Faith In Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown

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The story of Young Goodman Brown, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, has many aspects that symbolize faith, it being compromised, and the pitfalls of temptation. Hawthorne sets up a story of a man who is tempted by the devil and succumbs because of his curiosity and the weakness of his faith. He seems more concerned with how his faith appears to other people than with the fact that he has decided to meet with the devil. Nathaniel Hawthorne shows that a strong faith is the greatest asset of a man or woman and when that faith is compromised, the effects of this can cause one to be filled with doubt and cynicism toward the rest of the world.
Young Goodman Brown’s lack of a sound faith leads him to be deceived and tempted by the devil. Goodman Brown’s wife was aptly named Faith. In this story, her name symbolizes religious faith, mostly Goodman Brown’s, and she herself symbolizes his lack of faith. Faith wore pink ribbons in her hair that also symbolize Goodman Brown and his faith when it is lost. The color pink is associated with innocence and purity, and the ribbons are there to represent Goodman Brown’s innocence up until the point of his demise. The traveler, or devil, also assists in destroying how Goodman Brown perceives his wife and the townspeople. The devil strangely comes into sight, appearing to be a completely ordinary person as he wears decent clothing. He then offers his staff to Goodman Brown, giving him the chance to toy with the prospect of evil. The staff is encircled by a carved serpent, which is a biblical symbol of an evil demon. In the Book of Genesis, the serpent tempts Eve to …show more content…
This kind of faith, which depends so much on other people’s views, is easily weakened. Along with curiosity and innocence, it is easy for him to be swayed in his faith and wonder whether or not if everyone around him is evil and if they are easily swayed
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