"Young Goodman Brown"

1. "Young Goodman Brown" Nathaniel Hawthorne

2. Nathaniel Hawthorne • Born 1804 in Salem, Mass. • At age four, Nathaniel had to go live with his mother's brothers, after his father, a ship's captain, died during a voyage • His family had deep roots in Salem, dating back to Puritan ancestors in the 1600s, linked to judge of Salem witch trials • After learning of witch trial participation, he added the “w” in his last name • After attending Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, Hawthorne returned to Salem, where he spent a dozen years reading and developing his skills as a fiction writer until his death in 1864

3. Hawthorne cont’d • One of most well known and frequently read short stories is “Young Goodman Brown”(1835)- historical allegory • Lots of elements within the story are typical Hawthorne, such as the superstitious, Romantic elements and the Puritanical setting

4. Puritanical beliefs • Members of a Protestant group in England and New England in the 1600s and 1700s who opposed the Church of England • God’s elect- If not a part, then condemned to hell • Strict moral code caused them to see evil where didn’t necessarily exist; sought to eliminate satanic influence • Story true to Salem atmosphere at time of witch trials

5. Puritanical Beliefs- The Forest • Puritans viewed forest as Devil’s Domain • Native American dwelling grounds • Literal and symbolic place of habitat for Devil in story • A trip in the middle of the night would be considered a questionable act

6. And the story begins… • Young Goodman Brown • His wife, Faith • Significance of their names • Associated Colors • Indications • Young Goodman Brown goes on late night trip

7. The Forest • Faith pleads with her husband to reconsider his journey • “Dost thou doubt me already?” • Blesses him, hopes he finds all well when returns • “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…” • Often a place associated with danger, obscurity, solitude, confusion, the unknown, evil, sin, and death • Nothing good occurs in the middle of the night in the forest

8. Meeting with the Devil • Passes a crook in the road • Beholds “the figure of a man, in grave and decent attire, seated at the foot of an old tree” • “You are late” • “Faith kept me back a while”

9. Meeting with the Devil • Begin journeying into the deepest part of the forest • YGB bears “considerable resemblance to [him]” in expression; might’ve been taken for father and son • Older man- “indescribable air of one who knew the world” • Fiend invites YGB to travel farther into the woods, telling him of his general acquaintance with people of the town • “We are a people of prayer, and good works to boot, and abide no such wickedness”

10. Meeting with the Devil • YGB addresses Devil as his friend • Tells him he wants to travel no further • Devil lets YGB know that many have “drunk the communion wine” with him, along with his well-acquaintance with Brown’s father and grandfather • Brown is astonished; still clings to Faith • Fiend offers staff to YGB, lest he become weary on his journey • See another figure in the distance…

11. Goody Cloyse • Meaning of name • Catechism teacher • Moral and spiritual adviser • YGB is surprised to see her in the forest • Well-acquainted with the “old friend,” who touches her with his serpent-like staff

12. The Devil and his Remarkable Staff • “Bore likeness of a great black snake, so curiously wrought that it might almost be seen to twist and wriggle itself like a living serpent…assisted be the uncertain light” • “He threw it down at her Feet, where, perhaps, it assumed life, being one of the rods which its owner had formerly lent to the Egyptian magi” • Biblical Allusions • Genesis 3 • Exodus 7:8-12

13. Eden vs. Forest • Adam • Curious about forbidden knowledge • Encounter serpent • Enticed by a tree • Suffer great fall from innocence • Young Goodman Brown • Curious about forbidden knowledge • Meets with Devil • Enticed by a forest • Suffer great fall from innocence

14. Other Encounters • The Minister and Deacon Gookin also spotted in the forest • YGB hears the men say, “There is a goodly young woman to be taken into communion” • YBG beholds diverse crowd baptized into perverse devil worship and commune with the enemy • “Evil is the nature of mankind. Evil must be your only happiness. Welcome again, my children, to the communion of your race”

15. The Journey Continues • "My Faith is gone!" cried he, after one stupefied moment.” • Faith, like Eve (desiring forbidden knowledge), loses her innocence after attending baptism • "There is no good on earth; and sin is but a name. Come, devil; for to thee is this world given.“ • At this point, YGB loses his Faith

16. Communing with Evil • At the last moment before his and his wife's baptism into the evil society gathered in the forest, Brown urges his wife: "Look up to Heaven, and resist the Wicked One." • “Resist the Devil and he will flee from you” • Did not know if Faith obeyed YGB or not • Awakes in peaceful solitude, sees pious men and Faith carry out normal activities • But the damage is done, and he becomes "a stern, a sad, a darkly meditative, a distrustful, if not a desperate man" 

17. Final Days • “And when he had lived long, and was borne to his grave a hoary corpse, followed by Faith, an aged woman, and children and grandchildren, a goodly procession, besides neighbors not a few, they carved no hopeful verse upon his tombstone, for his dying hour was gloom.”

18. Questions Left to Answer • What is the cause of Goodman’s entering into the forest? • Is this a dream or reality? • If this were a dream, what effect does this have on Goodman Brown?

19. Themes • Everything is not always as it seems. • Evil can taint those who seem upright. • That which appears to be good may, indeed, be evil. • Humans tend to prejudge others based on insufficient evidences and biased preconceptions.