My first thought when I read the story is that there's a psychological aspect to this. This aspect comes to life when Brown begins to accept the reality that he seems to repress. Which reality is this? As imperfect humans, we've occasionally used poor judgment on issues in our everyday lives, but what is most important is how we deal with these experiences that will become forever frozen in our minds. I feel that this is the major cause of anguish for Brown. When you look at his society and the beliefs of the townspeople, one can understand how Brown's conscience can be very overbearing. So overbearing that it causes him to have delusions concerning the welfare of his soul.
I believe it is a dream or nightmare for Brown, one that he will never be able to deal with. One wonders how Brown's townsfolk deal with their sins. Do they repress them or just keep them hid from others? Through time, Brown learns he is not alone when it comes to dealing with good and evil. Isn't he just dealing with good? Or is it the connection between good and evil that bugs him? His own wife, Faith, is bothered with symptoms: "a lone woman is troubled with such dreams." Brown mentions, "She talks of dreams, too," which is a somewhat reassuring statement for him. This seems to confirm the notion that his "journey" is a fabrication of his unconscious (a dream) and that his wife has similar problems.
It's quite ironic that her name is Faith, which seems to be the very thing that she is lacking. Also, Brown is caught offguard when he sees the "journeyman" mingle with Goody Cloyse. He comments: "that old woman taught me my catechism"; such a respectable woman is talking to evil. We are also told of how Brown's family wasn't as wholesome as he believed. His grandfather lashed a Quaker woman while his father set fire to an Indian village. How did these men deal with their actions? I can remember reading about Puritans who used to whip themselves for their sins. This torment can exhaust you to a physical numbness but the sin is still in your mind. Through it all, I wonder about all the hell people were put through, during this time period, for acts that were deemed unacceptable
I really like the symbolism in this story.
Young Goodman Brown was a man who was naïve to the world around him. Ever since he was a child, he had always practiced a very Godly life. Not only does he believe that everyone around him follows the same path, but he also believes that it is the only path. This naivety and innocence was taken from him by the Devil, who opened his eyes to the world of evil around him. After the pagan ceremony, which Brown attends, the Devil even states “Now are ye undeceived! Evil is the nature of mankind” (Hawthorne 9). By saying this, Hawthorne is trying to say that it is better to know the whole truth than to live a lie. By not knowing the truth about evil existing in Salem village, Brown has essentially been living a life that is not complete or accurate. This perfect and fair world that was found in the Bible is not the real world that surrounds him. When his innocence is stolen from him so abruptly, he begins to lose both his faith and stability in the world.
If Brown truly conceives of himself as fallen, why would he snatch the child from one fiend to yield yet another, namely himself? Brown must believe himself untainted, or at least less tainted than various members of his community. (115)
Grandjeat, Charles Yves. “ Nationalism, History and Myth: The Masks of Aztlan,” Confluencia, Vol6, No. 1 (Fall 1990):19-32. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27921957
During Goodman Brown’s journey, he recognized Goody Cloyse, his catechism teacher, the preacher, and Deacon Gookin is going to the devil’s meeting. However, after seeing his church members at the devil’s meeting, Goodman says, “My Faith is gone! and There is no good on earth; and sin is but a name. Come devil! for to thee is this world given” (Hawthorne 27). “But, where is Faith?”, asked Goodman Brown (Hawthorne 29). As hope came into his heart, he trembled when he found the pink ribbon of his wife, Faith, in the forest. At that moment, Goodman Brown lost his faith in his family and church members. Goodman becomes unforgiving of others and believes only evil can be created from evil and there is nothing that anyone can do to change it. Here, Hawthorne demonstrates that a naive faith in our family, friends, and church member’s righteousness could lead to distrust. While, “Young Goodman Brown” lives a long life with Faith, he never loses his meanness toward humanity and the evil in the world, “for his dying hour was gloom” (Hawthorne
...rator describes Brown as “a sad, a darkly meditative, a distrustful, if not a desperate man…” (2215). He can no longer look upon his community with the same hopefulness he once had. He becomes cynical of his surroundings and lives his life accordingly. His discovery of evil results in his loss of grips with humanity. He comes to believe there is evil in all people and is unable to accept it. He grows old with contempt for his former idols, and never again is he able to conceive of the idea that life is pure, grand, and good. At his funeral, his family has nothing encouraging to put on his grave, and neighbors do not even bother to attend. Thus, he is depicted, even in death, as an individual unable to find happiness in his own family and friends.
