Young Goodman Brown Summary
Nathaniel Hawthorne

Everything you need to understand or teach Young Goodman Brown by Nathaniel Hawthorne.

Young Goodman Brown Summary & Study Guide
21 Student Essays
1 Encyclopedia Article
53 Literature Criticisms
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30 Young Goodman Brown Lessons
20 Activities
180 Multiple Choice Questions
60 Short Essay Questions
20 Essay Questions
Pre-Made Tests and Quizzes
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Young Goodman Brown Summary

"Young Goodman Brown," written in 1835 by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is known for being one of literature's most gripping portrayals of seventeenth-century Puritan society. The tale first appeared in the April issue of New England Magazine and was later included in Hawthorne's popular short story collection, Mosses from an Old Manse, in 1846.

"Young Goodman Brown" tells the tale of a young Puritan man drawn into a covenant with the Devil. Brown's illusions about the goodness...

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Encyclopedia Articles (1)

"Young Goodman Brown"

3,334 words, approx. 12 pages

"Young Goodman Brown" by Nathaniel Hawthorne Nathaniel Hawthorne's great -great-grandfather, William Hathorne, immigrated to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630. He Settled in Salem, the colony's ... Read more

Nathaniel Hawthorne Biographies (7)

Nathaniel Hawthorne

2,822 words, approx. 10 pages

The work of American fiction writer Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864) was based on the history of his Puritan ancestors and the New England of his own day but, in its "power of blackness," has universal... Read more

Nathaniel Hawthorne

5,757 words, approx. 20 pages

Nathaniel Hawthorne was fond of calling himself the "obscurist man of letters in America." Indeed, Edgar Allan Poe, with whom Hawthorne basically created the short story form in America, once said tha... Read more

Nathaniel Hawthorne

8,561 words, approx. 29 pages

In sketches, tales, and romances published in the second third of the nineteenth century, Hawthorne chose mainly American materials, drawing especially on the history of colonial New England and his n... Read more

Nathaniel Hawthorne

11,949 words, approx. 40 pages

When Nathaniel Hawthorne was born in Salem, Massachusetts, on our most patriotic holiday in 1804, his ancestral roots were already deeply planted in New England. Writing in The Scarlet Letter (1850) o... Read more

Nathaniel Hawthorne

6,695 words, approx. 23 pages

On 9 July 1842 Nathaniel Hawthorne and Sophia Peabody were married in a simple ceremony that capped a courtship of nearly five years. Thus Hawthorne, at the age of thirty-eight, assumed his role as he... Read more

Nathaniel Hawthorne

16,142 words, approx. 54 pages

Although Nathaniel Hawthorne called himself "the obscurest man in American letters," his achievements in fiction, both as short-story writer and novelist, offer models fashioned too well for contempor... Read more

Nathaniel Hawthorne

9,025 words, approx. 31 pages

Biography EssayIn sketches, tales, and romances published in the second third of the nineteenth century, Nathaniel Hawthorne chose mainly American materials, drawing especially on the history of colon... Read more

Essays & Analysis (74)

Critical Essay by James L. Williamson

4,607 words, approx. 16 pages

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Critical Essay by Frank Davidson

2,612 words, approx. 9 pages

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Critical Essay by Claudia G. Johnson

1,668 words, approx. 6 pages

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Critical Essay by Michael J. Colacurcio

20,054 words, approx. 67 pages

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Critical Essay by Leo B. Levy

6,556 words, approx. 22 pages

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Critical Essay by Terence J. Matheson

4,500 words, approx. 16 pages

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Critical Essay by Frank Shuffelton

6,017 words, approx. 21 pages

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Critical Essay by Edward Jayne

7,997 words, approx. 27 pages

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Critical Essay by Harold F. Mosher, Jr.

