Young Goodman Brown Symbolism

In “Young Goodman BrownENathaniel Hawthorne uses symbolism to convey and represent deeper thoughts and meanings. The dark and gloomy forest represents the evils that both circle man and that are brought out by man. Brown’s wife, Faith, with her pink ribbons symbolizes youth and innocence and Brown’s faith in goodness. Resembling Goodman Brown, the man with the serpent like staff represents the devil, the temptation of sin, and the initiation of evil.
Shadowed by the gloomiest of trees, the forest is where evil encircles the good. As Goodman Brown travels down the dreary road, the forest appears to close behind him, enveloping him with unseen evils, and concealing all obstacles ahead. “There may be a devilish Indian behind every treeEGoodman Brown comments, adding “What if the devil himself should be at my very elbow!E The fact that the woods close immediately behind him suggests the idea that Brown may never return to the state of innocence from which he came. The...