Question

In your opinion, is Nathaniel Hawthorne's description of Goodman Brown's dream believable? Give reasons to support your answer. Your answer should be at least 200 words.

Answer 1

Nathaniel Hawthorne's description of Goodman Brown's dream is very believable. This is because Young Goodman Brown is a depiction of Puritan culture, and the Puritans as a whole were very repressed and terrified of d.amnation. As a result, it makes sense that he would encounter the d.evil in the woods, and that the moral would be that the d.evil is present in all people.This includes his faithful wife Faith, who may stand as a metaphor for religious belief if one is to take her name literally, but also represents the Puritans's- and religion as a whole's- degradation of women. With Christianity it started at the very beginning, with Eve taking a bite of the apple and condemning mankind. This is exactly the kind of dream that a repressed young Puritan man would have, especially early on in his marriage, where hidden doubts would begin to arise. Puritans greatly encouraged self denial, and so Young Goodman brown experiences temptation to sin, but must deny himself. As a result, he becomes old and miserly, and loses his faith in humanity. It is questionable whether Hawthorne intended Brown to actually have seen the d.evil, but the dream itself is believable.

Answer 2

Nathaniel Hawthorne's opinion of Goodman Brown's dream is somewhat understandable/believable.  It makes sense that the world would encounter the devil in the woods, it is a dark and scary place. In the religious aspect it all started with Christianity when Eve took a bite of the apple from the forbidden tree. She was tempted by the devil with false promised power and knowledge. Eve took a bite and had Adam do the same then they were both escorted out of the Garden of Eden into the "real world". Where pain and suffering came, Where they were sent sounded lie a dark scary place, with tall short plants and predators.