close-up portrait of a figure dressed in black wearing a black veil

The Minister's Black Veil

by Nathaniel Hawthorne

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Discussion Topic

Perceptions of Mr. Hooper in "The Minister's Black Veil"

Summary:

In Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Minister's Black Veil," Mr. Hooper's persistent wearing of a black veil leaves the townspeople and fellow ministers with complex emotions. On his deathbed, Mr. Clark respects Hooper but is horrified by the veil, fearing it signifies a secret sin. The townspeople, meanwhile, are fearful and uneasy, perceiving Hooper as a devoted yet mysterious figure. They are troubled by his message that everyone harbors secret sins, which the veil symbolizes.

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In "The Minister's Black Veil," what was the other minister's attitude towards Mr. Hooper on his deathbed?

The minister of Westbury, Mr. Clark, attends the deathbed of Mr. Hooper, now called Father Hooper.  Mr. Clark clearly has a great deal of respect for Father Hooper and calls him "'a blameless example, holy in deed and thought, so far as mortal judgment may pronounce"; however, he implores Father Hooper to remove the veil before his death so that no stain will remain upon his legacy.  When he attempts to remove the veil, Father Hooper "snatched both his hands from beneath the bedclothes, and pressed them strongly on the black veil [...]."  

Mr. Clark's words and actions can convey to us one of two things: either he understands the meaning of the veil and chooses to pretend that he does not so that he will not have to acknowledge its truthfulness, or he does not understand the veil's meaning (and is, thus, not very good at understanding souls).  His attitude is one of horror because he cannot understand with "'what horrible crime upon [Father Hooper's] soul'" he will soon face judgement.  He may not realize that it is not Father Hooper alone who goes to eternity with "secret sins," but that makes him pretty bad at his job.  If his horror is not in earnest but designed to fool others into thinking that he does not understand the meaning of the veil, then he is cowardly and a liar (and so not a very good minister then, either).

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What is the town's opinion of Mr. Hooper at the end of "The Minister's Black Veil"?

In the end of "The Minister's Black Veil," the townspeople fear the Reverend Mr. Hooper because of the ambiguity of secret sin and sorrow which envelops him with his refusal to remove his veil.

Those who attend Mr. Hooper's final moments "shrink from one another in mutual fright" as the minister refuses to remove his veil even as he dies. As he falls back, he utters these dreadful words,

Why do you tremble at me alone?... Tremble also at each other! ...when man does not vainly shrink from the eye of his Creator, loathsomely treasuring up the secret of his sin.

As he dies, Mr. Hooper tells those present, "I look around me, and lo! on every visage a Black Veil!"

Because they have been unable to see Mr. Hooper's face once the minister has donned the black veil, the congregation is unsure of how to perceive Mr. Hooper and the shadow he declares that he senses. Apprehensive about what the minister may perceive in them, people have avoided the minister, except for the occasions of certain services he renders as a clergyman because he is still perceived as very devoted to God:

in this manner Mr. Hooper spent a long life, irreproachable in outward act, yet shrouded in dismal suspicions; kind and loving, though unloved, and dimly feared; a man apart from men.

This description fits the town's opinion of Mr. Hooper at the end of the story.

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