Responsibility 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.

Hawthorne in essence, portrayed Goodman as proof of the nature of evil in man by showing how easily even a young dedicated Puritan can easily be influenced by a complete stranger. This stranger was symbolically the Devil among men in this text. Hawthorne begins introducing the Devil immediately as trying to sway Goodman to follow him on a long journey. By leaving his wife, Faith to begin the journey, Goodman Brown was symbolically leaving his faith in God and entering a forsaken ground by following the Devil. The fact that Goodman Brown left with no regard for his wife Faith’s warning, symbolized the lack of regard for his own faith in God and his fellow human race. This simple disregard that Goodman Brown showed was evidence of the easily persuaded ability of man to choose sin over good.

The short story Young Goodman Brown, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, accurately bestows all aspects of an allegory. According to Merriam Webster, an allegory is a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning, typically a moral or political one. Through this work, Hawthorne is able to depict the apparent hypocrisy in today’s world and especially in religion in America. The story is of a man, Young Goodman Brown, who is highly tempted by the devil himself and in the end caves to the pressure due to his lack of faith and even due to a little curiosity. Brown could not help but wonder what this new world could potentially behold for him; unfortunately, his curiosity didn’t change him for the better, only for the worse. The ceremony and changing opened his eyes and made him see the true colors of those around him. We see how Brown loses faith in the people in his community, his family, and especially in himself.

When analyzing an allegory like "Young Goodman Brown", the reader must realize that the story is in its entirety, a symbol. Hawthorne, through his writing is trying to convey the contradicting aspects of the Puritan ideology. This is made evident after discovering that Goodman's father burned an Indian Village and his grandfather lashed a Quaker woman. By Hawthorne including these acts of violence, he is revealing that the

In this world you will learn and get to know people, but don't be fooled because people may not always be what or who they appear to be just like in Hawthorne's short story ¨Young Goodman Brown¨. The main character, Goodman Brown goes on a mysterious journey into the dreary woods and discovers people he thought he knew best might not actually be who they seem. Hawthorne Utilizes the symbolism of the ever changing Goody Cloyse, the two-faced Faith, and the deceitful traveler to portray hypocrisy.

Literary translation seeks to recreate an original work in a new language using the tools available in the target language. In order to recreate a story, the translator must first interpret its meaning. This proves to be a challenge as the nature of literary works is such that they often lend themselves to multiple interpretations, either due to deliberate or unintentional ambiguity in the text. In the case of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Young Goodman Brown, the author crafted a complex story filled with ambiguity. What are, then, translators to do when faced with the momentous task of translating an important piece of American literature like Young Goodman Brown? They must undoubtedly turn to literary criticism, which seeks to produce in-depth

Goodman Brown was crushed by the revelation that the potential for wickedness lives in everyone. Whatever remains of his life is annihilated as a result of his failure to face this truth and live with it. The story, which may have been a fantasy, and not a genuine occasion, planted the seed of uncertainty in Brown's psyche, which thus cut him off from his kindred man and allows him to sit unbothered and discouraged. His life closes alone and hopeless in light of the fact that he was never ready to take a gander at himself and understand that what he accepted were other people's issues were his too. His over the top pride in himself prompted his separation from the group. Cocoa was covered with "no cheerful verse upon his gravestone; for his

Many interpretations have been assumed over Hawthorne’s, typically considered allegorical, “Young Goodman Brown” that critics have come to a deadlock. While it’s agreed that the focal point circulates around the story’s protagonist, for which it is appropriately named, the unanswered question remains: had Goodman Brown, in fact, met with the devil in the forest or had he dreamt the entire episode? “Be it so, if you will” Hawthorne teases, never letting up any real perspective, except that “it was a dream of evil omen for Young Goodman Brown”, one that changed him immutably to a “darkly meditative” and “distrustful” man (McIntosh, 95). Reginald Cook suggests that Hawthorne uses the forest as a threshold, passing from “a conscious world to a subconscious one” (474). P. J. Hurley adds that “Young Goodman Brown” is a “subtle work of fiction concerned with revealing [Brown’s] distorted mind (411). The two lend credence to Brown dialoguing with his inner evil—a psychological allegory of his depravity (and man’s) (410). On the other hand, David Levin believes “that one must first of all interpret the story literally. The forest cannot effectively represent sin, or the unconscious mind of Goodman Brown, or the heart of dark moral wilderness” (345). Levin first wants to deconstruct on a literal level before ever approaching the symbolical. However, I believe the question, in the first place, is a smokescreen; it doesn’t really matter whether it is a dream or not, its implications

Brown must have struggle following the faith of his village and wanting to find his individuality. Hence the reason Brown had a dream where his “brain can generated an entire world of conscious experiences” (Nir, Yuval, and Giulio Tononi).

