The Experiences

The Experiences Carl Dennis’ poem, “The God Who Loves You”, has a theme and tone much like Nathaniel Hawthorne’s, “Young Goodman Brown.” The two narratives tell a tale of a man making his own choices in life; however the choices are bleak and the consequences of each choice in the two stories result in a disheartening and questionable resolution. Tone and theme play a critical role in Carl Dennis’, “The God Who Loves You,” and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “Young Goodman Brown,” each portrays parts of life and experiences one may encounter. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s, “Young Good Man Brown”, depicts Goodman Brown, a young newlywed Puritan who is saying goodbye to his wife, Faith. As he embarks on a journey, he encounters the devil in the forest, disguised as an old man. Brown has much doubt towards his journey into the treacherous forest that lay ahead, “Let us walk on, nevertheless, reasoning as we go, and if I convince thee not, thou shalt turn back. We are but a little way in the forest, yet,” states the devil (Hawthorne 15). In this scene of cautiousness, Brown can make a decision to either enter with the devil or decline the offer that rest before him. Much like Carl Dennis’, “The God Who Loves You,” the man in this poem makes a series of decisions, all with questionable results. Brown chooses to enter the dark forest and much to his dismay, realizes much deceit and heartache. Once inside, Brown sees all the Puritan people are now entertaining witchcraft, as opposed to being devout Christians they once were. Brown tries to fight what he is seeing, by thinking of his loving wife, Faith. Faith is a part of Browns soul, theoretically speaking; he looks to her for advice and loves her dearly. However, he catches sight of his dear wife in the act of witchcraft, and loses all hope. His soul is crushed to the core. This can relate to one’s life experiences with marriage, in that when one loves someone so much, they do not want to see their indiscretions. This, in