What negative significance does the forest begin to assume? In Chapter 16.

The forest is dark. Spots of sunlight bounce around and Pearl tries to catch them. The forest becomes a place where puritan rules don't apply. It is wear the "Black Man" lives and the Scarlet Letter does not have the same significance as it does in the village. In many ways, it is a place where the truth comes out, where Dimmesdale and Hester can confess and be true to each other.