Young Goodman Brown

“Young Goodman Brown” (1835) is a short story that thrusts us into a nightmarish world of witchcraft, religion, sin, and temptation. Composed as an allegory – a story that acts as a thin wrapper for an author’s intended message or meaning – this bite-size tale has much to say on human nature, Christianity, hypocrisy, and our ideas of community. 

• Horror lovers
• Soul-searchers interested in human nature
• Witches, wizards, and practitioners of the occult

Nathaniel Hawthorne was a nineteenth-century American writer and diplomat. Born in Salem, Massachusetts – the town infamous for its execution of 19 people on allegations of witchcraft in 1692 – Hawthorne’s great-great-grandfather was actually one of the judges who condemned the accused. The guilt he felt over this had a profound influence on his writings, which include the novel The Scarlet Letter (1850) and the short story “The Birthmark” (1846).