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Young Goodman Brown Theme Essay

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Young Goodman Brown, a short story, by Nathaniel Hawthorne demonstrates how themes affect the morals of anyone, at any time, and in any place. Hawthorne’s writings are often bizarre yet richly filled with life lessons such as: natural weaknesses of human nature, the vulnerability of human soul to temptation, anybody is a victim of evil, and righteousness does not gain complete protection from sin. The setting is in a Salem village (mostly within the surrounding forest), around the time of the witch trials, with Young Goodman Brown (YGB) a supposedly devout Puritan who is bombarded until he questions everything he once believed. Although there are five themes developed inside the story line, all of them apply to the main theme of the fight between …show more content…

By the end of the story, it is surprising how right it feels to be confused. “Had Goodman Brown fallen asleep in the forest and only dreamed a wild dream of a witch-meeting? Be it so if you will;....a dream of evil omen for young Goodman Brown” (Hawthorne 391). Everything that occurred previously is questioned on whether it was real or a nightmare. YGB learns to see the world in terms of pure good versus pure evil, not even interested if he experiences were real or not, only if what is indicated about human nature yet the narrator uses strange, ambiguous descriptions to suggest moral matters will never be that clean cut. Hawthorne had conflicted attitudes about the past, he was horrified by the Salem witch trials, but admired his ancestors for their independence and hard work, and YBG emerges with similar mixed attitudes. “ ‘I marvel they never spoke of these matters...We are a people of prayer, and good works to boot, and abide no wickedness” (Hawthorne 384). By both praising and criticizing his ancestors’ stern way of living, the historical themes are secondary to the timeless issues of good, evil, and personal

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The short story concludes with Goodman Brown strolling through the village the morning after and seeing all the townspeople returning to their daily lives. The story of “Young Goodman” Brown shows personification, imagery, and allegory, Hawthorne expands his storytelling by using many literary devices. Personification gives the character’s life a fantastical view, it is what makes the short story falter from reality. A prime example is near the end when Hawthorne states, “Nature

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Archetypes such as the journey and mentor are used in many stories to set a storyline. These archetypes have a moral lessons that are learned through , and both are present in “Young Goodman Brown” and “The Artificial Nigger”. Hawthorne writes about a god fearing man who goes on a mysterious journey into the forest where he meets a devilish mentor. Young Goodman Brown lives in a strict religious town where the Christian church is the center of the community. He lives with his newlywed Faith who he's been married to for three months.

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The Danger of A Walk With the Devil: The Consequence of Sin and Guilt in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown” As Canadian author William Paul Young once said, “sin is its own punishment, devouring you from the inside.” In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story “Young Goodman Brown,” Goodman Brown’s life and entire being is demolished by his sins, never to return to what it once was. Through a guilt-filled journey of sin, Goodman Brown struggles with his faith, his grasp on reality, but most importantly, life as he knows it. By losing everything, Young Goodman Brown suffers the ultimate punishment of lifelong pain and suffering.

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In “Young Goodman Brown,” Goodman Brown is naïve. At first, he is stuck on the idea that everyone is good but still chooses to meet with the devil in the forest out of curiosity. He knows that the devil is evil and a bad person, but feels as long as he clings to Faith once he gets home he will be safe. Goodman Brown encounters several people that he knows while on his walk in the

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Not only is Young Goodman Brown betraying his own loved ones and beliefs but the ones he cares for are disregarding him right back. This plot is quite frankly like a train of dominos; one does bad, the same receives bad. Each example of betrayal helps move along and set up yet another example. Hawthorne gives his readers a harsh reality of betrayal in all types of relationships and the penalties that come with it. The message behind this story may be hard to discover but it needs to be widely

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“Young Goodman Brown” is a fictional story that carries a great deal of realistic and spiritual meaning. The story was written by Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1835 and it has since been read, as well as studied, by a multitude of scholars. In the process of evaluating a text, most critics take time to study individual characters. Carl Jung completely transformed how characters are viewed; Jung claimed that all writers form stories with characters that fall into universal archetypes. The archetype that receives the most attention is the hero, which is the main character of the story.

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“The Overview of Young Goodman Brown” explains how the symbols appointed to these characters show their importance. Goodman is running through the forest, terrified of what he has seen. Goodman begins panicking as he sees his beloved faith with the devil, he even shouts her name, however, “the forest laughs like demons around him,” (Hawthorne). With his faith no longer there, he practically flies towards the witches' gathering. Hawthorne makes it out as if the forest was mocking his panicking, and screaming.

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In Hawthorne's story "Young Goodman Brown" it can be described as a moral allegory that illustrates the puritan doctrine of inherent depravity as the Brown. He tests his faith by entering the forest primeval by joining the man "of grave and decent attire" for an evening in the wilderness. It is apparent the symbols are of a religious nature. Hawthorne wrote in the time period known as the Romantic Period. Hawthorne's rejection of the Puritan belief system is the primary message of this story.

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Nathaniel Hawthorne’s shifting and conflicted relationship with his puritan upbringing can also be clearly seen in the well known story “Young Goodman Brown.” In this tale, Goodman

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“Young Goodman Brown” among a dream of a Puritan man and his conflicts with the Christian faith. Hawthorn portrays Goodman as an example of the natural sinful tendencies of man by revealing just how effortlessly a young puritan can be tempted and influenced by a stranger.

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It was strange to see that the good shrank not from the wicked, nor were the sinners abashed by the saints,” and in that moment Goodman saw the dark side of the people in his village. The Puritans (CHECK) had a high standing in church and a high moral reputation, which Goodman’s society valued most above all else, so he was horrified when he saw the hypocrisy of his fellow villagers. Hawthorne depicted the truth about human nature, showing that we all have things we are hiding from the world. By bestowing moral lessons in readers, writers peek their interest and keep them entertained until the very

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In the story “Young Goodman Brown”, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Young Goodman Brown faces a spiritual dilemma. This is the story of one young man’s hallucinogenic journey through the woods. Whether or not this was a dream or reality, finding out the devastating true nature about the holy community he was raised in, him being misinformed about the members of his family, or the continuous struggle to hold on to his fault; this journey will have crippling effects on the rest of his life. Young Goodman Brown’s seemly holy community turns out to be the exact opposite.

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The desires of humanity often reflect the temptations residing in the heart’s depths. Evil’s lure is a strong pull felt by all, regardless of the appearance put on through the conscious mind. In literature, temptation is explored thoroughly, especially in the short story, “Young Goodman Brown”. “The tale becomes in great part, thus, a record of temptation” (Pualits 578-579). The author of “Young Goodman Brown”, Nathaniel Hawthorne, was born in Salem, Massachusetts, in 1804.

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The story of Young Goodman Brown is the story of a tale about the main character becoming aware of the hypocrisy of his faith as a Puritan. Through his travels in the woods at night, he unveils the truths, or what he believes as truths, about his wife Faith, neighbors, and fellow Christians. By the end, Brown loses all trust in his Faith, both literally and spiritually, and refuses to see any good in the world. The beginning scene where Goodman Brown meets the old man has the most significance in the story’s resolution. This is where his mistrust starts to form and where he experiences his first temptations to sin.

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