The Deception Of Faith In Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown

Within Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown”, the reader follows a man of the same name on his journey through the forest to an unspecified ritual. Leaving behind his wife—appropriately named Faith—he sets off, unaware of what awaits him. While many are content with believing this story is a tale about lying, there is evidence that more meaning lies beneath the surface. Rather than just stating the obvious, Hawthorne may have been meaning to warn readers of the dangers of overestimating their own faith. By believing that his faith was unshakable and pure, Goodman Brown leaves himself open to the deception of the outside world that lurks when his “Faith” is not around. Hawthorne expresses how evil thoughts are inherently human, no matter how innocent or religious a person attempts to live. Faith alone cannot protect people from the world outside of it.
As Young Goodman Brown leaves for his journey, his wife pleads with him not to leave her alone. Goodman Brown is leaving his “Faith” behind fully aware that he should not be
taking the journey. At this point, Hawthorne does not shy away from the meaning he is trying to push the readers into realizing: Goodman Brown is leaving faith behind both literally and figuratively. Once a person turns their back on their faith, when they return, “she” will not be seen in the same light. Many people believe that promises of becoming a better person tomorrow mean that their evil deeds will go unrecognized, which oftentimes is not the case. Marina Boonyaprasop goes into more detail about this in her book Hawthorne’s Wilderness: Nature and Puritanism in Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter and “Young Goodman Brown.
She explained how once Goodman Brown returns from the ritual, it seems that he has “...lost all faith in her” and that “during the remaining years of his life, he seems to live beside rather than with his wife, feeling uncomfortable” (46). Young Goodman Brown’s faith was tested and instead of believing in it with his entire heart and mind, he took the words of both the stranger in the forest and the sights of the ritual; this ultimately destroyed his belief, making it crumble to nothing. He is forced to live the rest of his life with a woman whom he no longer has any trust in. Perhaps Hawthorne was aiming deeper than just marriage troubles with this tale. By delving deeper into the names of Hawthorne’s two main characters, other interpretations may become more
evident.
Goodman Brown’s name holds some significance to understanding aspects of Hawthorne’s tale as well. “Goodman” is somewhat self explanatory, emphasizing how the character itself had not intended to hurt nor worry anyone. He was —for lack of a better description—a good man who wanted to explore before settling down with his wife. As anyone in his situation might wish, he wanted one last adventure as a bachelor. Taking this into account, Boonyaprasop researched the last name Brown and discovered that “In 1840...6% of all Massachusetts citizens bore the name Brown…” and that “...it can be concluded that the story told does not only refer to the individual character of the protagonist, but the every man” (45). If the reader follows Boonyaprasop’s way of thinking, then perhaps the character is not meant to be taken literal. Perhaps Brown represents all men as well as their religious struggles and battles with reality versus what they were taught to believe.
With Goodman Brown’s wife, Faith, it is implied she is as young and naive as her husband through Hawthorne’s mention of her pink hair ribbons. These ribbons provide the reader with a single image in their minds: innocence. Children often wear ribbons in their hair when young, and so by adding this detail Hathorne places this adjective of Faith and Goodman Brown in our minds. While subtle, it is effective in showing the character’s traits rather than explaining them outright. Despite this possibility, if Brown is meant to represent every man, though, perhaps Faith is not meant to be taken in a literal sense: a character who represents an abstract idea. This would explain why she, while a main character, does not have as much character development as her husband. It would also link to the idea of humans constantly battling with their faith and their religion itself. There are endless possibilities for “Young Goodman Brown”, though no one can deny that the names hold some importance when deciphering meanings.
The reader’s interpretation can often drive the story to new ground. There are many ways to read stories, Hawthorne’s not being an exception. Was Hawthorne aiming towards a stance on how religion blinds man? Or perhaps a stance on how religion does not prepare man for the reality that is our world? Maybe he was even implying the idea that faith can only do so much in a world that is undoubtedly evil? Regardless, Hawthorne has managed to provoke numerous scholars and readers to recall this haunting tale even after the final words have been read. He has left it up to interpretation, though avid readers of Hawthorne may without a doubt claim that it was another moral tale that Hawthorne left to warn of the evils that humans often try to forget.

Works Cited
Boonyaprasop, Marina. Hawthorne’s Wilderness: Nature and Puritanism in Hawthorne’s the Scarlet Letter and “Young Goodman Brown'. Anchor, 2013. EBSCOhost.