“Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Dec 28, 2015
“Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne
DID YOU FIND YOUR ESSAY TOPIC?
Symbol
In art, an object or image that represents another object or idea by association or similarity; usually, a material object standing for something imperceptible, especially abstract concepts. Symbols are elusive and may convey several meanings.
Types of SymbolsUniversal (archetypal) symbols have been
formed by the collective human experience and hence have the same meaning to most people (such as the Sun and the Moon in mythologies).
Conventional symbols are coined within a culture and have a meaning known to everyone familiar with that culture (ex., the heart stands for love, a maple leaf symbolizes Canada). These symbols depend on the point of reference (can mean different things within different cultures).
The use of conventional symbols
Pop-culture Religion
Literary Symbols
Universal and conventional symbols connect literature to the collective experience (ex., the devilish red colour in “Young Goodman Brown”).
In fiction these symbols can acquire an additional meaning .
In a work of literature unique symbols can be created (butterflies in The Collector).
How can we identify literary symbols?
Allegory1. The representation of abstract ideas or
principles by characters, figures, or events in narrative, dramatic, or pictorial form.
2. A story, picture, or play employing such representation.
3. Example of a symbolic representation: the blindfolded figure with scales is an allegory of justice.”
“allegory.” [The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Houghton Mifflin Company, 2004. 15 Sep. 2008. <Dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/allegory>.]
Allegory An allegory is a story with two parallel and
consistent levels of meaning – one literal, one figurative.
An allegory/allegorical figure “has just one meaning within an allegorical framework, the set of ideas that conveys the allegory’s message.
Allegory and Emblem
Allegory can be synonymous with emblem and in this case has a definite meaning, unlike a symbol (the allegory of justice is also its emblem, that is, the symbolic sign or figure representing something by convention). Emblem is a visual allegory.
AllegoryAn example of an allegory: The Summoning of
Everyman (Everyman), a 15th-century morality play, a moral lesson about the fate of one’s soul and the conflict between good and evil.
Characters include allegorical figures: Everyman, God, Death, Good Deeds, Knowledge, Beauty, Strength, Discretion, Five Wits, Angel.
Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804 –1864)
American novelist and short-story writer.
A direct descendant of the judge who presided over the Salem Witch trials.
Most famous novel The Scarlet Letter (1850).
His works focus on the ambivalence of human nature.
Symbol and Allegory
A work of fiction can combine allegorical (having a set meaning) and symbolic (open to interpretation) elements.
Which are which in “Young Goodman Brown” ?
“Young Goodman Brown” (1835)
1. Why is the story an allegory?2. Why are there archaic words?3. What symbolic objects can you find in the
story? What are their meanings?4. What are the two settings of the story
and what is the difference between them?
5. Who is the narrator? (note pp.309 and 317).