Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote a story of a man who is young in the ways of the world. This man, Goodman Brown, found that men are not all good, and later in the story he became convinced they are all bad. He could not remove the idea of universal evil from his mind. The loss of innocence and faith consumed him for the worse.
Paul J. Hurley proposed that the origin of evil from the story was within Goodman Brown. In the story, he walked into the woods by his own will and purposely sought evil. Hurley goes on to say there is no nightmare or hallucinations experienced by Brown. Everything Brown witnessed in the story was a projection of what he wanted to be real. Hurley states, “My point here is that “Young Goodman Brown” is a subtle work of fiction …show more content…
The first is Faith’s pink ribbons. Throughout the story Hawthorne mentions pink ribbons in Faith’s cap. The color pink can be represented as her innocence. The ribbons are youthful, which portray Faith as a modest woman. The pink ribbons are reintroduced to remind the reader of Faith’s purity. They become a symbol of Faith towards Goodman Brown. When he is at his lowest point in the forest, ribbons fall from the sky. Brown saw it as Faith falling for the tricks of the devil. At the end of the story Brown saw Faith wearing the ribbons. It made him doubtful of his experience in the forest. Her symbol of innocence returned. The second symbol is the devil 's staff. Before Brown knew the secret behind the man in the cloak, he saw the serpent carved on a man’s staff. It was a clear representation of the devil. The serpent is the symbol for evil. When Brown was asked to take the staff, he was still unsure of the devil’s identity. By taking the staff, Brown would be taking the hand of evil. He took the offer and lost his purity. Brown’s curiosity lead him into temptation. Ultimately the staff was the gateway to evil and Brown took it for
Paul J. Hurley proposed that the origin of evil from the story was within Goodman Brown. In the story, he walked into the woods by his own will and purposely sought evil. Hurley goes on to say there is no nightmare or hallucinations experienced by Brown. Everything Brown witnessed in the story was a projection of what he wanted to be real. Hurley states, “My point here is that “Young Goodman Brown” is a subtle work of fiction …show more content…
The first is Faith’s pink ribbons. Throughout the story Hawthorne mentions pink ribbons in Faith’s cap. The color pink can be represented as her innocence. The ribbons are youthful, which portray Faith as a modest woman. The pink ribbons are reintroduced to remind the reader of Faith’s purity. They become a symbol of Faith towards Goodman Brown. When he is at his lowest point in the forest, ribbons fall from the sky. Brown saw it as Faith falling for the tricks of the devil. At the end of the story Brown saw Faith wearing the ribbons. It made him doubtful of his experience in the forest. Her symbol of innocence returned. The second symbol is the devil 's staff. Before Brown knew the secret behind the man in the cloak, he saw the serpent carved on a man’s staff. It was a clear representation of the devil. The serpent is the symbol for evil. When Brown was asked to take the staff, he was still unsure of the devil’s identity. By taking the staff, Brown would be taking the hand of evil. He took the offer and lost his purity. Brown’s curiosity lead him into temptation. Ultimately the staff was the gateway to evil and Brown took it for