Period 1 AP Literature & Composition 24 October 2014 Analysis of Symbolism in Young Goodman Brown In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s, Young Goodman Brown, the devil’s staff symbolizes the inevitable loss of innocence that will arise from the temptation of the sinful nature of man, probing at the idea that no one is truly pure. The beginning of Young Goodman Brown starts off with a sense of mystery and suspense. The audience understands that Goodman Brown is going on a “journey” in the woods of Salem. Hawthorne depicts Brown as a man who takes pride in his faith and his family. Shortly after he starts his journey, he meets with the mysterious traveler with a serpent on his staff.
In the beginning of the story, Young Goodman Brown is leaving his wife Faith at sunset to go on a journey that cannot wait. The images of a sunset and of the approaching nighttime illustrate the fear of the unknown. Goodman Brown must travel through the darkness before he reaches the light of knowledge just as the prisoners in Allegory of the Cave must travel from the dark cave in order to reach the light. As the story continues, Hawthorne uses the image of a “dreary road, darkened by all the gloomiest trees of the forest” to heighten the fear of the unknown. Goodman Brown has left the comfort of the cave of confusion and is beginning to discover the imperfections of the world and of its people.
The Crucible: Prompt 4 In Arthur Miller’s play, The Crucible, John Proctor is a very multifaceted character. He is, as I see it, a tragic hero. He has sinned by the laws of the church that rules by a theocracy in his town, and yet also yearns until his last breath to make the decisions a good man would in order to set things right in his town. Throughout Acts I and II, John hides his past affair with Abigail Williams, a previous servant of his household. Abigail tries to get him to come back to her constantly, but John gives his love to his wife Elizabeth Proctor and shuts Abigail away.
In chapters nine and ten, Hawthorne explains that “Mr. Dimmesdale has evidently began to fail” (109) by maintaining to be the perfect example of holiness. For years now “his form grew emaciated” (109) trying to protect his reputation, by keeping his secret from the townspeople. As much as he tries to hide his sorrows, the people discern his actions and emotions through the way he interacts in the community. Dimmesdale is now “considered by his more fervent admirers as a little less than a heaven-oriented apostle” (109).
Selected Short Stories Of Nathaniel Hawthorne According to Hawthorne, human being's biggest failure is inability to accept imperfection and to sense evil on their neighbor. In the book selected short stories by Nathaniel Hawthorne, this failure appears in form of a small birthmark in The Birthmark and an imaginary meeting with the devil and other people in Young Goodman Brown. In the short story Young Goodman Brown by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the main character Brown destroys his access to divinity by not having faith in the goodness of people around him. In The Birthmark, Aylmer didn't reach divinity as he failed to embrace individual imperfections. In order to access divinity the first step is to accept imperfection and this is a success in The Birthmark.
After finding Pete’s cousin, Washington Hogwallop, having a place to stay and later getting caught by the sheriff the three men are saved by Hogwallop’s son. They take the car and make it to the crossroads. The crossroads represent a place where a life altering decision is to be made. After Pete and Delmar go through the baptism process they think they are going to be good people so when they see Tommy, a random person standing on the crossroads, they give him a ride. Tommy tells them that he sold his soul to the devil and from there the men know that they are making a mistake and something bad is going to happen.
“-tell them nothing of unnatural causes.”(Miller I pg.18). Reverend Parris claimed to have seen Abigail and Betty running naked in the forest and calling the spirits. He knew that it was a sin and that he should probably confess to what he saw. Instead Reverend Parris ignored his morals by trying to hide the truth to save his own reputation. In a way he did not condemned the act of the devil because he lied to his people and to the Heavens by not telling what he saw.” It is agreed, sir-it is agreed- we will abide by your judgment.” (Miller I pg.40).
Cameron Tipton Mrs. Woodard English 101 13 May 2015 Young Goodman Brown: The Dynamic Dynamite In a dream, Young Goodman Brown finds himself unsure of everything he has believed in. Young Goodman Brown is changed by his spiritual journey and is enlightened by the darkness that lies in the people he trust the most. A few influences play key roles in his transformation during his journey through the forest. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story, “Young Goodman Brown”, the audience discovers a path of destruction in which the main character is dynamically changed due to his innocence, corruptibility, and faith. Innocence is easily corrupted by the gestures of the obscene.
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story “Young Goodman Brown” follows a Puritan man’s nightmarish encounter with the devil, which results in the loss his faith and virtue. Flannery O’Connor’s tale “A Good Man Is Hard to Find” details how a southern grandmother is only able to discover what it truly means to be good when she is faced with imminent death. Both texts showcase the classic battle of good versus evil, and provide altering viewpoints on the possible outcomes of this faceoff. The stories by Hawthorne and O’Connor both tell the tale of what occurs when a seemingly righteous and faithful person is faced with a character of pure evil, though the stories’ starkly contrasting settings and tones build each story in a different direction. Although the themes of the stories are strikingly similar, the difference in setting helps to shape how the encounter between good and evil plays out.
Abigail is supported by her uncle Reverend Parris who further instructs Susanna to ‘Go directly home and speak nothing of unnatural causes.’ The use of imperatives ‘go’ suggests a tone of urgency and insecurity. Miller presents Reverend Parris as one of the people in Salem who sees sense as he denies the presence of ‘unnatural things’ however the reader later realizes that he says this because he wants to save his reputation. The reader is told that Reverend Parris has ‘enemies’ and they will ‘ruin’ him if they were to find that his daughter ‘trafficked with spirits in the forest’. This suggests that as a community they are not at peace, they have enemies that can ruin them forever. Millers use of stage direction demonstrates Parris’s anxiety ’his eyes going wide’ As a minister of the church he should not be feeling anxious however in the community where he lives he has to be anxious as news spreads fast and accusations start and then there is the beginning of a witch