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 Moral allegories The sinful man Hypocrisy The Dark side of Human Nature Religious in Nature
His Most Famous Works Novels Short Stories The House of Seven Gables The Scarlet Letter Short Stories “The Minister’s Black Veil” “Young Goodman Brown”
Who were the Puritans? Wanted a “pure” church No candles No Images No stained glass windows Rejected the “showy” church of England Led very somber lives governed solely by a strict interpretation of the Bible No “nonsense” – dancing, gambling, drama, etc
Basic Beliefs of the Puritan Church Jesus Christ is the Son of God – died on the cross for everyone’s sins The whole Bible is the word of God and it is to be followed to the letter. The belief that these ideas are fact are known as a person’s faith
Basic Beliefs of the Puritan Church Faith is what is necessary to get into heaven. If you don’t go to heaven you go to hell. Sins, as defined by the Bible, are to be avoided at cut out of life A catechism is a book that is used to teach basic principles of the church
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 Hawthorn’s Short Story “Young Goodman Brown” …my favorite short story of the year…
Some Basics… Characters Young Goodman Brown His wife, Faith Mysterious man in the forest with a strange looking staff
Some Basics… Minor Character’s Notes… Constable: person in law enforcement Deacon: position in church held by congregation member Goody: abbr. of “goodwife”, female version of goodman Reverend: pastor Sabbath: day of rest in the Judo/Christian church – in this case, Sunday
YGB as an Allegory What is an allegory? A story where everything is a symbol Used commonly to instruct especially in religious matters Some famous allegories are: Dante’s Divine Comedy (more famous though is the first part commonly known as Dante’s Inferno John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress
The Allegory of Young Goodman Brown – Basics 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 The common Christian man – brown is neutral Faith A Christian’s faith Witches Satan / Evil