Ambiguity and Uncertainty in Young Goodman BrownIn “Young Goodman Brown,” Nathaniel Hawthorne, through the use of misleading imagery, creates a sense of uncertainty that illuminates the theme of man's incapacity. operate within a framework of moral absolutism. In every man there is an innate difference between good and evil and Hawthorne's deliberate use of ambiguity reflects this complexity of human nature. Hawthorne's young Goodman Brown is misled into believing in the perfectibility of humanity and the existence of moral absolutes. According to Nancy Bunge, Hawthorne naturally centers his story on a Puritan protagonist to convey the “right-thinking” he considers “the antithesis of wisdom” (4). Consequently, young Goodman Brown is unable to accept the indefinable vision of betrayal and evil that he encounters in the forest. The uncertainty of this vision, heightened by Hawthorne's deliberate but effective use of ambiguity, is also found in the character of Faith, the shadows and darkness of the forest, and the undetectable boundaries that separate nightmarish dreams from life. reality. The ambiguity surrounding Young Goodman Brown's wife, Faith, is immediately apparent at the beginning of the story. As young Goodman Brown leaves his comfortable and respectful Puritan home to embark on this mysterious journey, Faith unexpectedly dips her "pretty head into the street" allowing the wind to ruffle her and "play with the pink ribbons of her cap » (1199). Hawthorne uses natural imagery, such as the image of the wind "playing" with Faith's pink ribbons, to express Faith's attachment to nature; the dark and mysterious part of life that lies somewhere outside the constraints of Puritan society. In fact, the image...... middle of paper ......rne: A study of short fiction. Ed. Nancy Bunge. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1993. 136-41. Bunge, Nancy. Nathaniel Hawthorne: A Study of Short Fiction. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1993. Dolis, John. The style of Hawthorne's gaze. Tuscaloosa: U of Alabama P, 1993. Elder, Marjorie J. Nathaniel Hawthorne: Transcendental Symbolist. Ohio: Ohio UP, 1969. Fogle, Richard Harter. "Hawthorne's Fiction: Light and Darkness." Nathaniel Hawthorne: A Study of Short Fiction. Ed. Nancy Bunge. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1993. 133-35 Hawthorne, Nathaniel. “Young Goodman Brown.” Norton Anthology of American Literature. Vol1. Ed. Nina Baym, et al. New York: Norton, 1994. 1198-1207.Millington, Richard H. Practicing Romance. New Jersey: Princeton UP, 1992.Ponder, the early narrative arts of Melinda M. Hawthorne. New York: Edwin Mellen Press, 1990.