Young Goodman Brown

Young Goodman Brown

By Nathaniel Hawthorne

        In the story “Young Goodman Brown”, Hawthorne used a lot of symbolism which made it a bit difficult to comprehend. I had the concept of it being a love story when I first began to read it. Although that wasn’t the case, re-reading it made it relatable to some situations in which I have been through. When our faith is as strong as can be, we expect for all to go well. At times our faith fails us and we’re left with unexpected outcomes.

At some points throughout the story I would stop reading and imagine the setting. I could see Goodman Brown kissing his wife goodbye while her pink ribbons whisked in the air and the lined up, serpent like staff pulling him quickly through the forest. Goodman Brown was set to run an errand and return back to his wife the following morning. His path leads him to go through a dark forest, in which he would encounter evil temptation. Many times Goodman Brown hesitated to continue his journey and return back to his wife Faith, but evil kept pulling him in further.

First off, Goodman Brown and his wife Faith come off as a very genuine couple; both seeming so perfect and well mannered. Their beliefs in Christianity and faith made it looked as if that was all they needed to live this pure life. When it comes to symbolism, I think that his wife represented his faith because he had known of nothing else so good and pure in life. Faith was all he believed in, until he sees her in sin and collaborating with the devil.

Goodman Brown shows innocence and is shocked when the goodness of people is being taken over by the devil. While walking through the forest, he stops a couple of times which I think of it as if he was questioning his faith. As far as the people he encountered, I believe that they were a sign of evil and sin. He believed in the good Christian nature of Goody Cloyse, Deacon Gookin and the minister until the devil shows that they are all in with him. Apart from losing his faith, he stops believing in the good people portray to have.