Delandre Boyd
Midterm Essay, ENG 2001 O525
10/26/20
Perverseness & Corruption
In Gothic literature, there are a myriad of elements contained within each narrative that enhances the depth of not only the narrative itself, but the depth within each character. However, the defining element in Gothic literature is the Spirit of Perverseness. In summary, the Spirit of Perverseness is described as a person doing what is unacceptable, for the sake of doing so, even if the behavior proves to be self-destructive. But what significance does the Spirit of Perverseness have on Gothic literature? In this essay, I will analyze how the Spirit of Perverseness affects the once peaceful-turned-sadistic narrator in Edgar Allan Poeâs âThe Black Catâ and the once trusting-turned-paranoid Goodman Brown in Nathaniel Hawthorneâs âYoung Goodman Brownâ and examine how the underlying theme of corruption furthers our understanding behind the characters and their actions.
In Edgar Allan Poeâs âThe Black Catâ, the unnamed narrator undergoes a series of drastic, depraved and seemingly sociopathic personality changes, transforming from a benevolent, caring child and growing to be a violent, murderous sadist who willingly inflicts pain on a harmless black cat that he once cared for, even going as far as killing and concealing the body of his own wife. What stands out however, is his rationalization behind his violent acts towards others: the Spirit of Perverseness, which makes him âdo wrong for the wrongâs sake onlyâ (Poe 4). The vile acts inflicted upon his cat were committed with evil intentions and self-awareness, as his embracing of the Spirit of Perverseness demonstrated his complete acceptance of his apparent moral corruption, as the narrator is completely self-aware and unfazed by his actions, while being unconcerned of the consequences, and goes as far as considering his act of depravity a normal human act.
In Nathaniel Hawthorneâs âYoung Goodman Brownâ , a once trusting, righteously spiritual man of faith goes out on a journey into the night, seemingly leading to the revelation of the righteous townspeople being devil worshippers, including his beloved wife, Faith. These events appear to be somewhat misleading as the events of the story might have been a figment of Goodman Brownâs imagination, but seemed to be enough to convince Goodman Brown to distrust everyone in his community, isolating himself from even his own wife, until his grim death. The Spirit of Perverseness is apparent within this Gothic story as well, as Goodman Brown is seemingly willing to abandon his own faith, by attending the ceremony, in a distraught yet, completely self-aware moment of delusion when it was state that he was â… maddened with despair, … with the instinct that guides mortal man to evil. â (Hawthorne, 53). This demonstrates Goodman Brownâs apparent lapse of discernment that drives him to embrace the Spirit of Perverseness, attending the ceremony to his own moral corruption and religious detriment.
With the Spirit of Perverseness being prevalent in both stories, the two stories share similarities revolving around the underlying theme of corruption in both âThe Black Catâ and âYoung Goodman Brownâ, as both characters experience corruption that not only alter their outlook on life and society, but completely transform them as individuals. Both the narrator and Goodman Brown were kind individuals before succumbing to corruption. They both, as a result of corruption, suffer grim fates at the end of their respective stories. Due to their experiences corrupting their societal and personal outlook, they end up abandoning/betraying those they once cared for.
As the underlying theme of corruption acted as a common link between these two particular pieces of Gothic literature, the catalyst behind their corruptive aspects differ. In Poeâs âThe Black Cat, one of the catalysts behind his corruption and perverse acts of depravity seem to be a result of his alcoholism when he states, â returning home, much intoxicated, from one of my haunts about town, I fancied that the cat avoided my presence. I seized himâ (Poe, 5), demonstrating that the narratorsâ behavior toward the black cat grew excessively violent as the narrator mutilated the harmless and defenseless cat in a drunken rage. But while alcoholism seems to be more tangible of a catalyst, another origin behind his corruption is time, when the narrator himself states, âI grew, day by day, more moody, more irritable, more regardless of the feelings.. even offered her personal violence.â (Poe, 4), showing the disdain he felt for his wife as the days progressed and demonstrated how time factored into the narrator’s callous behavior as his compassion for life in general seemed to have diminished, becoming a shadow of his former self, showing that a more intangible, conceptual catalyst had such an immense on the narratorâs behavior, greatly different from how he was in adolescent years. With that said however, the main corruptive element in âYoung Goodman Brownâ, seems to be Goodman Brownâs own mind, or more specifically, his fear. As stated before, the catalyst behind Goodman Brownâs corruption can be easily mistaken, as the events behind the encounters transpired within the woods couldâve possibly been a mere hallucination as Goodman Brownâs awakening alone in the woods. With that said, however, Goodman Brown possibly imagining the townspeople, along with his wife Faith, taking part in a demonic ritual/ceremony shows that Goodman Brown is his own corruptive element. The prospect of his own mind being a corruptive element becomes truer when the story states , âBe it so, if you will… from the night of that fearful dreamâ (Hawthorne, 71-72), it shows that whether or not the events did happen, the mere prospect of it happening was enough to corrupt Goodman Brown, and change who he is completely.
The Spirit of Perverseness and corruption are two very divisive elements of human nature, which further the reason why humans are such complex beings. But by delving into both elements, we enhance our understanding behind certain actions people take and the reason why people behave the way they do. Two prime examples of this are, âThe Black Catâ narrator and âYoung Goodman Brownââs Goodman Brown, as understanding the root of their respective corruptions and analyzing them and establishing the moment when they encounter/embrace the Spirit of Perverseness, we can understanding why the kind, softhearted individuals became the antithesis of who they once were, thus making gothic literature exponentially more enjoyable to readers.
