Examples Of Isolation In The Minister's Black Veil

Society tends to isolate individuals whom they deem strange or unusual. Often, this isolation results from biased judgments against individuals who express unique behaviors or traits. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Minister’s Black Veil,” Reverend Hooper dons a black veil that causes quite a stir among his parishioners. Despite the disapproval and whispers among the congregation, Reverend Hooper adamantly refuses to explain or remove the mysterious veil and therefore becomes alienated from his community. Reverend Hooper’s isolation indicates the self-righteous judgment of the townspeople in Milford.
The parishioners quickly fabricate explanations for Reverend Hooper’s veil as they observe his behaviors from a distance. Some parishioners

Hooper’s intellects” (Hawthorne 3). These people interpret the veil as a symptom of mental illness, as the odd and sudden appearance of the veil appears to them to have no other justifications. This justification for the black veil reflects the time period and current ideas and trends. With the knowledge of the world at the time, a few of “…Hawthorne’s characters consult their own cultural assumptions as they estimate the mysterious situation they observe” (Giltrow and Stouck 559). Human nature drives people to give explanations for odd circumstances. Therefore, the townspeople of Milford turn to the scientific knowledge available to explain the situation. Other townspeople use religious justifications for the veil. Considering Reverend Hooper’s first sermon with the veil, a majority of the townspeople believe that the reverend hides a secret sin. After Reverend Hooper preaches that first sermon, many people assume “… [Rev. Hooper] hide[s] [his] face under the consciousness of secret sin” (Hawthorne 5). The sermon’s message and effect on the congregation leads them to draw the conclusion that Reverend Hooper veils his face due to a hidden sin. The veil exposes the possibilities

The people isolate Reverend Hooper because he reminds them of their own sins. When Reverend Hooper first preaches after donning the veil, his sermon references secret sins, and the ensuing effect of the veil causes the people to feel as though he “discovered their hoarded iniquity of deed or thought” (Hawthorne 2). Because of this terrible effect of the veil and the exposure of sin through the veil, the parishioners alienate Reverend Hooper. By isolating and avoiding the veil, people hope to forget their secret sins. The parishioners choose to isolate Reverend Hooper because it is easier to isolate him from the community rather than isolate their conscience from themselves. The people, unwilling to admit to their hidden sins, are “more concerned, literally, about what Hooper has, quite impossibly, ‘discovered’ than what ‘the Omniscient’ always already knows” (Deines 191). The veil conveys to the people the idea that Reverend Hooper knows their sins, but in reality, the veil serves as a reminder that no one is free from sin. The townspeople therefore isolate Reverend Hooper, subconsciously trying to isolate themselves from the constant reminder of their own sins. In fear of what Reverend Hooper knows about their secret sins and in denial of such thoughts, the people purposely isolate Reverend