The Minister'S Black Veil

Humans are not perfect, and we all have our sins and sorrows and for some reason or another we are hiding it from other people. I think the symbol behind the veil has a lot to do with the puritan style of life and the fact that puritan community lived the hypocrite life. They were sinning to protect their community as seen in the Salem witchcraft trials, but they didn’t want to acknowledge their sin. As seen in this story, the members of Mr. Hooper’s community feared that their deepest and darkest sins will be discovered if they accepted him. In my opinion I think they were concerned of how their sins will impact their chances of entering heaven.

Mr. Hopper remarks “I look around me, and, lo! on every visage a Black Veil!” represents how he sees that all people have a secret sin they carry inside and they wear a false face mask, covering those secrets they won’t ever expose: “If I hide my face for sorrow, there is cause enough,’ he merely replied; ‘and if I cover it for secret sin, what mortal might not do the same” (pg.691, par. 3). Black veil being the “secret sin, guild, sorrow” , and Mr. Hooper chose to wear his guilt by wearing the veil: “I, perhaps, like most other mortals, have sorrow dark enough to be typified by a black veil” (pg. 690, par. 8). He might also see the veil as a punishment suitable for whatever he did.

I think the mystery of the black veil is one of the Romanticism characteristics of this story as shown here: “The next day, the whole village of Milford talked of little else than Parson Hooper’s black veil. That, and the mystery concealed behind it, supplied a topic for discussion between acquaintances meeting in the street, and good women gossiping at their open windows”(pg. 689, par. 2). Mr. Hopper’s freedom to choose to wear the vail might be another Romanticism characteristic. The Romantic age writers favor emotions and freedom and maybe Mr. Hooper sudden action of wearing that veil is a representation of that freedom. I think Hawthorne made Mr. Hooper be everything that the Puritans were against. His freedom was something they could not control. As soon as he did this physical change to his appearance everyone felt entitled to judge and avoid him. They were no longer fond of him, they didn’t want to talk with him for too long, even his fiancé will leave him. The only people who understood him are the ones that believe they are under the veil with him, the community of dying sinners. Supernatural is also present as seen in the funeral scenes: “I had a fancy,’ replied she, ‘that the minister and the maiden’s spirit were walking hand in hand” (pg. 688, par.6).

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