The Use of Symbolism and Imagery in Chapter XVI: A Forest Walk Anonymous

In the pivotal "Chapter XVI: A Forest Walk" in The Scarlet Letter, Nathaniel Hawthorn uses symbolism and imagery to convey deeper themes. He intentionally makes the gloomy forest the setting of the meeting between Hester Prynne and Arthur Dimmesdale. The “feebly sportive” (Hawthorne, 296) light that filters through the darkness of the forest illuminates Hester’s spiritual and emotional condition. A babbling stream winds through the forest, reflecting the lives and thoughts of the people. All of the vivid descriptions, meticulous details, and hidden meanings in “A Forest Walk” help evoke the mysterious, urgent tone of the chapter.

The forest symbolizes freedom and intimacy; it’s a place where people can be their natural selves. Hester desires to have her meeting with Arthur in the woods. She knows that the forest, like herself, doesn’t follow the decrees of the stringent Puritan town. She has broken a moral code when she chooses to follow the passion of her own heart and commits adultery with Arthur. Although she can’t find total freedom in the unsympathetic and strict community, Hester feels she has a chance to find liberty and renewal in the woods, where a person is not judged so harshly and can assume a new, true...