The setting in both, "Young Goodman Brown" and "Heart of Darkness" changes the worldview of the central characters leading to outward and inward isolation. .
In "Young Goodman Brown" by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Brown has been an innocent man his whole life until this one time he breaks the spiritual rules he was taught by his father, Goody Cloyse, and the minister. He was loved by many, including his lovely wife, Faith, until that day. When he plans to go into the forest with the old man he loses his innocence and some of his sanity. "after this one night, I'll cling to her skirts and go to heaven." This is him confessing to himself he will be letting go of his honor. Now he will only be let in heaven because he has Faith to sneak him in. Thinking he wouldn't see anyone he knew he traveled into the forest, plotting a way to keep this secret from all his faithful teachers. Hiding when he need to as he did with Goody Cloyse. .
In Heart of Darkness by Conrad, Marlow only wants a job and to travel the world. Since his childhood he would fill in maps, hoping and planning to visit those places. He got offered the job to the Congo River, not thinking or being told how gruesome that place was. On this journey of his he lost the image of the "prefect" and sheltered world of that he had only known existed. His life went from the tender loving care that England taught him to the, wild, unorganized, harrowing place they call the Congo. His pure eyes were contaminated with all the horrifying and tragic events he witnessed while there, such as when the helmsman was gouged with a spear, dying at Marlow's feet. His innocence was lost involuntary, he had no clue what he was getting himself into, he didn't want the helmsman to die at his feet, or for Kurtz to die in his presence. He didn't want to be scarred for life, all he was to do was change his life by traveling, he got way worse than he bargained for.
