Hawthorne Examined: The Potential of the Wilderness in Young

In Young Goodman Brown, Hawthorne depicts the title character traveling away from the confines of his Salem village, leaving “Faith,” his aptly named wife behind, in order to make an encounter with “the other.” Upon entering the wilderness, Brown’s fears get the better of him: “’There may be a devilish Indian behind every tree,’ said Goodman Brown to himself; and he glanced fearfully behind him, as he added, ‘what if the devil himself should …

…existence is glorified. Similar to the idea of the wilderness in Young Goodman Brown, the forest in its liberating abilities brings to light the inherent crippling nature of the Puritan’s society on one’s inner self. And for Hester and Dimmesdale, unable to express their needs and desires within the community of people, it was only in the confines of limitless nature that their thoughts and emotions could run as untamed as the forest.