He hears his wife fly past and finds her pink ribbon. Brown then exclaims "My Faith is gone" (Hawthorne, 612). Again, he is not only referring to his wife, but his faith in Good is now broken. By loosing his faith, Brown is embracing sin, but he cannot see it in himself. "There is no good on earth; and sin is but a name." (Hawthorne, 612) Brown is now a desperate man who sees sin in all people. He is stricken with grief that his townsman are indeed sinners, including his beloved wife, whom he finds is not as pure as he thought she was. In this, Brown fails to realize that there is good on earth; even if people do sin they aren't wicked or evil.
"And sin is but a name". In this line, Brown is telling us that no matter what one will call it, a sin is a sin. Sin does not need a name. He is calling everyone a sinner except for himself, and he will not come to terms with his own sinful ways. As Brown approaches the congregation, he felt a "loathfull brotherhood". (Hawthorne 614) He is so consumed with hate for all of the sinners, who he thought were good Christians, that he is unwilling to forgive them.
Hawthorne's next theme deals with guilt. The first sign of guilt is evident when Goodman Brown first sets off on his journey. When he meets the devil, the Devil asks Brown why he is late, to which Brown replied "Faith kept me back awhile". (Hawthorne, 608) In a literal sense, his wife may have kept him back, but figuratively speaking, his faith in his religion kept him from immediately starting down the path of sin with the devil. Brown knows where he is going, by then he has second thoughts of the guilt he would have to endure on his path. He is not feeling guilt from sin, but from faith. Brown is afraid he will loose his faith in God if he travels down the road with the Devil.
The next example of guilt presents itself after Goodman Brown parts ways with the devil and he hears horses approaching "and deemed it advisable to conceal himself within the verge of the forest, conscious of the guilty purpose that had brought him thither.
In "Young Goodman Brown," there are many layers to read through. ... "Young Goodman Brown," is a symbol in the story. ... Goodman Brown's desire to journey without Faith leads to her sacrifice. ... For example, the names Faith and "Young Goodman Brown" symbolize more than a name. The name "Young Goodman Brown" symbolizes the average immature Puritan. ...
In "Young Goodman Brown" by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Young Goodman Brown breaks apart after he realizes that not everything is perfect and neither is he, after he takes a journey and meets the devil. I This story uses allegory by the names Faith and Young Goodman Brown 1. ... Young Goodman Brown 3. ... Young Goodman Brown and Devil Hawthorne uses the name "Young Goodman Brown" as a symbol in the story. ... The name Young Goodman Brown symbolizes the average untainted man. ...
As Goodman Brown and the old man continue walking, the old man offers Goodman Brown the staff and tells him that it will help him walk faster. ... Since Goodman Brown is Christian, he repels evil and since the staff represents evil, Goodman Brown cannot tolerate touching it. ... However, Goodman Brown does not want to explain why he is with the old man and where he is going, so Goodman Brown hides in the woods. ... Goodman Brown is shocked and yells, "Faith! ... Goodman Brown does not say hello to her. ...
It was through his short story "Young Goodman Brown" that Hawthorne uses it to explain Young Goodman Brown's excessive pride. ... Goodman Brown let his wife down because of his journey. ... The Devil leads Goodman Brown down a "dreary road" that made Goodman Brown skeptical. ... Goodman Brown is so angry that he challenges evil. ... Goodman Brown steps forward and does not have the power to stop. ...
In Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown,"" Nathaniel Hawthorne gives the characters in the stories symbolic names and shows the naivety of Goodman Brown and how he changes his thinking at the end of his journey. Goodman Brown is very nave. ... Each of the three parts of Young Goodman Brown's name has meaning of their own. ... Goodman calls for the question of whether or not Goodman Brown is in fact a "good man."" ... Goodman Brown's last name, Brown has symbolism in the color of it alone. ...
This tells us that Goodman Brown is not particularly old of age. 2. The protagonist is Goodman Brown. Hawthorne does not characterize Goodman Brown by his physical appereance. ... Goodman Brown's fellow-traveler tries to pull over young Goodman Brown to the dark and evil side symbollically by offering Goodman Brown his staff because Goodman is "so soon weary". ... I think that the author's tone towards the protagonist, Goodman Brown, is somewhat neutral. ...
As the story begins, Goodman Brown, a Puritan, is leaving his house around sunset. ... The devil drops his serpent-like staff before her astonishing Goodman Brown. ... Finding his wife's pink ribbon in the woods was a breaking point for Goodman Brown. ... Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown" can be viewed in several ways. ... Goodman Brown was tempted with evil. ...
Goodman Brown remarks, "What if the devil himself should be at my very elbow!" ... The abyss in "Young Goodman Brown" is when he sees his wife, Faith. ... The cloud of voices sweeps away and Goodman Brown is left in solitude. ... Young Goodman Brown returns to his home the next morning as a new man. ... Even Young Goodman Brown's " dying hour was gloom" (pg. 100). ...
Soon after getting into the forest, Goodman Brown spots a figure in the mist ahead. ... He (the figure) was an older man, which resembled Goodman Brown. ... Goodman Brown is surprised at the tales that he is hearing. ... Next, Goodman Brown is exposed to the evil in his religion. ... Goodman Brown was very fond of his wife. ...
