Young Goodman Brown 4
Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown", a story of innoncence betrayed, leaves the reader wondering if Brown made any kind of jounrney at all. Was Brown tired when he left his home and Faith, so much so that maybe he fell asleep in the forest at the begining of his journey? Hawthorne's use of allegory and symbolism abound in this tale of a young man's shattered "faith". THe most sacred role models Brown had ever had were challenged in his incredible journey. Being reared in the Puritain faith Brown had been programmed to shun evil and embrace goodness. As he embarked on his journey his Faith begged him to stay with her and do not leave her that evening, leaving Brown that night with the parting words, "I hope all is well when you return." In this era and the Puritain faith wickedness belonged to the devil. Faith's parting words sowed a doubt in his mind abouth her fidelity, therefore, setting the stage for Brown's walk with the devel. As he walked through the forest with the dard stranger, who bore a striking resenbelense to his father, Brown had to confront that maybeall in his world was not as it appeared to be. Every person that he had a high regard for was challenged on this walk. Evil too the sh
ape of his father and goodness his own mother reaching for him. Even if a dream, Brown could not bring himself to soil his mothers image. He had no suchproblem with Goody Cloyse who had been a mentor since he was a young child. As his journey continued in the darkest night of the year he had to deal with the fact that maybe his "faith" had not been compromised. Whatever happened on this journey, whether imaginary or real was so devestating for Young Goodman Brown that he looked for the rest of his life with scorn for fellow man, never allowing himself to trust or have faith again. Many twists and turns were prevalent in this short journey leaving the reader wondering just what Goodman Brown was up to that evening. Whatever happened in the forest that night served it's evil purpose, shattering Brown's faith and leaving his lrfe irrevocably changed. Hawthorne's use of good vs. evil betrays the sinful nature of man, allowing that evil and sin prevail over goodness. Was this just a subconscious excuse for Young Brown to be preyed upon by his own sinful nature? The depths of Young Goodman Brown's faith and goodness were shattered from one evening of embracing evil. The end result was an ill-tempte
Some common words found in the essay are:
Goodman Brown, Faith Brown, Goodman Brown's, Goody Cloyse, goodman brown, journey imaginary, puritain faith, whatever happened, rest life, brown's faith, faith brown, sinful nature, begged stay, dark night,
Approximate Word count = 826
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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