, Research Paper

In both Nathaniel Hawthorne+s |Young Goodman BrownX and Joseph Conrad+s |Heart of Darkness, X the chief character is presented with an evil version of himself while shiping on a journey. Throughout each narrative, both characters illustrate the potency for evil which co-exists in every adult male along with a possible for good. In the gap of |Young Goodman BrownX, Goodman Brown begins his journey, and is shortly met by a traveller who was about 50 old ages old, seemingly in the same rank of life as Goodman Brown, and bearing a considerable resemblance to him+ ( 595 ) . By the storyteller saying that the traveller bears a resemblance to Goodman Brown, he is comparing Goodman Brown with the traveller, and seeking to demo similarities between them. Goodman Brown tells the traveller that he intends to go forth and travel back to where he came, because his household is a race of honest work forces, and he does non mean to take this new way. He seems house in this determination, but there are minutes where Goodman Brown is tempted by the traveller to go on walking with him. The reader is incognizant of the way Goodman Borwn is talking approximately, but is shortly informed that he is talking about the rap of the Satan. This is confirmed by Goody Cloyse, a pious adult female who taught Goodman Brown his catechism. Upon seeing Goodman Brown & # 8217 ; s comrade, she screams & # 8220 ; The Satan! & # 8221 ; and is answered by the traveller & # 8220 ; Then Goody Cloyse knows her old friend? & # 8221 ; ( 597. ) When Goodman Brown observes many well-thought-of people of his town flying to this secret meeting in the forests he is startled, because he is cognizant of the good in them, but is now going aware of the immorality which besides resides inside of them. With this realisation, it becomes evident to him that he, excessively, could be lured by his evil side, which is what he is seeing in the traveller. When Goodman Brown realizes that his married woman, excessively, has been seduced by the dark side, he makes hastiness to the glade where the ceremonial is taking topographic point, and presents himself to the crowd. Goodman Brown is forced up on the communion table next to Faith, and told by the traveller |Depending upon one another+s Black Marias, ye had still hoped that virtuousness were non all a dream! Now ye are disabused! -Evil is the nature of world. Evil must be your lone felicity. Welcome, once more, my kids, to the Communion of your race! X ( 602 ) . This declaration shocks Goodman Brown, for he thinks that if he continues with the ceremonial, he will go his evil opposite number. Goodman Brown wills Faith to look towards heaven, and oppose the Satan. The narrative ends with Goodman Brown happening himself entirely in the wood, and for the remainder of his life moving dreadfully towards his fellow townsfolk. Whether Goodman Brown did or did non woolgather the whole journey is unimportant-he has seen the Satan, if merely in his head, and feels guilty for about being seduced by his dark side. He has besides seen how easy his neighbours woulc be lured by there evil side, and because of this feels great bitterness towards them. He becomes hostile and reticent, and the pick he was forced to do between good and evil, if merely in his head, unimpeachably affected his life. In |Heart of Darkness, X nevertheless, the chief character is given a different word picture of good and evil. Charlie Marlow, the storyteller of the narrative within-the-story, spends a good sum of the narrative seeking for Mr. Kurtz, a individual with whom he feels an uneven connexion. When Marlo

tungsten first meets with the director of the Central Station, they begin to speak about Mr. Kurtz, the main agent of the tusk company+s Inner Station. Marlow says the director explains Kurtz as |the best agent he had, an exceeding adult male, of the greatest importance to the company, X ( 250 ) . The director so tells Marlow that he intends to wait three months before get downing to mend the broken steamboat. This upsets Marlow, who storms out of the office. A few eventides subsequently, he sees a grass shed full of trade goods on fire. While look intoing the state of affairs out, he |heard the name of Kurtz pronounced, so the words, take advantage of this unfortunate accident.+ One of them was the director, X ( 251 ) . Having heard this, Marlow suspects that the director intentionally wrecked the steamboat in order to detain Marlow from taking supplies to Kurtz. This upsets him greatly, for he has started to experience an incomprehensible bond towards Marlow, and resents the manager+s intervention of Kurtz.

After the black steersman fell dead at Marlow+s pess, Marlow foremost thinks that Kurtz must be dead. He says of himself, |my sorrow had a startling extravagancy of emotion, even such as I had noticed in the ululation sorrow of there barbarians in the shrub. I couldn+t have felt more of alone devastation somehow, had I been robbed of a belief or had missed my fate in life, X ( 269 ) . Comparing his sorrow with the call that emanated from the shrub before the onslaught, Marlow is comparing himself with the barbarians, and is admiting his ain secret wild inherent aptitudes. The fact that Marlow may be unable to of all time run into Kurtz is seemingly of great letdown to him. This is besides compared to being robbed of one+s belief and losing one+s fate, which are really serious affairs. After coming to Kurtz & # 8217 ; cabin and happening Kurtz non at that place, Marlow follows a trail by the bank to seek and happen Kurtz. After catching up to him, they argue a spot, and Marlow begins to recognize the bad which resides inside of Kurtz. He says of this disclosure, & # 8220 ; His psyche was huffy. Bing entirely in the wilderness, it had looked within itself, and by celestial spheres! I tell you, it had gone huffy. I had-for my wickednesss, I suppose- to travel through the ordeal of looking into it myself, & # 8221 ; ( 284 ) . At the very terminal of the narrative Marlow visits Kurtz+ Intended, who knows Kurtz+ good side, as opposed to his dark side. When she asks what Kurtz+ concluding words were, Marlow grapples with the truth and so chooses to lie to her, stating that the last word he spoke was her name. Marlow so tells his hearers, |It seemed to me that the celestial spheres would fall for such a trifle. Would they hold fallen, I wonder, if I had rendered Kurtz that justness which was his due? Hadn+t he said he merely wanted justness? But I couldn+t. I could non state her. It would hold been excessively dark-too dark wholly & # 8230 ; X ( 292 ) . This shows that Marlow is taking non to dig into his dark side, and has discovered a deepness of compassion in himself that he ne’er knew existed. Over the class of the narrative, Marlow develops a strong intent to see and speak with Kurtz. It is Kurtz+ voice he wants to hear, and more and more he identifies with Kurtz. Like Young Goodman Brown finds his dark ego in the Satan, Marlow finds in Kurtz his ain dark ego. As each narrative became more and more complex, the chief characters were both intrigued by their evil opposite number, and take at the terminal to stay the |goodX adult male they were before the whole journey.