Symbols and Symbolism in Young Goodman Brown Essay

Within the Christian faith, there lies the belief that all mankind are born sinners and through their faith can seek redemption. This belief can be found in more detail within the Christian text known as the Bible. An example of this can be found in the Genesis chapter of the Bible which portrays that even the very first Humans ever to be created in God’s image, named Adam and Eve, defied God despite his pre-emptive warnings not too because of their natural tendency as humans to sin. Not only can one chose with their own will to disobey God but one’s faith can be easily swayed by the evils of the world therefore sin can forever bind them in chains for eternity. â€Å"Young Goodman Brown,† by Nathaniel Hawthorne, reveals a similar†¦show more content†¦Hawthorne uses this quote as an underlying statement that it wasn’t just his wife that held him back from his rendezvous with the Devil, but also his Faith in God. Hawthorne meant for the reader to make the connection between Goodman’s Wife, Faith and Goodman’s faith in God for which both attempt to sway Goodman from following the path the Devil intends for him. Hawthorne in essence, portrayed Goodman as proof of the nature of evil in man by showing how easily even a young dedicated Puritan can easily be influenced by a complete stranger. This stranger was symbolically the Devil among men in this text. Hawthorne begins introducing the Devil immediately as trying to sway Goodman to follow him on a long journey. By leaving his wife, Faith to begin the journey, Goodman Brown was symbolically leaving his faith in God and entering a forsaken ground by following the Devil. The fact that Goodman Brown left with no regard for his wife Faith’s warning, symbolized the lack of regard for his own faith in God and his fellow human race. This simple disregard that Goodman Brown showed was evidence of the easily persuaded ability of man to choose sin over good. The man that Goodman Brown encountered on his journey symbolized the devil in the text which strongly influenced him to just about give up his faith in God. The Devil disguised as a â€Å"fellow traveler† (266) tried to influence Goodman Brown byShow MoreRelated Essay on Symbols, Symbolism, and Allegory in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown726 Words   |  3 PagesSymbols, Symbolism, and Allegory in Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown Symbolism is a literary technique that is used to clarify the authors intent. Sometimes it is used to great effect, while other times it only seems to muddle the meaning of a passage. In Young Goodman Brown, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses objects and people as symbols to allegorically reveal his message to the reader. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses different people as symbols throughout Young Goodman Brown. 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