Symbols in literary works are usually provided as a way to suggest a more complex meaning or a broad range or meanings, aside from the literal meaning of the symbol. In Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story "Young Goodman Brown," Hawthorne uses a broad range of symbols that mean more than just their literal meaning. Hawthorne uses those symbols to promote his underlining message of evil, and how every man has traces of evil within him.

"Young Goodman Brown" is a short story by the nineteenth-century American fiction writer Nathaniel Hawthorne based on the history of Hawthorne's Puritan ancestors and the New England that existed during his time. Hawthorne documented Puritan lifestyle in a few of his stories, such as The Scarlet Letter and The House of Seven Gables. One of his best-known stories is "Young Goodman Brown", which tells the story of a young, devout Puritan named Goodman Brown...