In Young Goodman Brown, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolism to help his readers feel the understand the complexities of good and evil. Hawthorne portrays Goodman Brown’s wife, Faith, as pretty and innocent. (Hawthorne) He uses the pink ribbons in Faith’s hair to help his reader associate Faith with playfulness and childhood. This is most evident when Hawthorne writes, “He looked back and saw the head of Faith still peeping after him, with a melancholy air, in spite of her pink ribbons.” (Hawthorne 4) Here, Hawthorne makes it clear that faiths ribbons represent good cheer. They are marks of innocence; the type of accessories a young person would wear out playfulness. Brown leaves Faith and her pink ribbons to walk in the woods with the devil, who is dressed, not like faith, but in “grave and decent attire.” (Hawthorne 5) While faith is young, pretty and colorful, the devil is old, grim and simple. While faith clearly embraces playfulness and joy, the devil represents seriousness and joyless living. Even the road Brown takes to meet up with the devil is grim. Hawthorne writes, “He had taken a dreary road, darkened by all the gloomiest trees of the forest.” (Hawthorne 5) Hawthorne uses these grim symbols to represent the grim, serious journey of those who rigidly follow the rules of religion …show more content…
After debating with the devil for only a short time, Goodman Brown already starts looking tired. The devil, therefore, offers him his staff. Brown does not take it. Faith, temporarily, holds him back, but Goody Cloyse takes it readily. Her use of the staff as a crutch weakens Brown’s faith. Cloyse herself represents the kind of puritan woman who many look to as an example. Hawthorne uses her to show how weakness in the faith of someone who sets herself up as a pious person can cause real damage to others who look at other men and women as
Nathaniel Hawthorne is a nineteenth-century American writer of the Romantic Movement. Hawthorne was born is Salem, Massachusetts, and this is the place he used as the setting for some of his works: such as "The Scarlett Letter", "the Blithedale Romance" and "Young Goodman Brown". In writing, Hawthorne was known for his use of allegory and symbolism, which made his stories a joy for everyone to read. Hawthorne was said to be the first American writer who was conscious of the failure of modern man to realize his full capacity for moral growth. His stories contain much about the life he knew as a child being brought up in a Puritan society. As Hawthorne's writing continued it was filled with the same amount of sin and evil as his first writings. Evil that was revealed through his works. "Young Goodman Brown" was said to be one of the best stories ever written by Hawthorne (Adams70). "The Marble Faun: and "the Scarlett Letter were some of the other stories written by Hawthorne, and they were said to be "Young Goodman Brown" grown older. In this selection there is a question of maturity for Goodman Brown and whether he is good or evil. There is also a transition from childishness to adolescence to maturity. This short story in particular has a feeling of adultery, betrayal, and deception as in some of his other works. It was said by Richard P. Adams that "young Goodman Brown" was a germ for nearly all his best work that followed (Adams 71).
Hawthorne incorporates symbols into his story in a powerful way, however Irving’s symbols are not equally powerful. Hawthorne uses Faith’s pink ribbon to symbolize her purity. The ribbon is fitting because the color pink is associated with virginity and purity. The color is commonly worn by young girls when they are young and pure. The ribbon allows the audience to assume that Faith, like her name, is a religious young woman who lives her life by the holy bible. The action of the ribbon can even change it’s symbolism. While Brown is in the woods he sees Faith’s pink ribbon soar through the sky, symbolizing her loss of purity and entrance into the devil’s dominion. The second powerful symbol that Hawthorne incorporates is the staff that the old man offers Brown in the woods. The staff symbolizes Brown’s temptation o...
The overall tone for the passage is more skeptical in the beginning as Brown tries to figure out his stand on the subject of his Puritan faith, however, it shifts towards a traffic tenor at the end as he lives with the consequences of his choices from the night in the woods when he decided to walk along side with the weary old traveler. The symbolism of this passage is so robust, with such great significance behind it. Young Brown proclaims during his journey, “‘Faith! Faith!’ as if bewildered wretches were seeking her, all through the wilderness… ‘My Faith is gone!’ cried he, after one stupefied moment. ‘There is no good on earth; and sin is but a name’” (Hawthorne 251). The symbolism of this passage is so strong, with such great significance behind it. As he shouts from the rooftops that he has lost his wife Faith, which can be inferred to be his own personal faith. Sheer panic filled the air once he realizes that he had turned away from his heritage, involuntary choosing to eliminate his faith from his life. How did he lose his faith within that night? He chose to follow the traveler with the serpent staff, casted as the devil, as the walk along in the woods, representing hell. Just like the devil tempted Jesus, he did so with Brown,
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
The ambiguity surrounding Young Goodman Brown's wife, Faith, immediately becomes apparent at the story's beginning. As Young Goodman Brown is leaving his comfortable and reverent Puritan home to embark upon this mysterious journey, Faith unexpectedly plunges her "pretty head into the street" allowing the wind to tousle and "play with the pink ribbons of her cap"(1199). Hawthorne uses natural imagery, such as the image of the wind "playing" with Faith's pink ribbons, to convey Faith's attachment to nature; the dark and mysterious part of life that is somewhere outside the constraints of Puritan society. In fact, the image...
A specific person in the town that is displaced with the devil and Brown’s loss of innocence is Goody Cloyse. When Goody Cloyse is approached by the devil she accepts him, showing that she is well acquainted with him. When Goodman Brown witnesses this interaction between the devil and Goody Cloyse he says, “That old woman taught me my catechism” (Kelly 195). Brown’s catechism is brought up to represent his childhood and contrast with this loss of innocence. Brown learns that the minister and Deacon Gookin are also heading to the meeting with the devil.
