Maturity is not measured by age, but through experiences and attitude developed from those experiences. Nathaniel Hawthorne, known for the use of sin, guilt, and consciousness, warns in “Young Goodman Brown” the long-term effects of temptation and the dark effects growing up under Puritan faith can have on an individual. Nathaniel Hawthorne reveals Young Goodman Brown’s (YGB’s) immaturity and stubbornness using religious temptations during Brown’s journey through the forest. Hawthorne uses strong literary devices to expose to the reader brown’s inability to grow up since Brown clings to his faith and life comforts, which causes the reader to question the value of dogmatic religious training during YGB’s transition from childhood to adulthood. Hawthorne’s use of basic name symbolism also represents
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Once the elder traveler reveals to Brown that he is very knowledgeable about YGB’s family history, Brown becomes skeptical towards the traveler, as Brown does not believe the elder because he is so sure that his family will not “abide [to] such wickedness” (Hawthorne 379). Since Brown’s grandfather, a puritan, “lashed [a] Quaker woman so smartly through the streets of Salem” (Hawthorne 378), Brown questions his own holiness by inquiring if the elder’s words bear truth. Brown’s guide further portrays the grandfather as a person of hatred by referencing the grandfather’s murderous association in King Philip’s war. The story “allegorizes the dubious, self-proclaimed mission of Puritan New England” (Christophersen 204) through examples of Brown’s inherited flaws, as Brown’s family members are not trustworthy. Although Brown is presented these truths, his immaturity prevents him from growing and he carries his skepticism throughout his life, until his
Once the elder traveler reveals to Brown that he is very knowledgeable about YGB’s family history, Brown becomes skeptical towards the traveler, as Brown does not believe the elder because he is so sure that his family will not “abide [to] such wickedness” (Hawthorne 379). Since Brown’s grandfather, a puritan, “lashed [a] Quaker woman so smartly through the streets of Salem” (Hawthorne 378), Brown questions his own holiness by inquiring if the elder’s words bear truth. Brown’s guide further portrays the grandfather as a person of hatred by referencing the grandfather’s murderous association in King Philip’s war. The story “allegorizes the dubious, self-proclaimed mission of Puritan New England” (Christophersen 204) through examples of Brown’s inherited flaws, as Brown’s family members are not trustworthy. Although Brown is presented these truths, his immaturity prevents him from growing and he carries his skepticism throughout his life, until his