The minister's black veil analysis

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PLOT
a. How does the story get started? What is the initial incident?
This incident started when on a Sabbath day, people ran their routine to go to the
Milford meeting hall to listen to the sermon of Mr. Hooper. However, there is different
thing from Mr. Hooper. He uses an unusual black veil and it gives rise to many
speculations. And the initial accident when the first person to notice that Hooper is
wearing the veil, the sexton quickly draws the entire town’s attention with his shocked
response to Hooper’s changed appearance. After Hooper wears the black veil, the people
of Milford isolate him from their community. Children and their parents refuse to respond
when he greets them and no one seems to feel comfortable interacting with him.
The argumentation :
"But what has good Parson Hooper got upon his face?" cried the sexton in
astonishment. All within hearing immediately turned about, and beheld the semblance of
Mr. Hooper, pacing slowly his meditative way toward the meetinghouse. With one
accord they started, expressing more wonder than if some strange minister were coming
to dust the cushions of Mr. Hooper's pulpit. (Page One)
b. Are the events or incidents of the plot presented in flashback or in chronological order?
I think the events of the plot are presented in chronological order, Because there is
no part in flashback of that story. The story shows the incidents from beginning until the
leading characters dies, so that is presented in chronological.

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c. Briefly described the rising action of the story.
I think the rising action of the story when everyone talks about Hooper’s veil, but
no one asks him why he is wearing it. Some believe that Hooper is crazy, but most say
that he has committed a horrible crime, and redeemed it by hiding his face. The only
person in Milford who isn’t afraid of Hooper is Elizabeth, his fiancee. And the other
rising action when Elizabeth asks Hooper to show her his face and explain why he has
chosen to cover it; she warns him that the townspeople think he has committed a grave
sin. Hooper refuses, and says that all humans have sins. He begs Elizabeth to not leave
him, but Elizabeth begins to grow afraid of the veil, and breaks off their engagement.
From then on, Hooper is completely isolated from the rest of Milford.
The argumentations :
"How strange," said a lady, "that a simple black veil, such as any woman might wear on
her bonnet, should become such a terrible thing on Mr. Hooper's face." (Page seven)
“Something must surely be amiss with Hooper's intellects," observed her husband, the
physician of the village. "But the strangest part of the affair is the effect of this vagary,
even on a sober-minded man like myself. The black veil, though it covers only our
pastor's face, throws its influence over his whole person, and makes him ghostlike from
head to foot. Do you not feel it so?" (Page seven)
"Your words are a mystery, too," returned the young lady. "Take away the veil from
them, at least." (Page seven)

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“.........For the sake of your holy office, do away this scandal!" (Page seven)
"Have patience with me, Elizabeth!" cried he, passionately. "Do not desert me though
this veil must be between us here on earth. Be mine......” (Page eight)
"Lift the veil but once, and look me in the face," said she.
"Never! It cannot be!" replied Mr. Hooper.
"Then farewell!" said Elizabeth. (Page eight)
d. What is the high point or climax of the story?
I think the climax is when Reverend Hooper revealing why he wore the veil on
his deathbed Reverend Clark approaches Hooper on his deathbed and requests that he
allow his veil to be lifted so that the other clergymen may see the face of a pious man.
Hooper insists that the veil never be lifted on earth. Clark asks Hooper what crime he
committed that he wore the veil for so long. In reply, Hooper struggles to sit upright in
his deathbed, smiles sadly, and asks why the townspeople have avoided him simply
because he has worn a veil. He cries that he can only be considered a monster. He looks
around, he says, and sees a black veil on everyone’s face As the people around him lean
back, away from each other, in fear at these words, Hooper dies with a faint smile once
again on his lips. Hooper is buried and grass grows over his grave, but the thought
remains awful that his face, surely dust, is still covered by the black veil.

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“ .....Before the veil of eternity be lifted, let me cast aside this black veil from your
face!" – Mr. Clark (Page eleven)
"Never!" cried the veiled clergyman. "On earth, never!" – Mr. Hooper (Page twelve)
"With what horrible crime upon your soul are you now passing to the judgment?"
– Mr. Clark (Page eleven)
"Why do you tremble at me alone?" cried he, turning his veiled face round the circle of
pale spectators. "Tremble also at each others Have men avoided me, and women
shown no pity, and children screamed and fled, only for my black veil? What, but
the mystery which it obscurely typifies, has made this piece of crepe so awful? When
the friend shows his inmost heart to his friend; the lover to his best beloved; when
man does not vainly shrink from the eye of his Creator, loathsomely treasuring up
the secret of his sin; then deem me a monster, for the symbol beneath which I have
lived, and die! I look around me, and, lo! on every visage a Black Veil." – Mr.
Hooper (Page twelve)
CHARACTERS
a. Who is the single main character that the story centers around?
The single main characters of that story is Mr. Hooper, because this story is
definetly about the mistery of Mr. Hooper. So, me as the reader is focus on him.

