"Young Goodman Brown" by Nathaniel Hawthorne & "The Lottery" by Shirley Jackson Responses

Young Goodman Brown by Nathaniel Hawthorne

I really thought that this short story had some good points to make. The main character of the story is a trusting young man named Goodman Brown who lives in a town of very religious and good people. He is married to a woman named Faith and he comments on her child-like hair ribbons. At the beginning Goodman Brown expreses the uncontrollable impulse to go outside one day, even though his wife Faith begs him to stay home. As he travels through the forest he meets a "fatherly" old man who gives him directions. These directions lead Goodman Brown to the site of a satanistic ritual with all of Goodman Brown's fellow townsmen present and taking part. Goodman Brown sees his wife Faith as well and sees her hair ribbions being blown away. when Goodman Brown refuses to take part in the ritual he wakes up to find everyone in the town back to normal and his wife Faith wearing her hair ribbions again. Goodman Brown states that he never trusted others again.

I believe that the story is about a young man's loss of innocence and faith in others. In the story Goodman Brown was tempted by the devil (the old man) and saw what could be the evil in his fellow townsmen. The story makes a point that no one makes it their whole lives without being exposed to temptation. Goodman Brown's wife Faith symbolizes exactly what her name implies and her hair ribbons symbolize innocence. Just because she wears them does not mean that she is fully innocent of temptation. Even though it could have all been a dream, Goodman Brown never sees others in the same light again.


The Lottery by Shirley Jackson

I love the irony involved in this short story. A lottery is thought to be something in which the winner wins something worthwhile and the characters in the story certainly make it seem like so at first. The townsfolk are joking around and happy before the lottery begins. The children gathering up stones in a large pile like a fun chore the adults do not want to bother with. They remark as how they can not believe that other towns are stopping their own lottery. However, as the lotttery goes on, it is revealed that the winner of the lottery is punished by being stoned by the rest of the townsfolk. The happy tune of the story quickly becomes much darker as it takes a joyous game and makes it into something dreadful.