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Young Goodman Brown

 

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             Heroes often face a struggle on their quest. The struggle for Goodman Brown is going on inside of his own head. He must decide between remaining innocent and having blind faith in the nature of man or embarking on the journey to discover his true self. He decides to leave behind the world he knows, Salem village, and enters an unknown world, the dark forest. He is faced with dangers as he goes through the forest. This is typical in a heroic journey. He says there could be a devilish Indian behind every tree. The Indians represent evil in this case, which is the real danger that Brown faces. He is filled with temptation to forget about his journey and go home to Faith where he is safe and everything will be alright as long as he doesn't know the truth. (Washington 1) He backs up his temptation to turn back by telling his guide, "My father never went into the woods on such an errand, nor his father before him. We have been a race of honest men and good Christians." (Dover 26) This statement only gets him the reply of how his guide was there with Brown's father and grandfather when they took the same journey. This is also an example of how Goodman Brown endures in this story. Although he is filled with so much temptation, he continues to press onward in hope of fulfilling his goal. He is able to endure even farther as he sees Goody Cloyce, the minister, and Deacon Gookin, his moral and spiritual advisors. Seeing them on the path was more assuring and allowed him to relax a little and press onward. After his guide leaves him alone to sit on a rock, Brown experiences loneliness as heroes usually do. Brown also experiences loneliness when he sees his wife. The blunder of voices is swept away and Brown is left in solitude. Now, he realizes that the one person he truly loves and believes to be pure and good has an evil nature also. Brown says, "There is no good on earth; and sin is but a name.


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