7,150 words, approx. 24 pages

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Critical Essay by James L. Williamson

4,633 words, approx. 16 pages

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Critical Essay by Norman H. Hostetler

4,162 words, approx. 14 pages

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Critical Essay by Karen Hollinger

1,872 words, approx. 7 pages

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Critical Essay by James W. Mathews

1,362 words, approx. 5 pages

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Critical Essay by Michael Tritt

2,026 words, approx. 7 pages

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Critical Essay by Christopher D. Morris

5,172 words, approx. 18 pages

2,179 words, approx. 8 pages

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Critical Essay by Benjamin Franklin V

7,903 words, approx. 27 pages

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Critical Essay by James C. Keil

9,570 words, approx. 32 pages

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Critical Essay by Debra Johanyak

1,744 words, approx. 6 pages

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Critical Essay by B. Bernard Cohen

9,374 words, approx. 32 pages

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Critical Essay by Taylor Stoehr

8,990 words, approx. 30 pages

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Critical Essay by Richard C. Carpenter

4,995 words, approx. 17 pages

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Critical Essay by Reginald Cook

3,767 words, approx. 13 pages

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Critical Essay by Harry M. Campbell

2,263 words, approx. 8 pages

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Critical Essay by Fred Erisman

1,385 words, approx. 5 pages

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Critical Essay by D. M. McKeithan

1,483 words, approx. 5 pages

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Critical Essay by J. M. Ferguson, Jr.

576 words, approx. 2 pages

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Critical Essay by Walter J. Paulits

2,529 words, approx. 9 pages

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Critical Essay by Reginald Cook

3,521 words, approx. 12 pages

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Critical Essay by Wayne Dickson

465 words, approx. 2 pages

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Critical Essay by Harry M. Campbell

2,067 words, approx. 7 pages

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Critical Essay by John B. Humma

2,769 words, approx. 10 pages

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Critical Essay by Robert E. Morsberger

2,769 words, approx. 10 pages

1,611 words, approx. 6 pages

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Critical Essay by Claudia G. Johnson

1,214 words, approx. 5 pages

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Critical Essay by Edward J. Gallagher

908 words, approx. 4 pages

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Critical Essay by Thomas E. Connolly

2,044 words, approx. 7 pages

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Critical Essay by Leo B. Levy

5,673 words, approx. 19 pages

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Critical Essay by Sheldon W. Liebman

6,295 words, approx. 21 pages

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Critical Essay by Patricia Ann Carlson

1,502 words, approx. 6 pages

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Critical Essay by Terence J. Matheson

3,902 words, approx. 14 pages

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Critical Essay by Norman H. Hostetler

3,063 words, approx. 11 pages

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Critical Essay by Terence Martin

2,860 words, approx. 10 pages

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Critical Essay by Sam B. Girgus

2,942 words, approx. 10 pages

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Critical Essay by James C. Keil

7,195 words, approx. 24 pages

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Critical Essay by Thomas F. Walsh, Jr.

2,647 words, approx. 9 pages

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Critical Essay by Paul W. Miller

3,222 words, approx. 11 pages

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Critical Essay by David Levin

3,151 words, approx. 11 pages

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Critical Essay by E. Arthur Robinson

2,587 words, approx. 9 pages

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Critical Essay by James W. Mathews

1,187 words, approx. 4 pages

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Critical Essay by Paul J. Hurley

3,756 words, approx. 13 pages

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Critical Essay by Richard Abcarian

1,467 words, approx. 5 pages

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The Journey of Young Goodman Brown

967 words, approx. 4 pages

In Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story, Young Goodman Brown, Brown goes on a journey through the forest that drastically changes him. While we never know the real reason why Brown went to the forest, ... Read more

Young Goodman Brown's Nocturne

975 words, approx. 4 pages

Nathaniel Hawthorne's short-story, "Young Goodman Brown" is a tale of a man losing his faith in God and humanity after experiencing a startling dream in which he witnesses the people of Salem attendin... Read more

Analysis of a Passage from Young Goodman Brown

702 words, approx. 3 pages

        The point in Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown" when Brown proclaims "My Faith is gone!" marks the crisis point of the story.  Brown's faith in God completely... Read more

"Young Goodman Brown"

671 words, approx. 3 pages

Nathaniel Hawthorne, it seems from the stories we have read, always has the same theme in his works--sin. For example, in "The Minister's Black Veil," the black veil represented the secret sin in eve... Read more

Allegorical Analysis of Faith in Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown"

801 words, approx. 3 pages

In "Young Goodman Brown" Nathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolism to effectively create the desired allegorical context. Having been published in 1835, the lasting effect of 17th century Puritanism played ... Read more