Goodman brown told the man that his family members are good Christians, “We have been a race of honest men and good Christians.”, and he feels ashamed to associate with him. Then, the man replies that he knows his father and grandfather as well as to the rest of the family members. Goodman brown insist to return back for faith’s sake. Yet he hears voices of the minister of the church and a couple of people who are on their way to the meeting. Then he swears that even though everyone has gone to the devil, for Faith’s sake he will stay true to God. Lately he heard her voice, will in fact he thought he did, so he realizes that no one is good in the world, because Faith has turn to the devil. He asked her to look up into heaven and resist the devil, but the suddenly he find himself alone in the forest. The next morning Brown return to Salem village, and he lost trust in everyone, because everyone he passes seems so evil to him. To conclude, it is unclear whether this is real or it’s just a dream, but Goodman Brown lives his entire life with gloom and

When Goodman Brown realizes there is no good in the world and everyone is a sinner he loses his innocence and the realization infuriates him, "Thus sped the demoniac on his course, until, quivering among the trees he saw a red light in front of him, as when the felled trunks and clearing have been set on fire and thrown up their lurid blaze against the sky"(Hawthorne). Hawthorne alludes to Brown as "the demoniac" he is no longer the "young man" or "goodman" he is now evil because his innocence is gone from realizing that everyone he has known to be saints are devil worshippers. Hawthorne also uses words such as "quivering" and "lurid blaze" to describe the tone of the scene which adds on to Browns demoniac figure because he is not in just a dark forest anymore he is in a hell like forest. At the conclusion of the story Goodman Brown has completely changed and Hawthorne characterizes him as, "A stern, a sad, a darkly mediative, distrustful, if not a desperate man did he become from the night of that fearful dream"(Hawthorne). Hawthorne uses negative words like stern, sad, darkly mediative, distrustful, and desperate to describe Brown's changes after the journey. These words suggest he is no longer a cheery innocent young man, he is now an overall dark person full of sin because of his choices to follow the devil

"Young Goodman Brown" was published in 1835, when Nathaniel Hawthorne was 31 years old. Hawthorne was born and reared in Salem, Massachusetts, a village still permeated by its 17th century Puritanism. When he was four, Hawthorne's father  died, and from that point on he was surrounded mostly by females: two sisters, a maiden aunt, and a retiring mother who was not close to her children. He had little contact with his deceased father's family, but his maternal relatives were supportive and saw to it that he attended college, the first in his family to do so (Turner 33). During four years at college, despite his reclusive nature, he established close friendships with his male classmates, several of which he maintained for life. These four

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown”, the readers are given an open window into the depraved mind at work. This particular short story is an inward psychological journey where Goodman Brown fails at integrating components of his psyche. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown” shows humanity’s tendency to fail at individuation. The author conveys this through Brown’s repression of his shadow, projection of his own shadow upon others, and rejection of his anima. The psychology of one’s failure at individuation is clearly illustrated in this story.

Through the story, Young Goodman Brown's personality is shown to be as simple and with a pious nature. However, Young Goodman Brown does show he has faith towards God, but he has very little of it, unlike his wife. “Well; she’s a blessed angel on earth; and after this one night, I’ll cling to her skirts and follow her to heaven”(Hawthorne 610). Young Goodman Brown would rather cling to his wife to get to heaven than perform any good action of his own. It defeats how he is seen by others he is no longer simple with a pious nature. It goes to show that perhaps Young Goodman Brown does have some faith but very little of it. As Young Goodman Brown continues to venture deeper into the woods, the Devil begins to tempt him little by little. Unfortunately Brown gives up all too easily which leads to losing his faith and becoming corrupted. He does what the Devil asks of him without questioning

Although Goodman Brown has decided to come into the forest and meet with the devil, he still hides when he sees Goody Cloyse and hears the minister and Deacon Gookin. He seems more concerned with how his faith appears to other people than with the fact that he has decided to meet with the devil. Goodman Brown’s religious convictions are rooted in his belief that those around him are also religious. This kind of faith, which depends so much on other people’s views, is easily weakened. When Goodman Brown discovers that his father, grandfather, Goody Cloyse, the minister, Deacon Gookin, and Faith are all in league with the devil, Goodman Brown quickly decides that he might as well do the same. Hawthorne seems to suggest that the danger of basing a society on moral principles and religious faith lies in the fact that members of the society do not arrive at their own moral decisions. When they copy the beliefs of the people around them, their faith becomes weak and