into the forest on such an errand to meet the devil; Hawthorne depends upon this defense to criticize the patriarchal lineage upon which a person places his worth. This view is quickly derailed as the devil himself states that all of his ancestors were with him as they tortured women in Salem or burned to the ground Indian villages, and afterwards the devil and his ancestors would go for a friendly walk. Hawthorne has derided the institution of Young Goodman Brown's lineage, and his society's view of honor by pointing to some simple facts. The question remains as to whom or what is the devil.
One element of Young Goodman Brown is a criticism of Puritan self-righteousness; the devil points out to Brown that he has “a very general acquaintance here in New England” and then proceeds to cite instances of hypocrisy, prejudice, and persecution (Hawthorne 5). The devil also reveals that he is familiar with Brown’s ancestors, leading them toward sin (Hawthorne 5). All of this is disturbing to Brown and the issue of evil is f...