Brown Loses His Faith

1,480 words, approx. 5 pages

Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story titled "Young Goodman Brown" is about a young man trying to retain his faith in the people and the world around him. On All Hallow's Eve, he leaves his wife, ... Read more

The Meaning of the Symbols in "Young Goodman Brown"

645 words, approx. 3 pages

"Young Goodman Brown" by Nathaniel Hawthorne is a story set in Salem, Massachusetts around the time of the Salem witch trials. Hawthorne weaves a tale of a young man whose world is turned upside down... Read more

Good Vs. Evil in Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown"

972 words, approx. 4 pages

Good vs. Evil The short story, "Young Goodman Brown" is a fascinating rendition of the battle between good and evil. The reader must delve into the depths of his/her own beliefs to understand what t... Read more

Young Goodman Brown, An Analysis of Themes

549 words, approx. 2 pages

Nathaniel Hawthorne, a master of ambiguity, creates works that keep his readers' minds thinking and questioning. Ambiguity is the use of words and/or phrases to bring multiple meanings from figural ... Read more

Nathanial Hawthorne and Young Goodman Brown

608 words, approx. 3 pages

Biography: Hawthorne was born in Salem Massachusetts, and he attended college with Longfellow Hawthorne jump-started his career with the publication of Twice- Told Tales Hawthorne also made it to t... Read more

Young Good Brown: the Battle between Good and Evil

760 words, approx. 3 pages

Young Goodman Brown is a holy man, with a repressed wish inside of him to explore the unknown. This wish came to him through a dream and changed the rest of his life dramatically. The story "Young Go... Read more

Summary of Young Goodman Brown

766 words, approx. 3 pages

Young Goodman Brown is about to take a journey through the gloomy woods. As he sets off, his wife of three months pleads with him not to go because she has dreamed that something bad is going to happe... Read more

The Allegorical Nature of "Young Goodman Brown"

1,267 words, approx. 5 pages

Nathaniel Hawthorne is eminent for his works that portray the iniquitous evilness dwelling behind the images of rectitude embedded into Puritan society during the 17th century. Hawthorne's depiction ... Read more

Ambiguity in Young Goodman Brown

679 words, approx. 3 pages

"Had Goodman Brown fallen asleep in the forest and only dreamed a wild dream of a witch-meeting? (387)" The story "Young Goodman Brown" is portrayed as a straight forward tale of a man on a venture. ... Read more

Young Goodman Brown

883 words, approx. 3 pages

An analysis of the setting in Nathaniel Hawthorne's "Young Goodman Brown" In the story of "Young Goodman Brown" setting plays an important role. It provides symbolism to certain events and provokes ... Read more

The Maturation of "Young Goodman Brown"

1,434 words, approx. 5 pages

Nathanial Hawthorne's story "Young Goodman Brown" portrays the growth of Young Goodman Brown through vivid symbolic setting. "Young Goodman Brown" is an allegory in which the setting is very importa... Read more

Destination Gloom

1,288 words, approx. 5 pages

From the moment we enter this world we start a life long journey finding answers to life's hardest questions. Each of us deal with both similar, and very different questions that cause us to make deci... Read more

Is the Fellow Traveler in "Young Goodman Brown" Friend or Foe?

1,002 words, approx. 4 pages

Friend or Foe" "Why did Goodman Brown leave his wife to fulfill an evil purpose"" "What was his evil purpose"" "Who did he meet in the woods"" "Was it a dream or was it reality"" These are just ... Read more

Protagonists as Victims in "Rappaccini's Daughter" and "Young Goodman Brown"

1,072 words, approx. 4 pages

Every great story ever written has a deep meaning and many literary elements buried within it. If the reader merely surface- read the story they may or may not like it, but when read in depth, they le... Read more

Young Goodman Brown

1,349 words, approx. 5 pages

Young Goodman Brown: Good versus Evil Throughout Young Goodman Brown and other works of Nathaniel Hawthorne, the themes of sin and guilt constantly reoccur. Like many authors, Hawthorne used events i... Read more

Symbols and Meanings in "Young Goodman Brown"

1,284 words, approx. 5 pages

Symbols in literary works are usually provided as a way to suggest a more complex meaning or a broad range or meanings, aside from the literal meaning of the symbol. In Nathaniel Hawthorne's short sto... Read more

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