Written in 1835, Nathaniel Hawthornea Goodman Brown” is a gripping portrayal of seventeenth century Puritan Society. Though recognized as a work of fiction, Hawthornea tale accurately captures the paranoia surrounding the Salem witch trails. In this volume of essays leading critics analyze Hawthornea classic story as it relates to gender, Puritanism, Eden and the American psyche. VIVA MODERN CRITICAL INTERPRETATIONS presents the best current criticism on the most widely read and studied poems, novels and dramas of the Western world, from Oedipus Rex and the Iliad to such modern and contemporary works as William Faulknera The Sound and the Fury and Don Delilloa White Noise.