Comparing Young Goodman Brown And The Man Of The Crowd

Gothic Fiction: “Young Goodman Brown” and “The Man of the Crowd”

During the American Renaissance, the writing of several authors is sometimes described as Dark Romantic or Gothic Fiction. Leslie Fiedler gives a description: “a gothic fiction, nonrealistic and negative, sadist and melodramatic – a literature of darkness and the grotesque in a land of light and affirmation” (xxiv). This description of gothic fiction makes clear that “Gothic is the strongest character trait in American literature” (Cody, 100). Nathaniel Hawthorne’s story “Young Goodman Brown” and Edgar Allan Poe’s story “The Man of the Crowd” are part of the gothic fiction genre in the American literature, but “Young Goodman Brown” has more gothic elements than “The Man of the

The first element that makes “Young Goodman Brown” a gothic story is nature. Most of the story is set in the woods, as Francis says: “In this story nature acquires a gothic terror for the reader, for it is the home of evil.” (102) This statement is supported by various proof in the text, for example: “He had taken a dreary road, darkened by all the gloomiest trees of the forest” (620) or “deep dusk in the forest” (620). These lines from the text show a gothic element in nature, they show the atmosphere of the forest which comes with the darkness and scariness of the forest. Another element that makes the story gothic is the implying of witchcraft and the worshipping of the devil. Witchcraft is implied when goody Cloyse brings up that “broomstick hath strangely disappeared, stolen, as I suspect, by that unhanged witch, goody Cory” (622). Witchcraft means magic and magic is not real, the use of magic and the nonrealistic part of magic makes it an element of gothic. The practice of devil worshipping is done when there is an assembly to welcome children into “communion of your race” (627), and by saying these things: “Evil is the nature of mankind. Evil is must be your only happiness.” (627). By believing that