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Gabriella Conklin
Mr. Munoz
AP English
3 Novemeber 2014
Young Goodman Brown: Stereotypes and Symbols
A stereotype is quite simple; it is a tsndardized conception or image that most people are
familiar with. Symbols are a little more complicated; a symbol is an object, phrase, word or idea
that is both what it means and what it is supposed to represent. These two devices, stereotypes
and symbols, contribute to the fulfillment of the author's purpose. They help draw an image in
the readers my mind to better understnd what the story is all about. The author could possibly be
using a fictional story about young Goodman Brown to describe an inner struggle that he deals
with in his life. Stereotypes and symbols allow the reader to be drawn into the understanding of
the the author's inner struggle symbolized by the story of young Goodman Brown.
When Young Goodman Brown runs into Goody Cloyse, he finds out that she is a witch.
She is a true, stereotypical, baby-eating, broom-flying, cackling, evil witch. After Goodman
Brown comes to this discovery, the author makes it a point to add some stereotypical features of
a witch whenever he mentions Goody Cloyse. The first obvious stereotype of a witch that we can
see is the fact that she lives in Salem. Salem is well known for the amount of witches it inhabited
and the trials that took place because of witches in the sixteen hundreds. If Goody Cloyse lives in
Salem then she must be a witch because all witches live in Salem; this is a basic stereotype
underlined throughout the whole of the short story. Now to look at the others such as flying
brooms, eating babies and cackling hags on page four of the short story. In the second paragraph
on page four there is a broomstick mentioned in relation to Goody Cloyse. The excerpt is as

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follows, "--my broomstick hath strangely disappeared, stolen, as I suspect..." In this excerpt
Goody Cloyse is speaking to Goodman Brown, and she begins to trail off as she thinks aloud.
She is wondering where her broomstick went, and as is obvious this is another stereotype. All
witches have a broomstick; therefore Goody Cloyse must have a broomstick. Later on in the
third paragraph old Goodman Brown is speaking, and he says,""Mingled with fine wheat and the
fat of a new-born babe,"." Goodman Brown is trying to imply that the witch, Goody Cloyse,
enjoys feasting on babies along with other ingredients for a magical potion. In the olden days
when people believed that there were actually witches, it was said that witches would eat new
born babies. Stereotypical witches, such as those in Hocus Pocus, would use the babies in
potions to keep themselves young and beautiful. The quote from the short story is a stereotype of
a witch that implies that if all witches enjoy new born babies, then Goody Cloyse must also like
it. So far she is just a baby-eating, broom-flying, evil witch who lives in Salem, but she is lacking
the cackling. In the fourth paragraph of the fourth page Goody Cloyse is responding to what old
Goodman Brown had said. After her response, it says, "cried the old lady, cackling aloud." When
she cackles aloud after her response, it paints a very stereotypical picture of a witch throwing her
head back and cackling. Now she is a true, stereotypical, baby-eating, broom-flying, cackling,
evil witch who lives in Salem. The author paints Goody Cloyse to be a stereotypical witch so that
the reader is very sure of what she is and the evil that surrounds her.
Within this story there are a few more stereotypes besides the stereotypical witch. Deacon
Gookin is not a stereotype himself, but rather the reader is shocked because he is the opposite of
his stereotype. When the author says Deacon, readers naturally assume that the character Deacon
Gookin is a kind, holy person. In all actuality, he is the opposite of that. It could be said that he is
the anti-stereotype of a Deacon. There are a few other stereotypes that occur in just one place in

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the story rather than carrying on throughout the story like the stereotype of the witch and the
anti-stereotype Deacon. At the bottom of the third page there is a "Pious old lady," screaming.
Pious old lady is a stereotype in that most old woman are quite pious. When the reader says
pious, one can assume the author meant devout and holy with regards to the Christian faith.
"Pious old lady" provokes the image of an old, gray haired women dressed in her Sunday's best
complete with her little white gloves, purse in one hand and bible in the other.The image that this
phrase encourages is one of a stereotypical church-going old woman. This minor stereotype may
be less important than Deacon Gookin and Goody Cloyse , but it still adds to the effect of the
story which is too help the reader understand a possible struggle within the author's own life.
As well as the stereotypes, symbols are a big factor in this short story. One of the main
symbols that really stretches over the entire story is the setting. The story begins at sunset in
Salem Village. Sunset obviously means the sun is going down, and it is starting to get dark out.
Darkness, in this story, mainly symbolizes the evil that lurks in the night waiting for young
Goodman Brown. There is another meaning behind the symbol of darkness though. The darkness
can also symbolize young Goodman Brown's confusion or a feeling of being lost. In the story,
young Goodman Brown is struggling with the choice of surrendering himself to good or evil. As
if Goodman Brown's situation was not bad enough, he lives in Salem. The story takes place in
Salem which is a very obvious symbol for evil and the mystery surrounding evil. The historic
town of Salem is known for harboring witches, and they are not exactly friendly neighbors.
Many stories of witches and the stories of the atrocious witch trials seem to scream evil, so it is
not a surprise that the author would choose Salem as the setting for a short story about a young
man troubled with the idea of selling his soul to the devil. The setting as a whole, in the dark of
night in the town of Salem, simply represents evil.

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Speaking of evil, how about Goodman Brown's wife? That one was a shocker. Goodman
Brown's wife is named Faith; her name alone is a dead give away. She is not only a person, but
she is a person and a symbol. Faith, his wife, symbolizes Goodman Brown's actual faith, like his
beliefs and morals. A reader can assume this because when faith is mentioned, it can mean either
his wife or his actual faith. For example, at the top of the second page Goodman brown is
responding to a question when he says, "Faith kept me back a while." When faith is used in this
quote, it is unclear what is being referenced here. But with that quote, it is easier for the reader to
assume that Faith, the woman, is indeed a symbol for faith, the virtue. Not only is Faith a symbol
herself, but her pink ribbons are as well. Pink, in literature, often times symbolizes caring,
tenderness and innocence. This is a very important detail to the story. When the story begins,
Faith is wearing these lovely pink ribbon in her hair. Near the end of the story, Goodman Brown
sees his wife's pink ribbons, but they are no longer on her head. This can symbolize the change
in both Faith and Goodman Brown that they both undergo before the satanic ritual.
Aside from the two main symbols of the setting and Faith, there are a few other symbols.
The forest that Goodman Brown journeys into is most definitely symbolic. As can be found in
Dante's Inferno, there is forest symbolism taking place in this story. The forest in this short story
is quite similar in meaning to the forest in Dante's Inferno. The forest symbolizes Goodman
Brown's confusion or inner struggle to choose between good or evil. The reader can infer this
because as Goodman Brown wonders through the forest, his mind is racing, trying to figure out
the answers. As he is traveling through the forest, he meets a person who gives him staff or
walking stick. This may not mean a thing until the story is reread and dissected, but this staff can
be a symbol as well. When Goodman Brown comes across this person, they begin talking about
Goodman Brown's decision. The person tries to encourage him to keep going, and then gives him

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a staff. In the bible we see staffs, but usually they are instruments of great power used by great
and powerful people like Moses and Abraham. The staff in this story could symbolize the power
Goodman Brown will feel when he gives in to the dark side.
Stereotypes and symbols dress this little tale up. The use of these devices is beneficial to
this story because they help make sense of the story. With the aid of stereotypes and symbols a
clear picture can be drawn in the readers mind. The picture opens the readers eyes to the
possibility that the struggle between good and evil that young Goodman Brown faces may be one
that the author also deals with. The stereotypes and symbols allow the story to be relateable and
clear.