"Young Goodman Brown" (1835) is a short story by American writer Nathaniel Hawthorne. The story takes place in 17th century Puritan New England, a common setting for Hawthorne's works, and addresses the Calvinist/Puritan belief that humanity exists in a state of depravity, exempting those who are born in a state of grace. Hawthorne frequently attempts to expose the hypocrisy of Puritan culture in his literature. In a symbolic fashion, the story follows Young Goodman Brown's journey into self-scrutiny which results in his loss of faith.
Read more about Young Goodman Brown: Plot Summary, Background, Critical Response and Impact
Famous quotes containing the words young, goodman and/or brown:
“A young bride is like a plucked flower; but a guilty wife is like a flower that had been walked over.”
—Honoré De Balzac (1799–1850)
“The important thing about travel in foreign lands is that it breaks the speech habits and makes you blab less, and breaks the habitual space-feeling because of different village plans and different landscapes. It is less important that there are different mores, for you counteract these with your own reaction- formations.”
—Paul Goodman (1911–1972)
“Oh, little brown girl, born for sorrow’s mate,
Keep all you have of queenliness,
Forgetting that you once were slave,
And let your full lips laugh at Fate!”
—Gwendolyn B. Bennett (1902–1981)