The setting in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown” subtly brings out additional meanings through symbolism, ultimately reveals Brown’s personality and values, and drastically shows a change in Brown throughout the journey. First of all, the symbols range from the names of the characters, to the very setting in which the majority of the plot takes place. While using these symbols Hawthorne gets his points across by more then just using plot or themes, but rather by taking his opinions to another level of literary elements by using setting. This story could be analyzed as literal, or one could look at this story in an allegorical way. The additional message that Hawthorne is trying to suggest, which the stranger explains, is that “evil is the nature of mankind” (Hawthorne 454).
Young Goodman Brown’s name is also symbolic, his youth and good nature are symbolized by his name. Brown’s youth suggest that he is uncorrupted and innocent young man. The marriage between Young Goodman Brown and Faith symbolizes that he clings to a faith that is good in the world. Also, the pink ribbon worn in Faith’s hair serves as an emblem of heavenly faith, it also symbolize her purity and cleanliness as a wife and as a Christian. But one must take into consideration that the color pink is not of it’s own, it is a combination of white and red.
In his Autobiography, Benjamin Franklin recognized the merit of the virtuous life that Puritan colonist hold so dear. He began to see that a path of virtue not only led to moral perfection but also to worldly success. And while his path differed considerably from the Puritans, in many ways, they were similar enough to arrive at the same destination. After attending a sermon that defined the meaning of a virtuous life, Benjamin Franklin sought to achieve moral perfection. Like the Puritans, he planned to combat natural inclinations by building a life of strong moral preservation.
He perpetuates his delusions by hoping that if he becomes a gentleman, Estella will accept him as an equal and requite his love. Of course, the truth is that from the beginning, Pip's birth has more legitimacy than that of Estella's. For, his parents were married and, albeit poor, they were certainly not criminals as are the parents of Estella, whose birth came out of the streets of London. In addition to the theme of Appearance vs. Reality, the relationship of Pip and Estella also points to a salient theme in the works of Dickens: Class Stratification.
The underlying meaning or theme of a story is often depicted through symbolism, but what is symbolism? It can be defined differently by many people. Our text book describes it as “something that has a literal identity but also stands for something else—something that is widely understood and has been developed over a long period of time or by common agreement” (Clugston, 2010). Even when looking at a dictionary it does not typically give a thorough answer. It is because symbolism is created by the author.
This novel uses the emotions of the narrator, the actions and events in the story and the way that they connect with and clearly stem from society at the time that the novel was written, to make the novel easy to relate to for a reader and allows them to take on board the lessons and themes of The Handmaid's Tale in a more personal and meaningful way. A fictional novel can be made to feel real to a reader by use of details. If a book uses a lot of small details and intricacies it creates a world around the novel that can feel convincing and suck the reader in. Often books that invent a world tend to play off the world that already exists around them and then alter things so that the reader has a way 'in' to the plot and a level to connect with it on and then can open their mind to what the author chooses to add. Some famous series that do this include Harry Potter by J.K.Rowling, Lord of the Rings by J.R.R.Tolkein and Naughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman.
But what sets these journeys apart are their purposes. The purpose for a journey to be undertaken can vary greatly from religious enlightenment and colonising to seeking knowledge and psychological growth. On all types of journeys, the traveler is in search of identity. Sometimes, the “search” is not intentional, but results from reaching the goal. This search can involve the traveler understanding both positive and negative facets about themselves, including articles, perspectives and traits.
Stories Stress the Importance to Have Faith; Comparative Essay Stories can have a vast variety of different aspects, patterns, and meanings. A story usually consists of a plot, or story line, that leads the protagonist on "the hero's quest"; a journey the central character endures throughout a story. Stories are produced to divert the reader from life, or to teach the reader a lesson. For some, stories are not just words that are strung together; they are words with deeper meanings and ideas expressed through suspense, action, and emotion. Stories are an essence of life, and help shape individuals as they grow.
The Question I was exploring was “How has the writer used symbolism to represent what she actually describes in her story?” This question was difficult to answer because symbolism is not extensively applied in the story. My understanding of the work that am writing about changed in the context of the true meaning that the author sought to illustrate in her writing. I understood that the author used symbols in the context of culture to make the reader understand the cultural setting of the story. The hardest part in my writing process was to determine the type of symbols used in the story. The essay strength is its ability to review one of the difficult techniques that Alice Walker has used to narrate the story.
Dale Disney Professor Pucciarelli English Composition: Section 64 21 September 2011 FICTION OR DESCRIPTION There are various techniques to write and share stories. Which technique is best to use seems to be subjective. In both Joan Didion’s essay “On Keeping a Notebook” and Patricia Hampl’s essay “The Dark Art of Description” illustrates this fact clearly. While Joan Didion uses rhetorical questions, personal anecdotes, and imaginary facts to record her life experiences, Patricia Hampl uses imagery and vignettes in her writings, but based on the fact that Patricia Hampl uses less falsehoods in her stories, her style of writing is more appealing to the reader. Joan Didion uses rhetorical questions in her notebook to engage readers into the story of her notebook writings.