In "The Minister's Black Veil," the popular, beloved Reverend Hooper begins wearing a black veil, which covers the majority of his face and symbolically represents the façade that righteous people wear to conceal their secret sins on an everyday basis. When the villagers first see Mr. Hooper wearing the black veil, they are awestruck and afraid of his sudden transformation.

The simple black veil casts an ominous aura around the minister, and the villagers begin to gossip about him. During Mr. Hooper's first sermon wearing the veil, he preaches about secret sins, and several timid women exit the meeting house because they feel insecure in his presence. Following the service, the villagers remain aloof around Mr. Hooper and purposely avoid him. The black veil is unsettling to the majority of citizens, and Mr. Hooper is treated differently by everyone he encounters.

As days pass, Mr. Hooper continues to wear the ominous black veil, and the villagers begin to spread rumors about him. Mr. Hooper is treated as an outcast, and even the local children gossip about his unsettling appearance. Whenever Mr. Hooper comes near, children scatter in fear and run away when he approaches them.

The narrator also mentions that one "imitative little imp" covered his face with a black handkerchief to frighten his playmates. Not only does Mr. Hooper become the topic of unflattering rumors, but his presence also strikes fear into the local children. Although Mr. Hooper's black veil causes him a significant amount of anguish and even ruins his relationship with his fiancée, Elizabeth, he continues to wear it until the day he dies.