Young Goodman Brown Character Analysis

Luke says that he knows that trials are coming and that it is the faith that he upholds that is bringing him trials, “I knew that life would try me.” (Dubus 16). It seems he lost his family because of hate. Paul is trying to figure out the best way he could have tried to save the family. “A Father’s Story,” at different points, portrays Luke Ripley as the antagonist and the protagonist

In the story “Young Goodman Brown”, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Young Goodman Brown faces a spiritual dilemma. This is the story of one young man’s hallucinogenic journey through the woods. Whether or not this was a dream or reality, finding out the devastating true nature about the holy community he was raised in, him being misinformed about the members of his family, or the continuous struggle to hold on to his fault; this journey will have crippling effects on the rest of his life. Young Goodman Brown’s seemly holy community turns out to be the exact opposite.

In the "Devil and Tom Walker", written by Washington Irving, and " The Devil and Daniel Webster", written by Steven Vincent Benet, the endings or resolutions of the stories are comparable. In " The Devil and Tom Walker", Tom sold his soul to the devil. He then was kind of nervous about it, bu to spite his wife he did it anyway. When he didn't complete what the devil asked of him, his wife went into the forest and sold her soul.

Being put in a time allotment where theocracies were plenteous, the novel contains numerous religious components that are then repudiated with the reason that it is being done for the sake of the Lord. All things considered, every one of the characters argued to be loyal adherents of the congregation and its statement, however all, yet Hester, ended up being to be deceiving themselves and the town. Hawthorne's incorporation of this incongruity is crucial to the section in light of the fact that it shows that regardless of how immaculate and honest one may show up, they might just be guarding a profound, dull mystery. Like the renowned saying goes, never judge a book by its

When Goodman Brown is being tempted to go to the witches Sabbath, we see even those who must be the most holy people of the town on their way to the Sabbath, making Goody Cloyse “a marvel, truly, that [she] should be so far in the wilderness at nightfall” (Hawthorne 3). The devil uses this person, especially to try to push Brown over the edge into temptation. Much like there is a ‘Faith’ keeping a person on the mindset of goodness and pureness, there are aspects of life drawing us away from the goodness. Temptation is everywhere and the goal of temptation is to lead you away from purity to the evil. This temptation is often ignored or denied in an attempt to not fall into it.

As said in a review of the overall story, “the conversations seem a natural outgrowth of Luke’s faith, that faith based in rituals outlined in intimate detail in the first half of the story [...] and when Luke’s faith is tested by Jennifer’s car accident, he will fall back on his spiritual life and act, not think”

The idea that faith being both his wife and his actual belief in religion cannot keep temptation away forever is made clear in the beginning of the story. In his colloquy with the devil, the goodman says “‘Faith kept me back a while,’ replied the young man, with tremor in his voice, caused by the sudden appearance of his companion, though not wholly unexpected” (Hawthorne 1). From this quote, it is evident that his wife Faith, being a symbol of his religious faith, did not want him to accompany the devil to the forest,

He knows what is right and wrong but one example has been haunting him in his life. Now in a Puritan society, sin had to have been confessed publicly and they must bear their shame. This however goes against what the Word actually says and this is what created Arthur Dimmesdale as a character. He most likely has already repented to God but his guilt will not leave until he confesses it to his congregation and it leads him to other “ways” of repentance. Being reminded of his guilt 24/7 causes his his health to deteriorate to the point of death, possibly alluding to the fact that the wages of sin are death.

Elie Wiesel had once sought comfort in his faith; however, he had struggled to maintain hope since. Another example of his struggle is when Elie had tried to pray to God even though he no longer believed in Him. After witnessing a child betray his own father, “a prayer formed inside [him]. A prayer to the God whom [he] no longer believed.” (91) Here, the motif of “eyes” is important because it shows how even though Elie had lost all faith in God, he still found himself asking for support from Him.

The Screwtape Letters In the reading of “The Screwtape Letters” a devil’s advocate by the name of Screwtape advises his fellow nephew, Wormwood to sway a patient into wrong thinking and positioning. A great amount of critical thinking has me constantly trying to describe the forceful tactics of Screwtape and his very sly and cunning ways. While the book is primarily targeted to Christians, it can be read and interpreted differently by a wide range of people (in my opinion). The devil works in many different ways to try and achieve the ultimate goal of gaining another follower.

In addition, in Young Goodman Brown Nathaniel Hawthorne, religious background tied drastically to the theme of the story. Like Young man Brown, Hawthorne was also a Puritan, though he tries to escape his ancestral heritage, he was still born into a Puritan family. Goodman Brown character, morality is tested in the story when he met with the traveler, and he hears his teacher Goody Cloyse. She taught him his “catechism”, although Goodman hears her talk with the devil he still ran to hide because he does not want to be seen associated with a man of such nature. He appears more concerned about how his faith looks to other people, rather than the fact that he has chosen to meet with the devil.

Often in the sermons pastors persuade their audience to behave in a spiritual or more fashion. Such is the case in Jonathan Edwards “Sinners in the hands of an Angry God” where he sends sinners to hell, who do not repent. Edwards wanted to impact his audience by appealing to their fears, pity and vanity. Edwards had a powerful impact on his puritan audience because of his use of a cautionary tone, clear imagery and complex figurative language.

Reverend Jonathan Edwards’ “from Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” relies upon pathos to recommit the Puritans. The sermon heavily plays upon the Puritan’s fear. During the sermon, Reverend Jonathan Edwards emphasizes that “there is nothing between [the Puritans] and hell but the air” without God (Edwards 80). Using their fear of hell and god, Reverend Jonathan Edwards compels Puritans to save themselves from eternal wrath by recommiting. However, fear is not the only emotion used.

He believes that his Faith is salvageable, yet due to Hawthorne’s use of deliberate ambiguity, Goodman Brown does not know “whether Faith obeyed” him or not (395). Goodman Brown awakes the next morning unsure if his Faith remains intact, unsure how the hellish communion ended. His uncertainty causes him to distrust those around him, “he shrank from” the minister and “snatched away [a] child,” from Goody Cloyse (395). He even distrusts his own Faith, deciding not to speak to her and only “looked sternly and sadly into her face,” attempting to discern if Faith is without sin (395). As such, he commits the unpardonable sin, looking for sin in others.

During the first night in the encampment and his experience during pipel’s hanging, the instability of Eliezer’s faith is observable. Nonetheless, this struggle does not equate to the complete abandonment of his trust in God. As opposed to weakening his commitment to God, the struggle aids in stabilizing his faith in the divine power. Moshe the Beadle asserts: “I pray to the God within me that He will give me the strength to ask Him the right questions” (Wiesel 53). This indicates that inquiring is a key element in maintaining one’s faith in God.