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b. Who tells the story? What point of view is used?
The story is told by the narattor (all-knowing narrator) and that story also uses
third person omniscient point of view which sees everything and hears everything, and
also is able to see into the minds of multiple characters. I think based on that story, we
can know what are the thoughts from all characters in each dialogues, like when every
character has speculation, assumtion, or thoughts about Mr. Hooper, also the dialogues
between the sexton, and the dialogues between Elizabeth OR Mr. Clark with Mr. Hooper.
And this point of view also can sees all activities from that story. I can be proved when
the story tells about the daily activities of Mr. Hooper and The Sexton (on the Sabbath
day where they worship with mr hooper and the other activities).
"Our parson has gone mad!" cried Goodman Gray (Page two)
"Truly do I," replied the lady; "and I would not be alone with him for the world. I
wonder he is not afraid to be alone with himself!"
"Men sometimes are so," said her husband. (Page three)
"No," said she aloud, and smiling, "there is nothing terrible in this piece of crepe,
except that it hides a face which I am always glad to look upon. Come, good sir, let
the sun shine from behind the cloud. First lay aside your black veil; then tell me why
you put it on." - One person in the village (Page Seven)

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"Elizabeth, I will," said he, "so far as my vow may suffer me. Know, then, this veil is a
type and a symbol, and I am bound to wear it ever, both in light and darkness, in
solitude and before the gaze of multitudes, and as with strangers, so with my
familiar friends. No mortal eye will see it withdrawn. This dismal shade must
separate me from the world; even you, Elizabeth, can never come behind it!" – Mr.
Hooper’s thought (Page seven)
"But what if the world will not believe that it is the type of an innocent sorrow?"
urged Elizabeth. "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!" (Page seven)
"Have patience with me, Elizabeth!" cried he, passionately. "Do not desert me though this
veil must be between us here on earth. Be mine, and hereafter there shall be no veil over
my face, no darkness between our souls. It is but a mortal veil; it is not for eternity. Oh,
you know not how lonely I am, and how frightened to be alone behind my black veil!
– Mr. Hooper’s feeling (Page eight)
"And is it fitting," resumed the Reverend Mr. Clark, "that a man so given to prayer,
of such a blameless example, holy in deed and thought, so far as mortal judgment
may pronounce; is it fitting that a father in the church should leave a shadow on his
memory, that may seem to blacken a life so pure? I pray you, my venerable brother,

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let not this thing be! Suffer us to be gladdened by your triumphant aspect as you go
to your reward. Before the veil of eternity be lifted, let me cast aside this black veil
from your face!". (Page eleven)
THE SEXTON stood in the porch of Milford meetinghouse, pulling busily at the bell
rope. The old people of the village came stooping along the street. Children, with
bright faces, tripped merrily beside their parents, or mimicked a graver gait, in the
conscious dignity of their Sunday clothes. (Page one)
At the close of the services, the people hurried out with indecorous confusion, eager
to communicate their pent-up amazement, and conscious of lighter spirits the
moment they lost sight of the black veil. Some gathered in little circles, huddled
closely together, with their mouths all whispering in the center; some went
homeward alone, wrapt in silent meditation; some talked loudly, and profaned the
Sabbath day with ostentatious laughter. (Page three)
A few shook, their sagacious heads, intimating that they could penetrate the
mystery; while one or two affirmed that there was no mystery at all, but only that
Mr. Hooper's eyes were so weakened by the midnight lamp as to require a shade.
After a brief interval, forth came good Mr. Hooper also, in the rear of his flock. Turning
his veiled face from one group to another, he paid due reverence to the hoary heads,
saluted the middle-aged with kind dignity as their friend and spiritual guide, greeted

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the young with mingled authority and love, and laid his hands on the little children's
heads to bless them. Such was always his custom on the Sabbath day. (Page three)
c. Name one major personality trait of each leading character, and tell how the author
makes the reader conscious of this trait.
Mr. Hooper is persistent, he is strong stance person. He does not care, even
though many people force him to take off that black veil. Even though many people judge
him with many speculations or assumtions. He never cares and keep to wearing that black
veil. He is also keep calm and does not want to explain his reason, this thing causes the
mystery of himself. And although his fiancee, Elizabeth already beg him to take off that
black veil, but her effort is failed. And until the end of his life he did not want to take off
that back veil. So, he is really persistent until the end of his life. This personality trait that
makes me as a reader curious with the ending of that story.
"Lift the veil but once, and look me in the face," said she (Elizabeth)
"Never! It cannot be!" replied Mr. Hooper.
"Then farewell!" said Elizabeth. (Page eight)
"Never!" cried the veiled clergyman. "On earth, never!" – Mr. Hooper (Page twelve)
"Yea," said he, in faint accents, "my soul hath a patient weariness until that veil be
lifted." – Mr. Hooper (Page eleven)

