The story takes place in the time of the witch trials. The witches of folklore usually did their deeds and had their sabbath at witching hour in the forest which was believed to be the domain of the Christian devil at the time. Young Goodman Brown’s mysterious errand takes him through the forest where things occur that shakes his beliefs when he returns to reality (or one could say when he leaves the forest).
It is in the forest that he calls to his wife Faith who doesn’t answer him and where he sees all the townspeople gathered for some sort of rite. Since this a Puritan community and the hunting of witches was encouraged, this could be seen as showing the hypocrisy of Puritan society, something Hawthorne was aiming at in Young Goodman Brown.
It is in the forest that he calls to his wife Faith who doesn’t answer him and where he sees all the townspeople gathered for some sort of rite. Since this a Puritan community and the hunting of witches was encouraged, this could be seen as showing the hypocrisy of Puritan society, something Hawthorne was aiming at in Young Goodman Brown.