Hawthorne uses symbolism to imply that when individuals lose their faith in the goodness of mankind, they may begin to imagine that their peers have yielded to temptation. The character of Faith is Goodman Brown's spouse, but she is also a symbol of his faith in mankind. Brown's relationship with Faith changes as the story progresses, from tender and caring love to judgmental scorn. Brown's thoughts about Faith as he leaves on his journey are: "Poor little Faith...she's a blessed angel on earth; and after this one night, I'll cling to her skirts and follow her to Heaven"(212). This statement shows that the protagonist has a deep love for his faith and knows that it can be his salvation. Later in the journey Brown offers his faith as the last reason to abort his walk with the devil: "Well, then, to end the matter at once,... there is my wife, Faith. It would break her dear little heart; and I'd rather break my own!" (214). At this point his faith is still more important to him than his own life. Later, just...
"Turn of the Screw--Character Analysis." THE CHARACTERS in Turn of the Screw. n. page. Print.
Oct. 2013. This was a fairly unbiased view of statistics of marijuana use and opinions of
and Goodman Brown sets forth on his journey. He is venturing into the woods to meet with the devil. This makes him feel guilty and he tries to justify the reason for his journey and lessen his guilt by saying, “ ‘After this one night I‘ll cling to her skirts and
Political Unit, CNN. "Video: Low Voter Turnout Explained." CNN Political Ticker RSS. N.p., 6 Feb. 2012. Web. 05 Dec. 2013.
The names of the characters Young Goodman Brown and his wife Faith are both symbolic. “Young" infers the title character is naive and new at life. Brown’s youth suggests that he is an uncorrupted and innocent young man. Moreover, "Goodman" suggests his self-righteousness thinking he is a good man. Furthermore, "Brown" indicates he is a commoner. Thus, the full name implies he is the average naive and self-righteous Puritan. Faith’s name in the story represents his need to cling to faith. She symbolizes everything that is good and Christian to Goodman Brown. Brown’s marriage to Faith is symbolic of how he clings to faith in good in the world.
...dman Brown cries out “My Faith is gone! There is no good on earth and sin is but a name. Come devil! For to thee is this world given”(cite). This where he begins to believe there is only sin in the world and his faith in humanity is completely destroyed. He still vows to stand firm against the devil, however he has doubts that heaven exists at all. With his loss of humanity he can no longer look at his fellow neighbors, which he had once held with high esteem, he now views as sinful and hypocritical. The faith that did shine in his heart the darkness of the world has tainted the idea that life is good and pure. Goodman Brown is completely consumed by his doubts and he is a distrustful and unable to have any sympathy or love to others. He never recovers his faith and even after death his family had nothing to say good about him, “for his dying hour was gloom”(cite).
...Brown, like all humans, sees that everyone can be corrupt and immoral, that it is possible for people to make mistakes. This is extremely disappointing to brown and ruins him. Brown felt that he made the right decision and did not follow the devil, but everyone else around him did. Even his own wife follows the devil. She is supposed to represent holiness and faith, and she is just as corrupt as everyone else. This portrays how even the church, which is supposed to be holy, can be corrupt. The story symbolizes that everyone in society is flawed and no one is perfect. However this idea drives Goodman brown to become insane. He dwells on this fact and loses his ability to see the good in people as well as the bad. Brown couldn't realize that even if people are evil at times, they can still be good people. This is what caused brown to change so drastically.
Late one night he finds himself in the middle of the woods with the Devil, on his way to a meeting of the Devil's followers. After seeing respected townsfolk at the Devil's meeting, including his minister and his wife, Faith, he loses hope in humanity and all that he had known to be true or real. Goodman Brown wakes up in his bed immediately following the Devil's meeting and wonders if what had happened was reality or simply just a dream. Despite his confusion about the events that took place, he was unable to forget what had happened and lost faith in religion and his com... ...
One of the questions that one might ask is whether the experience of Goodman Brown was merely a dream or a reality. I would say that that is only a dream, based on the clues found in the text. At the first part, the scene when the couple parted, Goodman Brown said, “…she talks of dreams, too…” This means that he has been experiencing dreams that bother him. And the narrative is but one of those. It tells us how powerful dreams are, or more specifically, how powerful our unconscious and subconscious minds are. The unconscious mind is where bad memories are repressed, while the conscious mind is where good experiences and memories are expressed. The subconscious mind links the two. His subconscious mind had been so powerful that it even overcame the conscious mind, and it intruded on Goodman Brown’s conscious mind and therefore affecting his own living and his persona (one’s public self).