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In "Young Goodman Brown", Satan says “Evil is the nature of mankind,” How is this true? Use your own opinion/examples from the text. Posted by primaballerina34 on Sep 28, 2008. |
Young Goodman Brown Group
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Brown's walk through the woods brings him in contact with many people he knew from the town, all seemingly heading for the "black mass" that comes later. Hawthorne describes the first person other than his guide that he meets: "As nearly as could be discerned, the second traveller was about fifty years old, apparently in the same rank of life as Goodman Brown, and bearing a considerable resemblance to him, though perhaps more in expression than features. Still they might have been taken for father and son." This and other references include Brown's family in the woods. Of course, Hawthorne never really tells us ... he "might" ... There are many others he meets: Good Cloyse, Deacon Gookin and even his Faith. Of course we never know if these people are there, because we never know if the journey actually happened. The Devil would like Brown to believe that, since they are all there, Evil must be the nature of mankind. What we know from their behavior in the town is that they are not evil ... simply human, less than the perfect that Brown demands of them. If evil means imperfection, then evil is truly the nature of mankind. I suspect you'd have to clarify what is meant by evil. "The enemy of the good is the perfect." Posted by timbrady on Sep 28, 2008. |
