Hawthorne

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Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown”

Hawthorne’s tales can be and have been interpreted in many different ways. However, one strong theme that most of his writings have drawn upon is the Puritan religion and the story of young Goodman Brown is no exception. In this story Hawthorne highlights the hypocrisy of the religion and shows a young man’s subsequent disillusionment with it.
The most prevalent theme in the story is the hypocrisy of the Puritan religion. The status symbol for the Puritans was a good lineage. Being from a long line of upstanding, outwardly righteous citizens gave you good standing in the community. Neighbors saw you as from “good stock” and you were respected for the actions of your ancestors and relatives. The devil started his discourse with Goodman Brown by telling him the truth about his family. Goodman Brown began backing out of the deal and gave part of the reason as family pride. He came from a good line of men and his family members had never done anything evil or untoward in their lives. He was sure that he was betraying the ideals of his family by even contemplating completing this evil deed. The devil then tells Goodman that “I helped your grandfather, the constable, when he lashed the Quaker woman so smartly through the streets of Salem; and it was I that brought your father a pitch-pine knot, kindled at my own hearth, to set fire to an Indian village, in King Phillip’s war.” (Hawthorne,2188) This is the first time that Goodman realizes that the actions his religion committed in the name of purity were actually sins. (Mikosh) Like Hawthorne, he realizes that his ancestors were involved in the murder and torture of other people. Goodman Brown had been ingrained with Puritan ideas and beliefs and never saw the witch trials in the light of sin. The fundamental basis of his beliefs is rooted in what he thought of his family. This strikes at the very core of his belief s...