The two stories that stood out to me the most and that I will be writing about it are The Black Cat by Edgar Allan Poe and Young Goodman Brown by Nathanial Hawthorne. 

The two characters I will be comparing are the Narrator and Goodman Brown. 

Similarities 

* both characters ultimately descent into madness 

* Both go through a phycological battle against themselves 

* Both contain bad omens and curses (gothic element) 

* A return to normalcy at the end (central gothic irony) 

* Both go through some similar gothic emotions like shock, suspense and fear 

Differences 

* Black Cat narrator speaks in first person while Goodman Brown is narrated in third person 

* Different gothic actions. In The Black Cat it’s way more extreme and even pushing the limit with violence and gore 

* Different time periods/settings 

* Both fall into madness differently. One through his own perverseness (spirit of perverseness) and Goodman Brown through what he sees around him/ throughout his experience in the forest. 

* More terror in Goodman Brown meanwhile there’s more horror in The Black Cat