Young Goodman Brown: Perception Of Witchcraft Then And Now
The Perception of Witchcraft Then and Now Hawthorne’s Young Goodman Brown was set in the seventeenth century when witchcraft was considered a wholly evil practice that would send the practitioner directly to hell. This sets the stage for the story as Young Goodman Brown meets with the devil in a dark forest and attends what is described as a meeting of the damned where fires blaze and people stand around talking and singing. One might wonder what would happen if Young Goodman Brown found himself in our world today. Witchcraft is no longer considered a soul-endangering, ticket to hell, but is now mainstream entertainment for our children. The first and most obvious way witchcraft has changed is in the way it is portrayed. In the time of Young Goodman Brown witchcraft is cloaked
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The Free Exercise Clause in the First Amendment reads “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...”, meaning that no one may be persecuted for practicing any religion. Prior to this amendment government and religion were essentially the same, and the laws of the religion were the laws of the land. This meant that anyone in the community that did not believe the same things as the majority could be considered an outcast and hell-bound. Today things are different; one might find a Catholic church, a Synagogue, a Mosque, and a Baptist church all together in the same two mile stretch of road and there are rarely incidents between them. There are even groups of real ‘witches’ practicing in some places, though these are real, earth worshipping, Wiccan and Pagan witches and not make-believe, wand toting, magical witches in the Harry Potter books. These groups are able to believe and worship in the ways they choose because laws are in place to protect their
The Free Exercise Clause in the First Amendment reads “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof...”, meaning that no one may be persecuted for practicing any religion. Prior to this amendment government and religion were essentially the same, and the laws of the religion were the laws of the land. This meant that anyone in the community that did not believe the same things as the majority could be considered an outcast and hell-bound. Today things are different; one might find a Catholic church, a Synagogue, a Mosque, and a Baptist church all together in the same two mile stretch of road and there are rarely incidents between them. There are even groups of real ‘witches’ practicing in some places, though these are real, earth worshipping, Wiccan and Pagan witches and not make-believe, wand toting, magical witches in the Harry Potter books. These groups are able to believe and worship in the ways they choose because laws are in place to protect their