A Puritan and Social Contextualization of Hawthornes Young Goodman Brown - Research Paper Example

 A Puritan and Social Contextualization of Hawthorne’s Young Goodman Brown Introduction: “Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne has provided a way for contemporary people of entering into the social and cultural life of the Puritan community in Salem in 1690s. Nathaniel Hawthorne questions his own religion by constructing a story along with a vivid character, Goodman Brown, a young Puritan man with a dream in Salem. The content of the story, or Brown’s encounter with the woods, specifically presented readers with a picture of the real mental state of a Puritan. In addition, many instances of symbolism in “Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne function in different ways. The author utilized mystery and suspense to hold the readers’ attention. Through the psychoanalytic approach to analyzing the text, readers can catch the meaning of the text that lies in understanding Goodman Brown's encounter with the woods. From the beginning to the end of the story, Hawthorne led the reader into asking the question, "What do all of this witchcraft, mysticism, and the double-sided lifestyles of the characters actually mean?" As a result, the character in the story was actually representing the author himself. Digging into the social background and cultural context would definitely help the reader better understand the story. A Reading of the Puritan Background of America To attempt a study of Hawthorne’s short story “Young Goodman Brown”, it is necessary therefore to attempt a social and cultural contextualization of its setting and the complex issues involving the prevalent Puritan ethos in the contemporary world. It involves as well the extensive puritan understanding of morality, politics and hypocrisy in the literary and cultural scene of New England, as depicted in Hawthorne’s short story, “Young Goodman Brown”, which is set against the 17th century backdrop, anthologized in his collection Moses from an Old Manse. Hawthorne engaged in a discourse that deeply examined and criticized the blended ideals and ideologies of the puritan ethos that shaped and dominated the texture of the 17th century New England life and morality. The 1692 Salem incident was not, for him, an isolated outburst religious fervor and destructive conservatism, but as a whole, indicative of the complex metaphors of good and evil that were being systematically propagated by Puritanism. The Puritan nationalism insisted on a new mode of narrative that proposed to include the secular perception of national identity within a historical frame that was, nevertheless, bound by strict and unbending laws of religion. The puritan fathers valued man’s spiritual and religious life and put faith above everything else. They perpetuated this Christian ethos through systematic and institutionalized narratives of the “crisis sermon”, commonly known as “jeremiads”. These spoke eloquently on all things sacred, and, on occasions, on more mundane of everyday life. Thus, the religion and the church began to penetrate the common citizens’ life deeply. This daily involvement on the Church in the 17th century way of life is an important pointer to Hawthorne’s conception of “Young Goodman Brown” and the interrelated modes of expressions and ideals that are explored in the short story. Hawthorne’s Socio-cultural Perception: Overview of Puritan Salem The character of Goodman Brown, it must be remembered, is a third generation puritan. By the virtue of being a product of the very ideals Hawthorne criticizes, his story bears a strong relevance to an understanding of Hawthorne’s peculiar handling of religious dichotomies. The 1692 Salem case itself becomes a latent symbol in the story. The Salem Witch Trials of 1692 was a shameful occurrence in the history of Puritan New England, where more than a hundred were convicted, put to trial, tortured and burnt on grounds of practicing witchcraft and the black arts. This particular incident left a deep impression on Hawthorne’s perception of the society and world he inhabited as well as affected his creative symbolism of good and evil. It took the form of an indelible “ugly blot” on his psyche as well as the pages of the early history of New England. (Colacurcio 286) The Puritanical contextualization of his fictions involves a thorough understanding of Hawthorne’s symbolism and imagery. Much of what he thought and wrote were influence by a kind of latent historical and religious conception that harked back, repeatedly to the biblical and Puritanical insistence and ‘over-emphasis’ of the imagery of sin, evil, salvation and goodness. (Stein 21) An understanding of these symbolic elements and themes require an insight into the contemporary social and cultural dynamics that were at play during the composition of “Young Goodman Brown”. The puritan understanding of religion, morality and the sharp distinctions between goodness and evil encompassed a great many factors and conditions. Social conditioning drove the popular emphasis on a strict adherence