The last line in "Young Goodman Brown" reads: "And when he had lived long, and was borne to his grave a hoary corpse, followed by Faith, an aged woman, and children and grandchildren, a goodly procession, besides neighbors not a few, they carved no hopeful verse upon his tombstone, for his dying hour was gloom." What a bummer of a way to end a life that really could have been pretty good and normal. Goodman Brown's one night of wandering in the woods with the devil led him to a miserable life and a gloomy death. He had a good thing going for him at home: a wife who loved him and begged him not to leave her that night. He not only chose to go, but chose to keep going on his journey after several opportunities to turn back.
Not to be mean, but I'm certainly not shocked that "his dying hour was gloom."
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