The Devil has been portrayed in thousands of stories, shows and movies. How this character appears varies from story to story. Some show the Devil as a red man with horns, others as a normal person.“Young Goodman Brown”, which portrays the Devil as the later, is about how everyone is sinful, while “The Man in the Black Suit”, which portrays the Devil as more of the former, is about how the Devil comes for us all. While both “Young Goodman Brown” and “The Man in the Black Suit” show the danger of Devil like figures, they both have different risks involved, demonstrating that stories with similar antagonists can still have very different themes.
In both stories, the woods are shown as a place where danger lurks. In “The Man in the Black Suit”, …show more content…
In “The Man in the Black Suit,” Gary is terrified of the Devil. As he recalls the story, he remembers that he was “More afraid than [he] could ever write down” (King, 9). Young Goodman Brown however, is calm and treats the man politely, as if he was an acquaintance. Goodman Brown does not become distraught until he believes his wife has died. Goodman Brown believes the Devil can help him, while Gary doesn’t want to be with the Devil. The Devil represents evil and he knows that he will bring him harm. Even though Goodman Brown seeks the Devil it is shown that he is still hesitant, saying his “father never went into the woods on such an errand, nor his father before him” and that they have “been a race of honest men and good Christians”(Hawthorne, 26). Goodman Brown, despite wanting to sin, still believes deep down that seeking out the Devil is trouble. The Devil, however, scoffs at the idea that the Browns were a good family. He has had multiple run ins with Goodman Brown 's father and grandfather, telling him that his grandfather “lashed the Quaker woman so smartly through the streets of Salem” and that his father “set fire to an Indian village, in King Philip 's War”(Hawthorne, 26). The Devil helped both men with these task, showing Goodman Brown that he is destined to follow in his families footsteps of sin and evil. Gary’s family however, is pious and true. His father only took the Lord 's name in vain once, when he found his other son dead in the field. Gary and his family have done nothing to provoke the Devil, he simply comes because he is hungry. Goodman Brown seeks out the Devil; Gary finds him on
In both stories, the woods are shown as a place where danger lurks. In “The Man in the Black Suit”, …show more content…
In “The Man in the Black Suit,” Gary is terrified of the Devil. As he recalls the story, he remembers that he was “More afraid than [he] could ever write down” (King, 9). Young Goodman Brown however, is calm and treats the man politely, as if he was an acquaintance. Goodman Brown does not become distraught until he believes his wife has died. Goodman Brown believes the Devil can help him, while Gary doesn’t want to be with the Devil. The Devil represents evil and he knows that he will bring him harm. Even though Goodman Brown seeks the Devil it is shown that he is still hesitant, saying his “father never went into the woods on such an errand, nor his father before him” and that they have “been a race of honest men and good Christians”(Hawthorne, 26). Goodman Brown, despite wanting to sin, still believes deep down that seeking out the Devil is trouble. The Devil, however, scoffs at the idea that the Browns were a good family. He has had multiple run ins with Goodman Brown 's father and grandfather, telling him that his grandfather “lashed the Quaker woman so smartly through the streets of Salem” and that his father “set fire to an Indian village, in King Philip 's War”(Hawthorne, 26). The Devil helped both men with these task, showing Goodman Brown that he is destined to follow in his families footsteps of sin and evil. Gary’s family however, is pious and true. His father only took the Lord 's name in vain once, when he found his other son dead in the field. Gary and his family have done nothing to provoke the Devil, he simply comes because he is hungry. Goodman Brown seeks out the Devil; Gary finds him on