to decorum, rules and religious dictates as delivered by the puritan fathers, the original establishers of the New England settlements. A strict observation of religious and socio-cultural regulations ensured man’s “goodness”, while deviations from the rulebook caused evil temptations and the eventual damnation of the eternal soul. While dealing with such puritan settings, as in “Young Goodman Brown” and his most celebrated novel The Scarlet letter, Hawthorne exhibits an uneasy sense of ambiguity and uncertainty. His resolutions are not the simplistic symbolic triumph of goodness over evil or salvation over sin. His radical symbolism, thus, sits awkwardly in the conservative framework of the 19th century America. Puritan ethos in “Young Goodman Brown” A study of the puritan context of “Young Goodman Brown” requires the comparative reading and analysis of another famous puritan work of Hawthorne – The Scarlet Letter. The essences of these two works are intricately related to each other. The quintessential aspects Puritanism explored in “Young Goodman Brown” are inherent in the rich symbolism of nature and society depicted in this famous short story. Hawthorne’s personal vision of the puritan roots of the nation was rather negative. His personal sympathies are evident enough in his diverse readings of the implications of good and evil in his works. Hawthorne preferred his own seclusion. This secluded life offered him time for reflection and insight. His analysis of the puritan society and culture was often a result of his deep interest in the social and religious paradoxes involving sin and salvation. Nowhere are these varied explorations of the sin and salvation, good and evil binaries than in “Young Goodman Brown” and The Scarlet Letter. The forest surrounding Salem, as presented by Hawthorne, brings to mind the dense and deep woods of Dante’s Divine Comedy. In the heart of this forest, Goodman encounters the devil, and takes him for his guide. This metaphorical succumbing to evil propensity and acceptance of the devil’s guidance can be related to the biblical issue of free will and the traditional idea that evil cannot tempt unless it is invited in by the victim. The road, for the unfortunate hero of Hawthorne’s tale, leads, both literally and metaphorically, to nowhere. The metaphor is straightforward enough: it points to the evil, which lures people from the path of goodness. Hawthorne, however, retains a significant amount of ambivalence in his reluctance to explicate the reasons behind Goodman’s defection from the way of virtue and morality. However, as it is revealed in the story, this young, naïve man is already “in a state of bad faith”. (Colacurcio 287) A man of substantial wealth, possessing the comfort of a beautiful, loving bride and a pleasing home, risks the perils of a dangerous nocturnal journey through a wood infested with specters and spirits as well as murderous Indians, for some hidden intent that we are not made privy to. Finally, through the cleverly manipulated, symbolic ambivalence of these occurrences, the very fabric of his mental and religious nature is called into question repeatedly throughout the story. His acceptance of the staff for self-fulfilling reasons can be symbolically related to the Original Sin of Eve. The consequent paranoia of Goodman Brown’s later life reflects the Puritan hysteria that had engulfed Salem in the later half of 17th century. Notably, one must remember certain instances of Hawthorne’s creative prowess expressed through complex imagery and dark natural setting. The opening of the story itself sets the mood. Goodman Brown’s separation from his young bride is significant in itself. More interestingly, his innocent bride is symbolically named Faith. The hero’s separation from his wife, then, becomes an extension of the indirect breaking away from Christian faith or the contemporary Puritan insistence on religion. The dark rituals of the black mass, conducted in secret by the towns people, the magical staff that mimics clearly the holy staff of Moses, and finally, the pervading sense of evil occult and black magic incorporated carefully into the setting of the story are all indicative of Hawthorne’s own reflection on Puritanism and conventional religion. Conclusion While Hester Prynne’s Salem of The Scarlet Letter has redefined the complex interrelations between sin and salvation, good and evil, the Salem we see in “Young Goodman Brown” is overtly evil in the treatment of its narrative. Both these context refer to New England’s Puritan past, but in this short story the handling of the puritan social and religious theme is much more explicit and therefore equally effective. References: Colacurcio, Michael J. The Province of Piety: Moral History in Hawthorne’s Early Tales. Duke University Press, 1995. Print. Hawthorne, Nathaniel. “Young Goodman Brown”. Young Goodman Brown and Other Tales. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2005. 111-124. Print. Stein, William B. “The Devils of Hawthorne’s Faust Myth”. Satan. Ed. Harold Bloom. Chelsea House Publishers, 2005. 11-26. Print Read More