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The Story of Young Goodman Brown

 

            The story of Young Goodman Brown's expedition with the devil becomes his disparaging revelation of human nature. In the beginning of the story Young Goodman Brown is faithful to the idea that the people he respects and loves remain pure and stray from sin. At the end of Brown's experience he has lost his faith in humanity, and continues through life scornful and distrustful. Brown realizes throughout his trip through the forest that the people he venerates are not the holy figures that they appear. When Goodman Brown loses his faith he spins into madness and after his own maniacal rage he is wary of the evils others commit. Brown's human perception is altered by his realization that even the most honorable and purest of visages can hide a soul riddled with treachery.
             Initially during Brown's walk with the devil he is timid and reluctant to continue on their forbidden path. He first attempts to stray from his companion by claiming that he would shame his father's memory by continuing on their journey. His pride in his family's name prevents him from tainting his conscious. The devil undermines this excuse by revealing his past associations with his forefather's as well as many respected clergy men across New England. Upon realization of his family's sins a large part of his moral foundation crumbles. Brown does not find solace or justification in the information the devil provides but is captivated enough to remain in the wilderness. Although disheartened to a certain extent, Brown searches for a logical deterrence in his connection with the local church by describing the evident guilt he would subsequently carry in his minister's presence. The sincerity of Brown's assumption about his minister is enough to excite the devil's enthusiastic laughter. Until Brown's journey into the darkness only the devil was aware of the minister's hypocrisy. .
             Regardless of the figures he honored and held holy in his mind, his love and respect for his wife Faith reigns supreme until his admiration is skewed.


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