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The Symbolism Of Faith In Hawthorne's Young Goodman Brown

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The Christian faith believes that all mankind are born sinners and only through their faith can seek redemption. “Faith is taking the first even when you don’t see the whole staircase.”- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. There comes a time where the faith of every man and woman is put to the test. Most choose to resist the temptation, but some do not. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story Young Goodman Brown Hawthorne uses a series of symbols to convey a deeper meaning.
The pink ribbons worn by Faith is conveyed as a symbol of innocence. In the beginning of the short story Faith’s innocence is portrayed as she “thrust her own pretty head into the street, letting the wind play with the pink ribbons of her cap (Hawthorne 1). Pink is color that usually …show more content…

Faith does not went her husband to venture off for a night and leaving her alone. Innocence is seen here, because her want for her husband to stay and not go is a sign of innocence. Brown knew his venture was not going to be a pleasant one, so “he looked back and saw the head of Faith still peeping after him with a melancholy air, in spite of her pink ribbon (Hawthorne 1). For whatever reason Brown was embarking on his adventure he would need to retain his innocence and his Faith. Brown ends up losing his Faith both figuratively and literally, it is shown when the pink ribbons falls down to the ground. Faith meaning his wife and his belief in God. Hawthorne uses the pink ribbons to represent innocence, but uses the staff and the forest to represent evil.
Further along Goodman Brown’s journey into the forest he is joined by a man “in grave and decent attire” (Hawthorne 1). The

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