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How Does The Minister's Black Veil Affect Society

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In a quote by Andrew Lansley, it states, “Peer pressure and social norms are powerful influences on behavior and they are classic excuses.” This quote ties in perfectly with the story, The Minister’s Black Veil by Nathaniel Hawthorne. In the story, the main character, Mr. Hooper, lives a somewhat normal life as a priest, until one day, he decides to wear a black veil over his face. After that day, everything completely changed as he was treated differently by his community. The adults began taunting and spreading rumors about him and the children ran away from him as if he were a monster, all because of the black veil on his face. His soon to be wife even broke up with him because he forbid to take off the black veil. As he was near death, …show more content…

In the note on the end of the story, Mr. Hawthorne says, “Another clergyman in New England, Mr. Joseph Moody, of York, Maine, who died about eighty years since, made himself remarkable by the same eccentricity that is here related of the Reverend Mr. Hooper.” Although the story and event aren’t exactly the same, they have the same concept with the same message. tory and event aren't exactly the same, they have the same concept with the same message. For Mr. Joseph Moody, "he accidentally killed a beloved friend; and from that day till the hour of his own death, he hid his face from men" (Hawthorne). Similar to this, Mr. Hooper concealed his face but it was because of isolation and secret sin. What they both have in common is the hiding of their face. They both hid their face because of the sins they've committed. They want to hide themselves from the world and the sins that brought the isolation, even till

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