The “Young Goodman Brown” and “My Kinsman, Major Molineux” are both short stories written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. The stories portray colonial scene or a time far past before the American Revolution and they have their scene set at the same place, Boston. The stories are very similar in context but there are some differences in how each major character approached the problems they faced on their journey to confront difficulties in life.
In “My Kinsman, Major Molineux,”, Robin took his journey to find his kinsman, to make something better of himself. However, in “Young Goodman Brown”, Brown undertakes his journey to definitely investigate or give himself over to the devil.
As Robin goes on his journey and learns of the devil, he became more afraid, surprised, bewildered and shrewd because he is innocent and young and have no idea of the existence and power of the evil. However, Brown on his journey to investigate the prowess of the devil confronts the devil more powerfully and arrogantly than the young, innocent and fragile Robin. Brown had no fear for the devil and he became angrier as he learns of the devil, he perhaps thought of the evil as residing in others than himself. He hated his wife because he thinks she belongs to the devil’s company and he finally died jealous and unrewarded man.
The similarity between Brown and Robin in how they confront the devil on the journey is how naïve they both are. Robin doesn’t know the two sides of men, that of himself and his kinsman and how such sides differ strangely from each other. Brown also doesn’t know the devil in men and that of women, as he discovers it; he became more horrified and angry of women.
The two stories also differ in the type of friend or guides they had on their journey, Robin was guided be a young and wise friend who gives him advice on how to confront his situation. Robin’s guide prevented him from making the mistake of going home right after meeting the devil in his kinsman which would have resulted in his death. Brown however, has a friend who almost looks like him but as young as he is the son of Brown. Brown’s friend is the devil himself who guided him to witness distraction.
In both stories, Brown and Robin surrender to the devil but they did it in different ways, Robin thought of going home right after witnessing the horrified scene of the devil but he was stopped by his wise friend, that saved him. On the other hand, Brown surrenders his faith to the devil and never got it back as he lives the rest of his life jealous hateful to his wife.
Both Brown and Robin are in need of some kind of power and when they came face to face with the devil, they acted differently. Robin was laughing hysterically when he met his kinsman’s devil and felt so ashamed but possessed with the pride of meeting the one he’s been looking for all the this time, only to see him as a devil’s advocate. Brown, however couldn’t not do anything when he met the devil; he became powerless to resist the devil and was outweighed by the devil’s advocate.
Some other similarities between the two stories is the fact that, Robin and Brown sees good and evil but each of them had a different type of perception of it. While Brown sees it as something in other people other than him, Robin thought of it as part of his blood because the kinsman is his uncle’s son. It can also be said that, the two characters were saved from the wrath of the devil. Robin will become great and a responsible man one day. Even though Brown was saved, he couldn’t make it better in life because he sees more evil in others than himself and he ends up dyeing without solving his problem.
The two stories are definitely an allegory of what was going on in America around the 1700 or before the big American Revolution. Young Robin’s search for his kinsman to better himself can be likened to the young America trying to attain independence from the colonial masters in other to become free and better. The stranger with the face of an animal who wears black and red can be likened to war and rebellion of Americans against British rule. Brown’s search for the evil can be liked to race and segregation between black and white. Brown acts as the” white man” who sees “Faith” and others devilish and forgot about their personal weakness.
