Hypocrisy In Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown

"Young Goodman Brown," a story written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, should be interpreted on a psychoanalytical level rather than a religious one. It is my observation that "Young Goodman Brown" may very well be the first published work alluding to divisions of the mind and personality theory. Although religion is a direct theme throughout the story, "Young Goodman Brown" appears to be an allegory with deeper meanings.

“These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me” (New International Version Bible, Matthew 15:8). Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story utilizes extensive symbolism to merge reality with imagination and expose the duplicity of the religious. The theme of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s, “Young Goodman Brown” is hypocrisy and can be established by Goodman Brown’s journey, epiphany, and transformation throughout the story.

Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote Young Goodman Brown based on morals and what Easterly in "Lachrymal Imagery in Hawthorne's 'Young Goodman Brown' " calls "spiritual maturity" (Easterly 339). In the short story, Goodman Brown, a young Puritan leaves his wife of three months to watch a witch ceremony in the forest. During this point in time, Puritans based their lives on teachings of religion and morality; therefore, witch-meetings were surely immoral, and they betrayed the commitment of God. Dwelling in the forest throughout the night, Goodman Brown experiences an event that changes his entire perspective of life. In one night, the event destroys "his relationship with his wife Faith, isolates him from his neighbors, and destroys his ability to

    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

   Faith is believing what you can’t see or touch. Faith is knowing something especially when there is no proof to back it up. “Young Goodman Brown” is a story about a man who leaves his wife, Faith, home alone for a night while he journeys with the devil down the road of temptation. During the course of his journey, the man sees many people who seem out of place, including his wife. When he returns home to Salem, he is a changed man. In this story, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolism and characterization in order to imply that when an individual loses faith in the goodness of mankind, that individual may conclude that mankind (including friends and family) has given in

“Young Goodman Brown” – the Poverty in the Tale and in the Life of the Author

In “Young Goodman Brown” Hawthorne reveals that the wickedness of the world and humanity can take a toll on our faith in God. The story shows obvious symbolism throughout. It shows that not everyone is who they show themselves to be to the world. The world and devil will constantly challenge our faith in God. Human nature is worldly and it’s so easy to be deceived by the devil. Once you start down the path of sin it can be hard to turn around.

“And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one”, (Matthew 6:13). The theme of sin is supported by the use of symbols, the path, the forest, and the staff.

     Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown” captivates the reader through a glimpse of the Puritan church. The story also shows the struggle of good versus evil in the main character Goodman Brown. The role of the Puritan church is crucial in shaping Goodman Brown’s personality and helping the reader understand why he was reluctant to continue his journey.

Such as the pink ribbon represents his wife faith and the black cloud following Brown through forests. The pink ribbons that Faith has represent her purity and innocence. All these symbols helped Hawthorne to get his point of exposing the Puritan culture. Even Brown himself was a symbol; he was a symbol of innocence. So his journey through the forest meant the loss of his innocence. Salem could be also used as a symbol because; it is one of the Puritan towns which showed hypocrisy such as the Salem witch trials during 1692. The trial accused innocent people of been witches. Nathaniel Hawthorne had a personal connection with the trials, being a descendant of one of Salem’s judges who sentenced people to death. As he goes through the forest

In the short story “Young Goodman Brown,” Nathaniel Hawthorne presents several different literary devices such as: imagery, symbolism, and allegory to artistically and elegantly contribute to the story’s main theme. Hawthorne uses these devices to display his themes and ideas regarding the twisted dark path of evil and the inner fears of a man who treads the unknown path of temptation and curiosity. Hawthorne creates depth within the story, characters, and the setting by allowing them to be viewed differently than who they are and what their title holds. Hawthorne applies comprehensible religious ideas in order for people to perceive his theme

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown” depicts a journey into the woods as a representation of a loss of faith. It starts off with the protagonist Young Goodman Brown and his wife Faith being representative of his actual faith, which in both cases disappear further and further from him as the story progresses. However; when taking a closer look, the story of Young Goodman Brown has a much deeper meaning than just a religious trip. The story can also be viewed as a growing child learning and experiencing new things, and in this case Brown is the child. When looking at the main character’s name, which also doubles as the title of the piece, it already gives the reader insight as to who Brown is.

“Young Goodman Brown” By Nathaniel Hawthorne is a short story of a puritan on a journey to complete an unknown errand. The treacherous journey Young Goodman Brown goes through causes his strong character to change. Hawthorne uses the theme of public religiosity vs private lifestyle to understand the change that led Goodman Brown to become hypocritical behavior, skeptical of his own religion, and cynical towards humankind. Goodman Brown displays to have a loving affection towards his wife Faith and a happy outlook to his village, as he learns the dark lifestyle his wife and the village had behind his back, the image altered.

Goodman Brown has to fight, not only himself against temptation, but the people he thought he knew and trusted, in the battle of good versus evil. Whether or not any of the events from that night actually occurred is unknown, but Goodman Brown spends the rest of his life believing the worst of everyone, even Faith, and dies a lonely, bitter man. Hawthorne’s central idea is that while people may appear to be good on the outside, evil is something that everyone has the capability to fall victim to.

In his short story Young Goodman Brown, Nathaniel Hawthorne creates an intriguing narrative in which a young husband, Young Goodman Brown, leaves his wife Faith alone one night. When all good Puritans perform their evening routines to prepare for a good night of sleep in their homes, Goodman Brown goes out on a mysterious journey into the dark and gloomy forest to meet with his evil companion, the devil himself. Nothing stops him, not even his dear Faith or her fears. He is determined to proceed with “his present evil purpose”. A lot happens while he is out.