Young Goodman Brown Research Paper

In the short story, Young Goodman Brown by Hawthorne, the experience of a witches' meeting is only a dream Goodman Brown has when he falls asleep in the forest because of the supernatural occurrences with the devil, the moment when Brown sees Goody Cloyse, and how Brown acts after his dream. The supernatural events occurring during Brown's dream are highly vivid to the point the events are unrealistic. When Brown sees a "second traveler [who] was about fifty years old, apparently in the same rank of life as Goodman Brown, and bearing a conservable resemblance to him," and the man being the devil, this seems too supernatural to be real. Also, during the period of witch trials, people traveled by either foot or a horse and buggy. The devil says, "the clock of the Old South was striking as I came through Boston, and that is full fifteen minutes agone," the amount of time to travel from Boston to where Brown lives is roughly twenty miles. The devil would need to
Brown is a Puritan, who is (or was) very faithful to his faith. During the period, witch trials and meetings were frequent, so it was always on his mind. Nightmares usually happen when worries or fears are on someone's mind. Since he has a dream of being apart of a witch-meeting and while those who mean the most are as well, he feels like he sinned. Nightmares can have adverse effects if the person allows it to control them. After the nightmare, Brown begins to act outlandishly. When "Deacon Gookin was at domestic worship, and the holy words of his prayer were heard through the open window [Brown says] ‘What God doth the wizard pray to?'" then, later, Brown finds Goody Cloyse teaching to a young girl, so Brown snatches the girl away from Cloyse.
The supernatural scenes of the devil, the time when Brown sees Goody Cloyse, and how the nightmare effects Brown are reasons why Goodman Brown had a dream in the forest of a witches'