The Minister's Black Veil

Nathaniel Hathorne:
-was an American novelist and short story writer. -his fiction works are considered part of the Romantic movement and, more specifically, dark romanticism. -his major themes:the inherent evil and sin of humanity -his works often have moral endings -his later writings also reflect his negative view of the Transcendentalism movement. The Minister's Black Veil (generalities) -a short story written by Nathaniel Hawthrone -first published in 1836 -it has an allegorical format, using a didactic tone. - the story is developed around a single symbol: in this case, the black veil that the Reverend Mr. Hooper wears to hide his face from the world.

Summary
Reverend Hooper enters church with a mysterious black veil over his face, causing quite a stir among his parishioners. He delivers a sermon on secret sin and the things people hide in their hearts, "even forgetting the Omniscient can detect them." After the meeting, the congregation discusses the minister's veil, trying to interpret its meaning. The Reverend presents a funeral sermon and a wedding while wearing the veil, much to the dismay and disconcernment of the bride. The entire town speaks of little else the next day. No one dare ask the minister to remove the veil or explain its presence except for his fiancee. He claims it is a sign of his sorrows and refuses to remove it. That was the last attempt to remove the veil. The veil causes children to flee and others to peep behind gravestones to get a look at his face. He becomes a highly respected minister in New England, notwithstanding the black barrier. The Reverend Clark tries to persuade Hooper, on his death bed, to remove the veil. His reply: "Why do you tremble at me alone? Tremble also at each other! Have men avoided me, and women shown no pity, and children screamed and fled, only for my black veil? What, but the mystery which it obscurely typifies, has made this piece of crape so awful? When the friend shows his inmost heart to his friend; the lover to his best beloved; when man does not vainly shrink from the eye of his Creator, loathsomely treasuring up the secret of his sin; then deem me a monster, for the symbol beneath which I have lived, and die! I look around me, and, lo! on every visage a Black Veil!"

Major Themes
On its most straightforward reading, it seems that the central theme of The Minister's Black Veil is made explicit in Mr. Hooper's dying words: everyone has a secret sin that is hidden from all others. The veil, he says, is but a symbol of the masks of deceit and sin that separate all individuals from truly facing themselves, their loved ones, and the divine spirit. The narrator's credibility tends to be questionable because it is not a direct source. In using a third person narrator, the minister's motives are never solidified which keeps up the suspense.

Analysis
Hidden nature of guilt: Hooper arouses in a sermon the notion of secret sin and the sad mysteries in which we hide from our nearest and dearest. Hooper acknowledges the problem of sin, the guilt that is admitted openly, and the guilt of sin that is repressed or hidden from the world Communion of sinners: Hooper leads the townspeople in realizing that everyone shares sin no matter how much they try to avoid facing it. Morality: Hawthorne's use of Hooper's veil teaches that whether we face it or not, we all sin and must accept what we have done because judgment will come for everyone. Hooper decides to represent hidden sin and guilt in a literal way to reach out to his followers.

Symbols
The black veil is a symbol of secret sin and darkness of human nature. This could represent the secret sin that all men carry in their hearts, or it could be representative of Mr. Hooper's specific sin, which some readers speculate to be adultery. Edgar Allan Poe speculated that Minister Hooper may have had an affair with the young lady who died at the beginning of the story, as this is the first day he wears the veil. In an alternative view, the black veil could represent the Puritan obsession with sin and sinfulness. Puritans held beliefs of predestination and that only "God's elect" will be saved when the day of judgement comes, this weeding out process of finding the saved versus not saved was a large part of Puritan life. The reaction to the minister's veil is one of disgust and fear, "'I don't like it,' muttered an old woman, as she hobbled into the meetinghouse. We also have a short movie that summarise the action:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IEhufn4jUjg

Enjoy!

Chirila Andreea, Balan Raluca, Grupa L112, Romana-Engleza