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All through life that piece of crepe had hung between him and the world; it had separated
him from cheerful brotherhood and woman's love, arid kept him in that saddest of all
prisons, his own heart; and still it lay upon his face, as if to deepen the gloom of his
darksome chamber, and shade him from the sunshine of eternity. (Page ten)
CONFLICTS
a. Identify the conflict(s) that the leading character or characters confront.
Actually there are some conflicts from that story that I can find, the first conflict
is when the people judge Mr. Hooper with many speculations, and the second conflict is
when the Mr. Hooper argue with his fiancee (Elizabeth) and the last conflict which
become the peak of the conflict is the Mr. Clark intend and force to open the black veil.
Even though at that moment in the last seconds of Mr. Hooper life, he still tries to defend
not to release his black veil, Although his condition has been very weak.
b. How is the conflict resolved?
Actually, I am confused how the conflict is resolved. Because actually I do not
know have the conflict been resolved ? Because at the end of the story it could be argued
that Hooper doesn’t really answer Clark’s question at all, but simply says that it’s the
wrong question; in other words, he doesn’t say if there’s a specific sin that caused him to
put on the veil one day — instead, he says that people should focus on their own sins. So,
I think “The Minister’s Black Veil” as a mystery without a solution And maybe because
the author wants the readers appreciate his story as a “parable”.

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OTHER QUESTIONS
a. Explain the title. What is its relationship to the story?
The title “ The minister’s Black Veil “ , I think the focus on this title is “ Black
Veil “. Black veil in this story contains a lot of speculation. The black color of that veil
which is used by Hooper can be interpreted as sin or evil. Then the balck veil also can be
interpreted as something hidden, because the veil itself is used to cover something behind
it. From here it is clear that "Black veil" is a symbol of something evil hidden. In this
story alone I can speculate that the "Black veil" is a symbol of hidden sin. But here I find
something ambiguous from the meaning of this "Black veil" symbol. It is clear that
"Black veil" is a symbol to describe hidden sin. But whose sin is meant in this story, I can
conclude two possibilities. It could be Mr. Hooper's own sin or the sin of the
townspeople.
Maybe the black veil which is used by Mr. Hooper means to hide the sin he had
committed in the past. And expressed his regret by using a black veil to cover his face. Or
he could have used a black veil to attract the attention of the townspeople so that people
would talk about it and that would reduce the sin he had once committed.
But on the other hand I find that the black veil could have been a description of
the sins of the congregations or citizens of the city. Perhaps, Hooper wanted to show his
sympathy and regret because after all he was a minister and he felt guilty when his
congregation was still sinning that he revealed by using that black veil.

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In my opinion, basically human will never escape from sin. Maybe one of the
ways Mr. Hooper was quite unusual for his congregation at the time, and to be honest for
me, Mr.Hooper's actions were quite unusual. But maybe this is one of the ways Mr.
Hooper chose to show his guilt to his congregation.
b. What is the predominant element in the story: plot, characters, setting, theme? Provide
the evidence/information.
In my opinion, the predominant element in that story is the characters of course.
Because as we know that the mystery from the leading or the dominant character (Mr.
Hooper) is very strong. And me, as a reader is always asking questions (when I read that
story) and curious about the intent of the character. And I think the story has many
character also.
The argumentation that this story have a lot of characters :
1. The major character :
 Mr. Hooper (dominant/protagonist)
 Elizabeth
2. The minor character :
 Reverend Clark
 Squire Saunders
 Mr. Joseph Moody
 The physician
 The sexton

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 The townspeople of Milford (antagonist)
c. What is the general theme of this story? What is the underlying theme? Can you name
any other stories with a similar theme?
For me, I think the theme is about Sadness and secret sin. Sadness here means
that he as a pastor as a person who leads his people can not hold back the sins that have
fettered himself and the sins of his people. The sadness things also can be seen when the
Mr. Hooper said that he was lonely for a long time. This secret sin hinted at the sin he
had committed both to himself and to his people. He felt ashamed to confess his sin, he
felt guilty for not being able to confess his sin so that he hid his sin from others even
from himself.
I also assume that in this short story, Mr.Hooper feels ashamed of himself because
in my opinion, in this Christian religion every congregation has sin, sometimes they go to
the pastor to cleanse and purify themselves from sin. While here, Mr.Hopper as a pastor
feels uncomfortable because he is considered a saint because he is a pastor. Though it is
possible that even the pedeta must have sin. In my opinion, that's where the start of
Mr.Hooper felt ashamed of himself. Because he can cleanse the sins of his people, but he
has no place to cleanse his own sin. So maybe that's why then here Mr. Hooper wears the
veil as a symbol to cover the embarrassing sin.

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Other Books Related to The Minister’s Black Veil :
Actually I am confused what is the other story which related to this story, because
I never read a kind of that story, and actually I do not really like mystery or parable story.
So, when I am seacrhing on some sources. I find that another notable American work that
criticizes Puritan society is Arthur Miller’s 1953 play The Crucible. “The Minister’s
Black Veil” is also an important precursor to Hawthorne’s later work The Scarlet Letter,
which also deals with sin and ostracism in a small Puritan town. For a sample of Puritan
American sermons (the kind Hooper gives after he wears the veil), Jonathan Edwards’s
“Sinners in the Hands on an Angry God” is probably the most famous such text.

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The minister's black veil analysis