“Rip Van Winkle” by Washington Irving and “Young Goodman Brown” by Nathaniel Hawthorne are both stories of male individuals who leave their community, only to return with their views on life changed forever. This essay will decipher the similarities and differences between these two tales. A common feature between the two stories is that the central character returns to his community with his perspective transformed forever. Even though Rip Van Winkle was gone for 20 years and Young Goodman Brown was only gone for one night, the effect is irreversible. Upon returning, Rip Van Winkle finds that his world has changed considerably. Now he lives in a world of politics and voting; kings and British rule are a thing of the past. Likewise, Young Goodman Brown leaves with a pure mind; one who sees the good in people and his community. After the meeting in the forest, he is skeptical of everyone and dies an old, distrustful and apparently unhappy man. One of the main themes present in both stories is freedom. In "Rip Van Winkle", Irving describes the main character as a person who only desires...