Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment: Allegory 1 key example

In addition to the literal plot of “Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment,” which concerns four elderly individuals drinking water drawn, allegedly, from the Fountain of Youth, the story might also be read as an allegory—in other words, it's a story that operates symbolically. Though the four participants in the experiment conducted by Dr. Heidegger are drawn from very different walks of life, including business, politics, and the military, they aren’t very clearly distinguished, and they tend to act as one. Hawthorne gives little priority to the specific character traits and individual backgrounds of these characters because their role in the story is, to some degree, symbolic. Their joy upon being restored (so they believe) to youth symbolizes the much broader cultural glorification of youth, and their horror upon being “restored” to their true age likewise symbolizes the common fear of aging. When they believe themselves to be young, their behavior is mindless, chaotic, and silly, casting doubt on the assumption that youth is a superior state of being.