The Harlem Renaissance
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Edis Shanata
Professor J. Nader
LIT-601
December 3, 2006
Hawthornes Veil: A Puritan History and Parable
The Puritan nature of Nathaniel Hawthornes works is evident throughout The Ministers Black Veil. Much as the Puritans fled from their native England to escape what they felt was a state religion that had become mired in extravagance and ritual, so too does Hawthorne break with the traditions and airs behind which we hide our true selves. He uses his storys title character as a platform from which to specifically speak out against the possibility of true blamelessness on earth; from a wider perspective he is in fact reminding us that just as the Puritans sought to purify their faith through spare and austere method, so too must we constantly examine ourselves for deeper meaning and true motive behind our actions, never trusting in what facets of ourselves we deem fit to show in public. Hawthornes Reverend Hooper cloaks himself behind an enigmatic black veil, drawing the increasingly overt curiosity of his congregation. The effect his willful veiling has upon the townsfolk is the crux of Hawthornes theme, and it serves a double purpose. It is both a history and critique of Puritan culture of his time. Much as the Reverend Hoopers practicing his self-chastening in order to pursue his vision of enacted faith causes his shunning amongst the townsfolk, so too were the Puritans marginalized as extremists in the Anglican Church for practicing their own austere brand of Christianity; having thus alluded to the history of Puritanism, Hawthorne then moves to remind his readers, through Hooper, that if they are to maintain the severely chaste ideals of Puritanism, they too must look inward and scour for their true selves.
Hawthorne begins the story with an overview of traditional past Sundays in the village; through his description of childrens “bright faces, tripping merrily beside their parentsin the conscious dignity of their Sunday clothes…” (581), we feel the tone of village Sunday worship: a joyous and important affair. The villagers soon however, spy their minister leaving his house, face clad in a black veil. The townsfolk reply in amazement, questioning the identity of the masked figure. When it is clear that it is their minister they become distinctly uneasy, as they know him to be a mild mannered man. The congregation immediately comments on how the change is affecting them: they say, “I dont like it, muttered an old woman… He has changed himself into something awful, only by hiding his face.”(582) Our parson has gone mad! cried Goodman Gray, following him across the threshold.” (582) This marks the beginning of Hawthornes personification of the Puritan movement, in the shape of the veiled preacher amidst a village going about its business and not ready for his change of demeanor. Hawthorne is therefore arguing that Anglican society was likewise not ready to face the social upheaval brought about by the Puritans practices, represented in the story by the ministers changed visage.
The sermon begins not with the “hushed repose which should attend the entrance of the minister” (582) but with a “general bustle” (582) as word and speculation regarding the change in the minister makes its rounds through the townspeople. His sermon is particularly effective that day, as the spiritual weight of the veil lends further authority to his words and manner. His performance on the pulpit was “[darkly] tinged with the gentle gloom of Mr. Hoopers temperament…A subtle power was breathed into his words.” (583) And yet for the malignant feel of his veil, his kindly nature was not diminished; after the sermon he “paid due reverence to the hoary heads, saluted the middle aged with dignity, [and] greeted the young with mingled authority and love” (583). In this way Hawthorne depicts his take on the initial reaction to Puritanism in England: people had found a new, austere way to worship they believed brought them closer to their deity, and the rest saw that ascetic piety as a threat to their own prosaic ways. Despite showing their still good character to the populace, the feeling of malignancy and worry of a threat to their own lifestyles remained in the Anglican majority, as shown through the reactions of the people following the sermon: “strange and bewildered looks repaid his courtesy…”none…aspired to the honor of walking by their pastors side” (583). Through the townsfolks newfound fear and unspoken distrust of their minister they are depicting how Hawthorne felt Anglican England unjustly turned against.
When taking into account the social ramifications, the ministers veiling himself can be seen as a form of self-punishment, its symbolism a metaphor of self-flagellation. In this case however, the emphasis is on purification through introspection; an effort to focus on the self and through this aspires to greater simplicity and holiness; that much is made clear when the minister is confronted by his wife about the “grievous affliction which hath befallen [him]” (587). She pleads with him first to remove the veil once and for all; when he retorts that this is impossible she demands that he show his face once more at least to her. Minister Hooper makes it clear that he does not care for popular speculation as to his veiling and the reasons thereof when his wife protests: “But what if the world will not believe that it is the type of innocent sorrow? urged Elizabeth. Beloved and respected as you are, there may be whispers that you hide…under the consciousness of secret sin. For the sake of your holy office,