Young Goodman Brown

E45684

Young Goodman Brown is a classic short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne that explores themes of Puritanism, faith, and the nature of evil through a man's disillusioning nighttime journey into a dark forest.

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Observed surface forms (1)

Surface form Occurrences
Goodman Brown 2

Statements (48)

Predicate Object
instanceOf short story
antagonist the Devil
author Nathaniel Hawthorne
characterType allegorical characters representing moral qualities
countryOfOrigin United States of America
surface form: United States
exploresConcept community hypocrisy
corruption of innocence
moral ambiguity
religious doubt
firstPublishedIn The New-England Magazine
genre Gothic fiction
allegory
dark romanticism
hasAdaptation radio dramatizations
stage adaptations
hasLiteraryStatus American literary classic
hasMoralOrMessage questioning the absolute goodness of individuals
the destructive power of suspicion and doubt
includedIn collections of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short stories
influenced later Gothic and psychological fiction
literaryMovement American Romanticism
literaryPeriod 19th-century American literature
literaryTechnique allegory
ambiguity
symbolism
mainCharacter Faith
Young Goodman Brown self-linksurface differs
surface form: Goodman Brown

the Devil
narrativePerspective third-person limited
originalLanguage English
protagonist Young Goodman Brown self-linksurface differs
surface form: Goodman Brown
publicationYear 1835
publisher The New-England Magazine
setting New England Colonies
surface form: Puritan New England

Salem, Massachusetts
a dark forest near Salem
studiedIn American literature courses
symbol Faith’s pink ribbons
the forest
the staff shaped like a serpent
theme Puritanism
disillusionment
hypocrisy
loss of faith
original sin
psychological conflict
the nature of evil
timePeriodInFiction late 17th century

Referenced by (4)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Mosses from an Old Manse hasPart Young Goodman Brown
Young Goodman Brown mainCharacter Young Goodman Brown self-linksurface differs
this entity surface form: Goodman Brown
Nathaniel Hawthorne notableWork Young Goodman Brown
Young Goodman Brown protagonist Young Goodman Brown self-linksurface differs
this entity surface form: Goodman Brown