Symbolism In Young Goodman Brown, A Good Man Is Hard To Find,

Symbolism is an artistic and poetic movement or style using symbolic images and indirect suggestion to express mystical ideas, emotions, and states of mind. It originated in late 19th century in France and Belgium. Symbolism helps the reader understand the depths and secrets of the story or work of literature. In the three stories, Young Goodman Brown, A Good Man is Hard to Find, and A Rose for Emily, they all seem to portray many elements of symbolism. Symbolism is a very important feature in stories or pieces of literature and should always remain as long as the writers want the readers to be interested. In the story titled, Young Goodman Brown, the writer portrays pure mystery and suspense throughout the whole story. This story …show more content…
Emily was once a young, beautiful woman who lived only with her father. Her father did not allow her to date so Miss Emily remained single for most of her life. Emily is a woman who is very stubborn when it comes to losing family or loved ones, as you will find out later. A few symbols in this work are the color black, Emily’s house, and the strand of hair. The first symbol is the color black. Emily starts to only wear the color black after her father’s death because she is in the biggest state of denial. She absolutely refuses to accept the fact that her father has passed. She never leaves the house anymore after this because she did not want anyone to make her come to reality about her father’s passing. She remains in her house with her one servant, the only person who she ever saw. The next one is the house. Emily is compared to her house in many ways throughout the story. The house is slowly deteriorating over the years, such as Emily’s mental state. Emily is described, by the author, as a “fallen monument” (Faulkner), suggesting that she has let herself go over the years, especially after her father’s death. She is beautiful in her younger days but as she grows older she becomes ugly and just weird. Her voice is “dry and cold” (Faulkner) as if it is as unused as her house. These resemblances really show the way beauty and grace can go away without care and love. One other symbol mentioned in the story was the strand of grey hair. The strand of hair is a reminder of the love she lost. The strand of hair also reveals how she never decided to bury her husband who had died because just like when her father died, she could not accept the fact that the ones she truly loved were actually gone. The narrator foreshadows the discovery of the long strand of hair on the pillow when he describes the changes that Emily goes through as she ages. The strand of hair ultimately stands as the last piece of a