“The Devil and Tom Walker” by Washington Irving and “Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne are both short stories that illustrate Puritan ideas about the place of evil in human nature. Both tales revolve around a central character and his personal struggle with the “Devil”. Tom Walker conspires with the Devil for monetary gain, while Goodman Brown's interaction with the Devil makes him question his faith. The authors use the literary device of allegory to represent Puritan ideas of good and evil, as evidenced by Tom Walker and Goodman Brown, and the complementary characters of Faith and Tom Walker's Wife. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay “The Devil and Tom Walker” and “Young Goodman Brown” both use a central character to illustrate a secondary meaning. Tom Walker is used to illustrate the Puritan ideal of human evil and greed. He is described to us as a miserly, scruffy and cheeky old man, traits that give him a specific and realistic personality. However, as the narrative develops, we are able to understand the abstract meaning that Tom Walker's character represents. In the story, Tom Walker sells himself to the Devil to gain monetary wealth: “You are the usurer of my money!” said the black legs, with joy. “When will you want the rhino?” This very night." "Done!" said the devil. "Done!" said Tom Walker. —So they shook hands and made a pact" (Irving, 10). Tom Walker's pact with the Devil represents greed natural of humanity: the desire for something more. In the same way as Tom Walker, Goodman Brown is used as an allegory to illustrate a secondary meaning. Goodman Brown embodies a puritanical ideal of evil by representing the man himself; presented as a religious young man, but this image quickly fades once it is revealed that Goodman Brown is encountering the Devil. Goodman Brown attempts to maintain his faith as he ventures deeper and deeper into the forest with the Devil at his side,” having kept my bargain by meeting you here, it is my purpose now to return from whence I came. I have scruples concerning the matter you need” (Hawthorne, 2). : “There is nothing good on earth; and sin is but a name. Come devil! for to you is this world given" (Hawthorne, 5). Goodman Brown represents man himself: he attempts to follow his own path through life, but cannot avoid the evils the world has to offer. Tom Walker and Goodman Brown illustrate human greed and humanity respectively. However, faith is used to illustrate a Puritan ideal of goodness: faith in humanity. Although Faith is a fairly flat character, she plays an instrumental role in the development of the story and its themes. When Goodman Brown ventures into the woods to meet the Devil, he is reluctant to follow him further because of his love of faith: “I will not move another step on this errand. What if a wretched old woman chose to go to hell, when I thought she would go to Heaven? Is this any reason why I should leave my dear Faith and follow her?" (Hawthorne, 4). Faith represents Goodman Brown's faith in humanity, and is all that keeps him from going further with the Devil. Likewise way, "faith" is what drives Goodman Brown to later follow the Devil to the ceremony. After hearing his faith "utter moans", Goodman Brown loses not only his faith, but also his faith in humanity faith represents a personal connection to humanity and is used by Hawthorne to.