Nathaniel Hawthorne uses different people as symbols throughout "Young Goodman Brown." The largest symbolic roles in the story are goodman Brown and his wife Faith. Both of the characters' names are symbolic and representative of their personalities. "'With Heaven above and Faith below, I will stand firm against the devil!' cried goodman Brown," is just one of many quotes that directly relates goodman Brown's personality with his name (189). Goodman Brown is truly a good man. Faith, goodman Brown's wife, also has a name that is indicative of her nature. The story directly supports this point in the phrase "Faith, as the wife was aptly named . . . " (184). Faith is persistent in trying to keep goodman Brown off the path of sin in the first part of the story: " . . . pr'y thee, put off your journey until sunrise, and sleep in your own bed to-night" (184). Hawthorne does an excellent job of turning the main characters into symbols that are prominent throughout the story.
In the story of young Goodman brown the Author of the story, Nathaniel Hawthorne, uses symbolic characters that represent life. In the story, Young Goodman Brown goes into a journey into the cold, dark, and lonely forest. Faith, his wife is rejected by young Goodman brown when she asks him to stay with her that night and to forget about the journey. Young Goodman Brown tells her that she will be all right without him and that he has to go into that journey. This is an image of what many people do, if not all people. We do not listen to our sin or to people who only wants the best for us, for example, our family. In Young Goodman Brown, Faith does not only resemble Young Goodman Brown’s religion, but it also resembles his support and security
Literary Motifs in “Young Goodman Brown” A literary motif “is a conspicuous element, such as a type of incident, device, reference, or formula, which occurs frequently in works of literature” (Abrams 169). Incredibly, this one tale, “Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, contains an array of familiar literary motifs (Axelrod 337). First of all, the tale involves the common motif of a journey in quest of something. The young Goodman Brown, at the beginning of the story, takes leave of his wife, Faith, in order to journey into the woods where he keeps an appointment with the devil: "My love and my Faith," replied young Goodman Brown, "of all nights in the year, this one night must I tarry away from thee.
Clarice Swisher in “Nathaniel Hawthorne: a Biography” states: ”When Hawthorne called his stories ‘romances,’ he meant that they belong within the romantic movement that . . . . emphasize imagination and personal freedom” (18). It is the purpose of this essay to interpret the theme of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown” and determine where this “personal freedom” leads.
Nathaniel Hawthorne utilizes symbolism throughout his short story Young Goodman Brown to impact and clarify the theme of good people sometimes doing bad things. Hawthorne uses a variety of light and dark imagery, names, and people to illustrate irony and different translations. Young Goodman Brown is a story about a man who comes to terms with the reality that people are imperfect and flawed and then dies a bitter death from the enlightenment of his journey through the woods. Images of darkness, symbolic representations of names and people and the journey through the woods all attribute to Hawthorne's theme of good people sometimes doing bad things.
Even the first two characters introduced both seem as innocent as could be. Take the name Young Goodman Brown for example; innocence is associated with the word "young" as well as the word "good." Hawthorne uses these words to give Brown a naïve persona much like most young Puritans of his time. His newly wed wife, Faith, symbolizes the faith he clings to in his life. Hawthorne must have also used her name as a symbol for not only Brown but for all Puritans. Puritans cling to faith blindly hoping they are the chosen ones entitled an entrance to heaven. The color pink, of the ribbon she wears, is a color associated with childhood innocence and purity. Young, innocent, and pure are all things Brown considers his wife to be at the beginning of the story. After we are introduced to the first characters Brown sets off into the forest where he will eventually learn the truth of things and in doing so lose his innocence. Once on his journey into the forest Hawthorne writes, "He had taken a dreary road, darkened by all the gloomiest trees of the forest, which barely stood aside to let the narrow path creep through, and closed immediately behind" (148). Brown is venturing into the unknown; the path closing behind him is symbolic of there being no turning back once he has lost his innocence. Once on his way with the devil, Brown learns of his father's and grandfather's affiliations with him. Once honest people in Brown's eyes, these men now become symbols of how surrounded by evil he actually is.
Symbolism in “Young Goodman Brown” is not discrete. This makes analysis of this piece seemingly simple. We can observe the various roles that Goodman’s wife, Faith, holds in the story. In “Young Goodman Brown” Faith holds the major roles of purity and protection as Goodman embarks on his journey through the wilderness.
In the beginning of the story Hawthorne uses the name Faith for Young Goodman Browns’ wife. Faith is a symbol of her husband’s strong faith in God. Young Goodman Browns’ own name is a symbol for the innocence of young, good men, and the journey represents the loss of their innocence. Faith urges him to stay and not journey into the forest, but Goodman Brown reassures her by saying “Say thy prayers, dear Faith, and go to bed at dusk, and no harm will come to thee”(cite) Goodman Brown believes his faith will help him overcome what the devil has to offer and while still maintaining his puritan faith. Puritans believe the forest to be inhabited by the devil and the woods in "Young Goodman Brown" are an obvious symbol of his journey into sin and darkness. Even Goodman Brown supports this idea when he says to himself as he is walking along, "There may be a devilish Indian behind every tree... What if the devil himself should be at my very elbow!" As Goodman Brown enters the forest he meets a traveler who is waiting there for ...
...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.