Loss Of Faith Exposed In Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown

The plot of Hawthorne’s short story sees Goodman Brown attending a secret meeting with a stranger who seems to know Brown’s father and grandfather. The stranger, who is apparently the Devil, tries to convince Brown to join the local coven of witches. Brown resists the offer from the stranger because he is a morally upstanding young Puritan. His religious convictions do not waver even after he discovers the witches in the local coven are all respected members of his community. The one time that his belief is shaken is when he identifies the newest convert to the coven as his devout young wife, Faith. The plot resolves with Brown questioning the reality of his meeting and speculating that it may have been a dream. Hawthorne’s characterization of Brown is as a devout and morally righteous member of the Salem Puritan community. His characterization of Brown’s young wife, Faith, is as a pure and devout young wife who is obedient and innocent. The characterization of the stranger gives the reader the impression that he is the Devil and not as trustworthy as he seems to be. Goodman Brown is the short story’s protagonist. An argument can …show more content…
The dominant theme running through Hawthorne’s story is that of the loss of innocence. The stranger tells Brown that he knows Brown’s father and grandfather which leads to a loss of innocence of sorts regarding Brown’s faith in his family. He is a loyal Puritan and upstanding member of his community and believes that his fellow Puritans in Salem are as pious as he. This leads to another loss of innocence as Brown discovers that many of the community members that he held in such high regard were actually members of the local witch’s coven. The final loss of innocence for Brown is finding the newest member of the coven is his young devout wife, Faith. This loss of his wife’s perceived innocence is what finally shakes Brown’s own moral

Show More

Loss Of Faith Exposed In Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown

Related Documents: Loss Of Faith Exposed In Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown

Loss Of Faith Exposed In Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown