The Minister’s Black Veil

1. The Minister’s Black Veil A Parable by Nathaniel Hawthorne

2. Nathaniel Hawthorne • 1804 – 1864 • Born in Salem, Massachusetts • Descended from a prominent Puritan family • Believed that evil was a dominant force in the world. • His fiction expresses a gloomy vision of human affairs.

3. Inherited Guilt • One of Hawthorne’s ancestors was a Puritan judge who played a key role in the Salem witchcraft trials. • Another ancestor was a judge known for his persecution of Quakers. • Both Hawthorne’s character and focus as a writer were shaped by a sense of inherited guilt. • He was haunted by the intolerance and cruelty of ancestors. • He felt guilty about being a relative to Judge Hathorne, who persecuted the Salem “witches,” so he added the “w” to his name. • He was not a Puritan and was born 112 years after the Salem witchcraft trials.

4. Nathaniel Hawthorne • Master of symbolism and allegory • He wrote throughout his life. • After graduating from Maine’s Bowdoin College in 1825, he wrote a novel, Fanshawe. • Soon after the book’s anonymous publication in 1828, he was seized by shame and abruptly burned most available copies of his book.

5. Nathaniel Hawthorne • During the nine years that followed, he honed his writing skills working in a room he called “the dismal chamber.” • This resulted in a collection of stories entitled Twice Told Tales published in 1837. • Although the book sold poorly, it established him as a respected writer. • Gave him sufficient resources and encouragement to continue his writing.

6. Nathaniel Hawthorne • In 1850, he published his masterpiece The Scarlet Letter, a powerful novel about sin and guilt among early Puritans. • This book was extremely successful. • Earned him international fame • He soon wrote two more novels, The House of the Seven Gables (1851) and The Blithedale Romance (1852).

7. Nathaniel Hawthorne • When his friend Franklin Pierce became president, Hawthorne was named American consul at Liverpool, England. • He spent several years in England and traveled through Italy before returning to Massachusetts. • Used his Italian experiences in the novel Marble Faun (1860). • Hawthorne died four years later. • He left four unfinished novels among his belongings.

8. Inspiration? Hawthorne may have been inspired by a true event. A clergyman named Joseph Moody of York, Maine York, nicknamed "Handkerchief Moody", accidentally killed a friend when he was a young man and wore a black veil from the man's funeral until his own death.

9. Discussion Questions • What kind of masks do we wear? • Do we wear masks for ourselves or other people? Why? • Under what circumstances might you want to distance yourself from those around you? • How far would you go to stand up for something that you sincerely believe in? Could you stand beside your belief if pressured by your peers to change it? • How much does a person’s appearance affect how people feel about him or her?

10. The Minister’s Black Veil: A Parable • Parable: a simple, usually brief , story that teaches a moral lesson. • Allegory – a story, poem, or picture that can be interpreted to reveal a hidden meaning typically a moral, religious or political one. • In subtitling this story “A Parable,” Hawthorne indicates that the moral lesson it conveys is important.

11. Connecting Literary Elements • The veil that Mr. Hooper vows never to remove is a symbol – something that has meaning in itself while also standing for something greater. • To understand the message expressed, analyze veil’s symbolic meaning. • Revealed through responses of parishioners • Revealed in minister’s own deathbed explanation.

12. Reading Strategy • Draw inferences about meaning. • When message of work of fiction is conveyed indirectly through symbols, the reader must draw inferences, or conclusions. • Look closely at details, especially descriptions and dialogue.

13. Inference • Drawing inferences is a way of interpreting a character’s behavior, statements, or an author’s message. • Description Dialogue: • “He has changed himself into something awful, only by hiding his face.” • Inference: Villagers are frightened by the veil.

14. Vocabulary • venerable: adj. commanding respect • iniquity: n. sin; wickedness • indecorous: adj. improper • ostentatious: adj. intended to attract notice; showy • sagacious: adj. having or showing wisdom and keen perception

15. Vocabulary • vagary: n. unpredictable occurrence • tremulous: adj. characterized by trembling • waggery: n. mischievous humor • impertinent: adj. not showing proper respect • obstinacy: n. stubbornness

16. Vocabulary • irreproachable: adj. free from blame; faultless. • zealous: adj. filled with enthusiastic devotion; passionate

17. Connecting to the Literature • A secret, when kept too long can take on a mysterious significance. • It can cause people to fill in the missing story and draw their own untrue conclusions. • In “The Minister’s Black Veil,” a Puritan parson keeps a secret from an entire village for his whole life.