Nathaniel Hawthorne's skillful portrayal of the 17th century New England countryside in "Young Goodman Brown" is the perfect backdrop for this devilish tale. Hawthorne is able to create a seamless environment in which the characters move about freely and purposely, while maintaining the historical integrity of the time period. The setting is able to come alive and become it's own unique character and play an important part in the story. Hawthorne masterfully uses adjectives such as: dreary, darkened, and gloomiest help provoke mental pictures of 17th century Puritan life. The setting throu…