Alienation and Moral Dilemma as Portrayed by Nathaniel Hawthorne

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Alienation and Moral Dilemma as Portrayed by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Nathaniel Hawthorn was born in Salem, Massachusetts in 1804 during Puritan times. He created many stories that reflect his life experiences growing up as a Puritan. He writes stories that end with a moral that was learned through the struggles of the characters. These characters are almost always faced with a dilemma where they must choose what is right versus what is wrong. Another common theme in his writing is alienation. These concepts can be found in the stories “Young Goodman Brown,” “The Minister’s Black Veil,” and “The Birth Mark.” They are all about a life altering decision one must face and the consequences of that decision. In “Young Goodman Brown,” the dilemma faced by the main character is about the strength of his faith in God and the trust he losses for his wife and community. In “The Minister’s Black Veil,” a minister is struggling with his own sins and his fear of them being revealed to his congregation. Finally, in “The Birth Mark,” the main character becomes obsessed with a slight physical flaw on wife’s face; an obsession that ultimately leads to the destruction the thing he cherished most dearly.

The story, “Young Goodman Brown,” is about a man named Goodman Brown who must leave his wife Faith to go on a fateful journey – a journey whose reason is left to speculation. He must go into the local forest, refuse the temptations of the devil, and return to the village before sunrise. He embarks on this journey and returns a changed man for the evils he encountered made him lose his faith in the community around him. The decision or struggle that Brown is faced with in the story is between the evil temptations that lurk in the fore...

... middle of paper ...

...l E., “The Consequences of Puritan Depravity and Distrust

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Mota, Joshua, “The Minister's Black Veil,” www.ri.net, http://www.ri.net/schools/Pawtucket/Tolman/ODonnell/MOTAWEB/veil.html

Reuban, Paul P, “PAL: Perspectives in American Literature: A Research and Reference Guide” An Ongoing Online Project, www.csustan.edu, http://www.csustan.edu/english/reuben/pal/chap3/hawthorne.html

Sharpe, Lynda, “The Birth-mark by Nathaniel Hawthorne,” www.vcu.edu, http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/eng491/bm-base.htm

Shoemaker ,Jacqueline, “Hawthorne's Realm of Morality: Biographical Contexts for ‘Young Goodman Brown,’” www.itech.fgcu.edu, http://itech.fgcu.edu/faculty/wohlpart/alra/Hawthorne.htm

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