The Minister's Black Veil Literary Analysis Essay

Everyone's a Sinner! “Beloved and respected as you are, there may be whispers, that you hide your face under the consciousness of secret sin. For the sake of your holy office, do away this scandal!” This quote is very important as it mentions Reverend Hooper’s problem with sins and sinners. The short story, “The Minister’s Black Veil” was written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Hawthorne's story proves that the veil dramatizes that everyone has a secret sin and we should not judge others when analyzing Mr. Hooper’s dialogue and the feelings of the townsfolk. Analysis of Reverend Hooper’s character clearly indicates that he feels that everyone has a secret sin and we should not judge others. Hawthorne states that, “‘If it must be a sign of mourning,’ replied Mr. Hooper, ‘I perhaps like most other mortals, have sorrows deep enough to be typified by a black veil” (477). In stating this Mr. Hooper implies that everyone has a secret sin, or what he calls “dark sorrows.” He is also implying that since all mortals have secret sins we should not criticize others for it. Later on Hawthorne proclaims that, “‘I look around

To back this up, Hawthorne says that, “‘there is nothing terrible in this piece of crepe, except that it hides a face which I am always glad to look upon’” (479). This quote shows that Elizabeth, Mr. Hooper’s fiancee, is not as put off by the veil as the other people are and suggests that she agrees with the Reverend’s point of view that everyone has a secret sin. Elsewhere in the text Hawthorne states that, “From that time no attempts were made to remove Mr. Hooper's black veil, or, by a direct appeal, to discover the secret which it was supposed to hide.” He seems to be saying that as time goes on people become more comfortable with the veil. This suggest that the people have realised that they should not criticize others for being