Ambiguity In The Minister's Black Veil

Whatever his reason for his odd clothing, Reverend Hooper's veil caused more than a physical separation from the people of his town. The people felt the veil was "the symbol of a fearful secret between him and them" (Hawthorne 256). Their fear and confusion of the minister's motives caused strange behavior and unnatural withdrawal from their spiritual leader.

McCarthy also stated that “the veil is the manifestation of Christ’s efficacy over sin, of man’s urgent need of that efficacy, and of the perilous future without Christ’s efficacy”, which may give support that Hooper did commit a horrible sin. Because Minister Hooper though he is a man of God is wearing the veil to repent for his sins, but a more logical interpretation is that God forgives sins and that the future without God is not one with great satisfaction..

Mr. Hooper has an effect on people by wearing the veil and he uses it to express his original purpose. Everyone on Earth has sinned, “for the Earth, too, had on her Black Veil.” This shows that Mr. Hooper believed that sin is a part of nature and it is a natural thing to be sinners. Even Earth, His own creation, is hiding her secret under a black veil. Hawthorne says this to show Mr. Hooper’s point that people have an inborn sinful nature and it is not always represented by literally wearing a black veil. In other words, he says that even people who do not wear a black veil equally have secret sins, “If I hide my face for sorrow, there is a cause enough…and if I cover it for secret sin, what mortal might not do the same?” People hide their real self to prevent being criticized by society and because they are ashamed of what they have done. He pays a high price in the attempt of teaching society the nature of sins. The people who used to admire him are now afraid and confused so he is forced to live a lonely live. Following this further, he influences people to believe the moral lesson behind his decision of wearing the veil. He wants people to

In the short story The Minister's Black Veil Nathaniel Hawthorne is explaining how mankind is afflicted by the seven sins. The officer of the church is ring the town bell calling all the people of the village to church, when the church sexton sees Mr. Hooper leave his house he stops ring the bell. The people of the town don't like the Hoopers change in appearance they think that he has lost his sanity and no one walks on the side of the street he lives on. Later in the story the their is a funeral for a young woman and the town people think that's why Hooper is wearing the Black veil “for his own secret sins”. The young minister asks Hooper to remove the veil as Hooper is dying. Hooper is brought to his grave, “Many years pass, and grass

The story “The Minister’s Black Veil” is symbolic of the hidden sins that we hide and separate ourselves from the ones we love most. In wearing the veil Hooper presents the isolation that everybody experiences when they are chained down by their own sins. He has realized that everybody symbolically can be found in the shadow of their own veil. By Hooper wearing this shroud across his face is only showing the dark side of people and the truth of human existence and nature.

Specifically, Hooper’s spasmodic behavior leads him to wear a black veil over his face, which comes short just above his mouth. “There was but one thing remarkable in his appearance. Swathed about his forehead, and hanging down over his face, so low as to be shaken by his breath, Mr. Hooper had on a black veil.” (Hawthorne 2). Living in a deeply religious society, as well as being a preacher, wearing such an inappropriate garment is asking for persecution. “ He seemed not fully to partake of the prevailing wonder, till Mr. Hooper had ascended the stairs, and showed himself in the pulpit, face to face with his congregation, except for the black veil. That mysterious emblem was never once withdrawn. It shook with his measured breath…” (Hawthorne 3). All eyes are on the minister; his status does not bring him this attention, but the mystery and the astonishment of the black veil. The veil and Hooper are one; both are religiously symbolic and are the center of the

Hooper wore the black veil to symbolized secret sin; this veil represented how everyone has something in their heart that no one knows about." I mainly stuck to this article because it supports my argument by a landlside. The quote is saying her (the authors) thought as to why Mr. Hooper wore the veil. Everyone has their own personal secret. The author, Searis West, explains throughtout this entire article is that he wore it for his own personal issues. The townspeople think that he wears it to bother them only because he doesn't say what the reason was to anybody. He made a promise to God which he swore to secrecy. The author thinks that Mr. Hooper wears this veil because of the audltery he was accused of with the young girl. Maybe, Mr. Hooper wore this because of

However there is no specification about what happened to Mr. Hooper in The Black Veil, which affected on his decision to wear the black veil. I interpret the veil as a wall that separates minister from the rest of the real world. Mr. Hooper did something and now he awfully repents about that. To wear this veil is the only valid way to be on his own and be able to sink deeply in his concerns and thoughts. Mr. Hooper’s desire is to be separated from community mentally, but not physically.

In Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Minister's Black Veil," Mr. Hooper, a Reverend in the town of Milford, surprises his parishioners by donning a conspicuous black veil one Sunday. The town is visibly spooked, yet still curious, about his eerie appearance and profoundly affected by his sermon on secret sin. "A subtle power was breathed into his words. Each member of the congregation, the most innocent girl, and the man of hardened breast, felt as if the preacher had crept upon them, behind his awful veil, and discovered their hoarded iniquity of deed or thought" (2432). The parishioner's expect that Hooper will only don the veil for one day and then remove it, having used the visage to make his point on secret sin, but they are taken aback to

The Black veil could have symbolized a secret sin because he didn't want to tell anybody about the sin so he just hid his life behind a black veil. The black veil can hide a sin because if someone sins and it is horrible and they don't want anybody to find out they go into depression and that's what Mr. Hooper went through but he went through life with a black

Everybody hides sins in their hearts and that’s what Mr.Hooper does he hides his secrets without telling anyone he knows. And many people can do that now in the days but really good because people can ask you what’s wrong so many times and no one will say one word to you with what they’re hiding inside of them. Mr.hooper is a character that has symbols that no one can perfectly understand as from the story. The people in the story don’t understand why exactly wearing a black veil is a good thing for him, and for hiding his personal emotions and his facial

First of all, I imagine that Mr. Hooper wears the veil for his own personal sins for many reasons. For an example, the first article says, “the sin that Mr. Hooper admonished himself over was the temptation or dalliance with a female.”. Meaning, that Mr. Hooper feels

In the story ‘’The Minister and The Black veil’’ The minister Mr. Hooper did have a sin. Throughout the whole story the big question was he wearing the black veil to hide his secret sin or to set an example for the humans. There were many clues about if Mr. Hooper had a sin our not like in article 3 it said something about him wearing the black veil to a young women funeral and there were rumors of him cheating with this woman. Also he was too afraid to show his face to his fiancé because he doesn’t want her to see his face. That was the key to open the door.

One reaction to Father Hooper’s veil was wonder. The second reaction to Father Hooper’s veil is the people of the town would look away, not invite him to lunch, and not walk with him in the street.

The black veil brings up confusion and interest to the Puritan society because everyone has a different view as to why Mr. Hooper is walking around with his face covered with a veil. To the townspeople, Hooper’s veil is a clear sign that he is trying to atone for a grave sin. “There was but one thing remarkable about his appearance. Swathed about his forehead, and hanging down over his face so low as to be shaken by his breath, Mr. Hooper had on a black veil. On a nearer view it seemed to consist of two folds of crape, which entirely concealed his features, except the mouth and chin, but probably did not intercept his sight, further than to give a darkened aspect to all living and inanimate things” (Hawthorne 369). Although Hooper identifies the veil in a different manner, the townspeople use the veil to focus exclusively on Hooper’s sinfulness because, deep