“Young Goodman Brown” Questions
Name:______Period:______Date:______
1. What is Brown’s motive for going into the forest? What does he expect form his journey? What does he expect the rest of his life to be like?
2. After he keeps his appointment with the traveler (devil) in the forest, Brown announces that he plans to return home. Why does he not do so immediately?
3. Why do you think the congregation of people assembled in the forest includes holy people as well as known sinners?
4. What does the devil promise Brown as a result of accepting his baptism?
5. What do you think prevents Goodman Brown from receiving baptism?
6. Since Brown does not receive baptism, how do you account for his behavior when he returns to the village?
7. Characterize the behavior of Faith and the rest of the townspeople after Brown’s return to the village.
8. What do you believe to have happened to Brown in the forest? Did he really meet the devil? Or did he dream the whole thing? Did a combination of the two occur? Support you answer with a reference to the story.
9. Why does Brown remain in the same community if he believes that most everyone in the community has been corrupted by the devil?
10. If you were a witness to Brown’s behavior when he returned to the town, what would you think the cause of his behavior was?