Nathaniel Hawthorne

“Young Goodman Brown”

Nathaniel Hawthorne 1804-1864

• Born in Salem, Massachusetts

• Puritan Background

• Ancestor of John Hathorne – one of the three judges in the Salem Witch Trials

His Themes in Writing

• Somber background of Puritan Life– The sinful

man– Hypocrisy

• The Dark side of Human Nature– Religious in

Nature

His Most Famous Works

• Novels– The House of Seven Gables– The Scarlet Letter

• Short Stories– “The Minister’s Black Veil”– “Young Goodman Brown”

Who were the Puritans?

• Very strict: simple worship• Pure churches: no statues,

tinted windows, or music• Long hours in prayer

– Faith and knowledge of Bible more important than good works

• Clergy consists of men of equal rank: no women

• Deep belief in predestination- only the elect would go to heaven.

The Infamous Puritans• The Salem

Witch Trials put the Puritans prominently in the history books

• Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible put it in Literature classes forever

And Now, Nathanial Hawthorne’s Short Story

“Young Goodman Brown”

Some Basics…

• Characters– Young

Goodman Brown

– His wife, Faith

– Mysterious man in the forest with a strange looking staff

YGB as an Allegory

• What is an allegory?

– A story in which each element symbolizes something more

• Author’s main interest is the deeper, ulterior meaning

– Symbols are always related, attempting to convey deeper meaning

• Extended metaphor

• Can be defined as an extended metaphor or a series of symbols, but really can be distinguished from both. – It is a system of related comparisons, not one

comparison drawn out like an extended metaphor

• Usually a 1:1 correspondence b/t detail and meanings.

– It differs from symbolism• emphasizes the meanings of the images

– not the image itself

The Allegory of Young Goodman Brown – Basics • First some basics /

Common Symbols

• The Snake Satan – The Devil

• Why? – See Genesis Chapter 3

The Allegory of Young Goodman Brown - Basics• The Forest

• Evil / Sin

The Allegory of Young Goodman Brown – Basics

• Stars / Sky / Heavenly Bodies

• Heaven / Connection with God

The Allegory of Young Goodman Brown - Basics

• White Purity

• Red Sin

• Pink ????

The Allegory of Young Goodman Brown - Basics• Fire

• Hell

The Allegory of Young Goodman Brown – now, not basic• Young Goodman Brown

• The common Christian man – brown is neutral

• Faith• A Christian’s faith

• Witches• Satan / Evil