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He might have received his wish but that wish cost him 20 years.
In "Young Goodman Brown," Hawthorne allows us to look at the frail nature of man through Brown's curious nature. He wants to know what is happening in the woods and does not stop to think of the unintended consequences. He does not know what to think when he stumbles upon the scene in the forest. The sight of respectable citizens partaking in a satanic ritual makes Brown feel "overburdened with the heavy sickness of his heart" (Hawthorne 594). He looses faith in man and, subsequently, faith in God, wondering if there was a "heaven above him" (594). He vows to "stand firm against the devil" (294) despite everything but the knowledge of his wife in the forest proves to be more than he can bear. Hawthorne utilizes the aspect of change to demonstrate the fragile human psyche.
"Rip Van Winkle" and "Young Goodman Brown" are two tales that illustrate the delicate nature of...
We often think of mankind as tough and capable but thee stories reveal that while man is resilient to a certain extent, he is also frail and his nature must be protected from foolish wishes and silly desires that might lead to an inner destruction that might not be outwardly recognizable. We may wish to belong in another time but we do not consider the ramifications of such a shift. Likewise, we may want to know the truth about things but when we learn it, it crushes our spirit. Each author successfully integrates these sentiments with the inclusion of fantastical elements.
Works Cited
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "Young Goodman Brown." The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction. Ed.
R.V. Cassill. New York W.W. Norton and Company. 1981. pp. 589-99.
Irving, Washington. "Rip Van Winkle." The Complete Tales of Washington Irving. Ed.
Charles Neider. New York: Doubleday & Company, 1999. pp. 1-16.
Works Cited
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. "Young Goodman Brown." The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction. Ed.
R.V. Cassill. New York W.W. Norton and Company. 1981. pp. 589-99.
Irving, Washington. "Rip Van Winkle." The Complete Tales of Washington Irving. Ed.
Charles Neider. New York: Doubleday & Company, 1999. pp. 1-16.
The second Iraq war was ordered by George W. Bush, who became president eight years after the end of his father's presidency11, and Saddam Hussein was captured by U.S. forces and eventually hanged by an Iraqi court12. The U.S. was attacked by Islamic Terrorists who destroyed the World Trade Center in new York City in 2001 and the U.S. armed forces have been simultaneously engaged in two wars (in Iraq
Melville and Irving The dawn of the American nation brought with it a need for a decidedly American culture, one depicted with careful precision by many of the authors that came to paint the literary landscape of the new magnate across the Atlantic. Washington Irving, the first American great, told the story of the nascent, colonial United States through youthful folklore limned with great detail and attention to the inner workings
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Although his wife was really upset, and very mean to him, his patience with her and about the severity of the situation, makes him a model person. Not many people actually have this attribute, and although many would wish to attain it, very few do. This adds on to the mythic American persona. Rip Van Winkle was liked by everyone. His sweet, nice characteristics made him a likeable person,
Washington Irving uses borrowed material from the Dutch and German's to create stories of his own. Washington Irving was born in the year that America became officially recognized by England as an independent country. He spent much of his life in Europe so it is not surprising that some of his greatest literary work should imitate the people and countries of the continent. Even so, much of his work also
His nagging wife is his only real misery. Everyone else seems to admire Rip for his simple nature and honest character. However his wife cannot see these qualities and this leads to disharmony at home causing Rip Van Winkle to go to a jungle, drink some strange beverage and fall asleep for two decades. When he wakes up the world he left is no longer a domain of George III