Faith in Young Goodman Brown Essay

Young Goodman Brown

The short story Young Goodman Brown examines the characteristic battle between good and evil. Young Goodman Brown goes out on an adventure to test the strength of his faith. He goes into the dark forest in order to deny the attempt of the devil to sway him from his religion; a test he believes his strong faith is ready to confront. Young Goodman Brown is forever altered in ways unknown to him by taking a walk with the devil himself. Throughout his journey, Goodman Brown discovers that even highly observed people of Salem are vulnerable to the forces of darkness. The main theme of Young Goodman Brown is the realization that evil can touch people who seem perfectly respectable.

Young Goodman Brown's illusions about the purity of his society are destroyed when he discovers that many of his townspeople, including religious leaders and his wife, Faith, are attending a witch-meeting. Young Goodman Brown set out on his journey with the strong belief that his faith was firm and would allow him to overcome even the most tempting urges of the devil. As Young Goodman Brown and the devil walked along the path, they encountered his old catechism teacher, Goody Cloyse. It is eventually revealed that she is heading to the witch meeting in the middle of the forest. Young Goodman Brown is bewildered at the sight of her, as he had always considered Goody Cloyse a moral and spiritual guide in his life. Goody Cloyses appearance is the first moment where Goodman Brown begins to question his faith. Goodman Brown thinks he is still strong when it comes to his faith in his religion when he says, With heaven above and Faith below, I will yet stand firm against the devil! (218). When he says this, however, it is a clue that he is already beginning to lose faith. The word faith is capitalized meaning his wife, Faith. This is implying that Faith is already with the devil.

At the end of the story, it is not clear whether Brown's experience was a nightmare or reality. Had Goodman Brown fallen asleep in the forest and only dreamed a wild dream of a witch-meeting? (222) it is unsure, but the results are nonetheless the same. Goodman Brown is unable to forgive the possibility of evil in his loved ones, and as a result spends the rest of his life in desperate loneliness and gloom.

Although Goodman Brown does not convert to worship the devil as the other townspeople have, he chooses a greater evil. By losing his faith, which was the foundation of his humanity, he loses his soul. Goodman Brown distorted his own rage about his faith failing him into believing the entire world embraced evil. Ultimately, Goodman Browns nightmarish experience corrupted his soul, leaving him a bitter, wretched man. Goodman Brown chose isolation rather than turning to God, and he lived a sad life in scorn of all others he had seen that night on his journey into the forest. The townspeople carved no hopeful verse upon his tombstone (222) because Goodman Brown had become such a depressing figure.

At the beginning of his trip, Goodman Browns will and pride were both fixed in the belief that he was a religious man. Goodman Browns pride in faithfulness fails him as he discovers that his faith was based on the principles of individuals who had sworn loyalty to the devil. This truth destroyed his conviction, and in this sense, the devil prevailed against Goodman Brown. Once those around him revealed their true following as Satanists, Goodman lost all faith and became spiritually hollow. With this, it can be assumed that Browns faith was never based on an internal relationship with God; rather, his faith was mirrored and reflected by the community he formerly respected. Thus, Young Goodman Brown presents readers with the principle theme that relying on other people for the basis of any belief system ends in disillusionment and anguish.