My Essay Essay

    At the end of the day, I don't think that our protagonist, Young Goodman Brown, was ever on the outskirts of town, I'd argue that he followed the old man not into the woods but in some form of purgatory, some form of hell. He went mad after a few hours, hell made him lose his faith, hell distorted his world, his world became hell. He lost his faith in hell, he lost it all. No hope, no world to call his own, how worn'd, a silhouette of Mr. Brown and not much more, no one to trust and a sad little tomb, a world that only knows gloom.
   Hawthorne wrote of paranoia and despair. How crippling was that what happened to Hawthorne's own creation, Mr. Brown.
    Mr. Brown, all but a man caught up in a devilish scheme. Young Goodman Brown, leaves despite his wife’s, despite Faith’s warning, to go for stroll on such a night. There on the outskirts of town, would such an encounter would happen, Young Goodman Brown comes fade to face to the great evil himself, the devil! Know how do we know this? From within the story, the old man, the devil, holds a staff with what might’ve been a writhing snake, an allusion to the old story of Adam, Eve, and the snake. Further on we see that the old man is referee to such a high degree of matter, by one of Brown’s catechism teacher, from which she’s referred as a she-devil, a witch. Later we see the old man at the ritual of acceptance, of his brand new children, Brown and his Faith. Brown grows weary, not sure if what’s going on is a trick or something else, something more sinister. The old man leaves, leaving the snake staff to guide Brown if he were to wish to continue, leaving brown in the dead of night with nothing but the forest, the ever rustling, howling, screaming forest on a windless night. The noises of the forest, booting of Indians afar, trampling hoofs, townsfolk, yet menacingly was such the forest and its noise. Screaming! Brown’s Faith! Double-time! And through the forest does Brown go through. Red was the scene, flames blazing, hints of red over the alter. Brown’s fellow townsfolk, those he looked up to, the innocent, the maidens, the gentleman, those who to him gave no hint of such of such sinister nature. Devote people of the church whom wouldn’t go to the devil on a whim, yet here they themselves were, to accept new brothers and sisters to their arms. The devil begins and ends the ritual, leaving Brown all alone in the night. Brown, now a broken man, lived his days without happiness, for he lost what he once was in that forest, he lost his Faith to the devil.
    Hawthorn with his Young Goodman Brown is about having your sense of the world broken, shredded, and then finally spit on, For what happened to Mr. Brown on such night, was it real or not? Was everything real? The town goes back to normal, there is his Faith, there they’re all fine... right? Real or not is relevant for we see the effect of such an idea, a horrible idea. Consumed by paranoia, consumed by fear, consumed by mistrust, damned to be alone within a world full of people. Are we to choose to turn a blind eye to such a world? Would we rather off be not knowing what others do amidst the night? Who are the people closest to us? Who are we to question them ourselves? Blind faith or to find such a sad truth? What option are we to choose?
    Yet even though Young Goodman’s final hours are bleak, I don’t believe that there’s such despair. Young Goodman Brown was tricked, the Devil was the cause of his misery, had he not met the devil, would he not died such a pathetic death, alone. Not a single ominous, suspicious, or anywhere creepy thing happens to Mr. Brown til he meets the old man. If he were to meet his old teacher beforehand, this theory wouldn’t stand. Although his wife warns him of going out on such a night through a premonition, I believe this is where the devil decides it’s time to strike! The Devil has to meet him somewhere Young Goodman Brown has no contact with anyone else, what better than the middle of the night, on the outskirts of town. The devil must’ve the just conjured up something, I don’t believe his teacher was the real thing, there was no teacher, a mere illusion, all but false. Conspicuous how the forest itself comes alive, a little too much for such a windless night. How convenient that all of Mr. Browns heroes, authority figures, those he’s respected the most are out there within the circle, as devil worshipers. Too convenient! Also after the ritual ends, the twig that was once in fire, nothing but a cold dew that brushes next to his cheek. His wife, loving him dearly as seen within the first paragraph , asks not for his health the next morning but kisses him as if nothing happened. Brown was tricked! Brown was played! Brown world was unjustly taken! The devil won.