image -Twice-Told Tales. Nathaniel Hawthorne. London: Frederick Warne & Co, n.d. (1880s).
It is a Gothic short story with a religious theme. A pastor Reverend Mr. Hooper, dons a black veil that obscures most of his face. The veil in Christian practice is worn by women mostly during weddings and otherwise during a funeral. But here it shows the attitudes of the people towards a very distinguished activity of a male pastor. The story portrays concepts of human sin and perceptions towards someone who does something different. The piece of black cloth is a symbolic representation of the sins people hide from one another. The sins come between a person and the rest of the world.
The story focuses on a minister in a New England parish. The story is thought to be set in the first half of the eighteenth century, before the so-called Great Awakening of the 1730s and 1740s, when American pastors and church leaders put a lot of importance on individual sin and the need for redemption.
The story begins on a Sunday in a small village named Milford. The sexton — a church officer who is responsible for the upkeep of the building and grounds — is ringing the church bell, signifying the beginning of Sunday service. Reverend Mr. Hooper appears, and the members of the congregation are alarmed by his appearance. He is wearing a black veil made of crape, which is a fabric traditionally used for mourning garments. The veil remains on his face, not showing him or his expression and neither an explanation comes forward from him. Afterward, people gather outside to gossip about the Reverend's mysterious veil. When he comes out, he behaves normally, greeting people and placing his hand on children to bless them, but he is shunned by his parishioners. In the course of time he becomes a subject of gossip among the congregation , the villagers, Church deputies and even his fiance Elizabeth deserts him.
In the afternoon, the church holds a funeral service for a young woman, and there is a wedding that night. Mr. Hooper continues to wear the veil, and he pretends not to notice the reactions of the congregation.
Image - “the children fled from his approach.”
Artist: Elenore Abbott
Years pass on thus and for the rest of his life, Mr. Hooper refuses to take off the veil. Even on his deathbed, when he is asked by a fellow clergyman to remove the barrier, Mr. Hooper vehemently refuses. He holds the veil tight to his face, crying out to his onlookers, asking them why everyone is so scared of him. Everyone has secret sins they are hiding; everyone is wearing a black veil.
This bizarre story was apparently inspired from a real event. In a footnote, Hawthorne explains that Mr. Joseph Moody, who lived in Maine, also wore a veil, though unlike Reverend Hooper, the protagonist of Hawthorne’s story, he did as atonement for accidentally killing one of his friends.
Themes
Crowd mentality
The close knit community of the village Milford is a symbol of how the world looks at anyone different as incompatible and mismatching. Even though the reverend was a beloved member of the parish as well as the village, the day he donned the veil he was shunned without trying to understand him or empathizing or even knowing the facts.
Puritans attitude
The classic novels of the West will all have a plot or a note based on this theme.
The Puritans were a Christian Protestant sect that emerged in the early 1600s in England. They were quickly banished from the country for their “subversive” beliefs, leading Puritan “pilgrims” to travel to America and establish small colonies in the region that’s still called New England.
Hawthorne paints an insightful and contradictory picture of early American Puritanism. Hooper becomes a successful Puritan priest in part because Puritanism is based on the fear of sin and damnation. Thus, Hooper’s frightening appearance is a useful teaching tool, showing the people of Milford what awaits them if they sin. By showing Hooper’s influence on the New England government’s legislation, he suggests the lasting influence that the Puritans had on the United States. At the same time, Hawthorne questions and critiques Puritanism: for a community to be so easily swayed by an article of clothing is proof of its overreliance on routines and appearances.
Sin
Hooper believes that everyone lives in a state of sin, inherited from Adam and Eve. He explains this on his deathbed, saying that everyone wears a “black veil.” But the black veil over his own head could symbolize a specific sin he’s committed, or it could be a teaching tool that represents his inherent evilness as a human being.
"The Minister's Black Veil", as it first appeared in 1836
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