Innocence to Enlightenment: Experience Level up!

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Recommended: Transition between childhood and adulthood

Every life in one way or another transition from a life of innocence, to a life as an experience individual. Life can be classified as innocent at the start due to our ignorance. The fact that we are not exposed or influenced by what is around us. This is commonly associated with babies, who are new to this world. They have no idea what may be happening in the outside world; although sometimes it can even occur to adults. The baby will not know that its parents may steal for its meals, or the reason it was alive was due to such a dirty process in perspective, sexual intercourse. The baby may grow up thinking that its parents are sweet, normal, and want to become just like them. The irony is comically dark, that the child would want to be "pure" like its parents yet in reality they are not so pure. No one is pure and this is what separates an innocent individual from an experienced individual. To find out that not all things are pure is necessary, but of course "pure" is a subjective term. We as human beings go through this process every single day throughout our entire lives not knowing it. Nathaniel Hawthorne in “Young Goodman Brown” shows us how the protagonist progresses from a state of innocence to becoming an experience person.

When referred by Hawthorne as 'young' it could have meant a number of things, excluding obviously his age. Goodman Brown is initially portrayed as a naive, religious, sweet hearted fellow, and maybe that is what makes him 'innocent', to be able to be ignorant but pure of heart. In the story Young Goodman Brown it clearly shows how sins that are untold can torture a person and rob them of all happiness.”Well, she's a blessed angel on earth; and after this one night I'll cling to her skirts and follow h...

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...nk and that it is shaped by the events that occur. Also the environment that the person grows up plays an important role on how their personality is shaped. As Goodman Brown started his journey he didn’t know what to expect. By him never having any experience in this it shows how such a once pure character such as himself was innocently manipulated by the mere words of a stranger. All of us during our lifetime will go through an initiation that will lead us from being a naïve individual to a person who is experienced. One day we will come across people who will challenge our beliefs and try to convince us in to change it.

Works Cited

"Good kid, bad kid; Children are born innocent, but what makes some turn to criminal acts? Experts say kids learn what is right or wrong through their experiences, environment and societal influences." Strait Times 10/29/2009, Print

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