Reading Guide for Hawthorne's "The Minister's Black Veil"

Vocabulary: vagary, parable, venerable, pathos, emblem, sagacious, prodigy, remonstrance, type, torpor

Minister's name? Fiancé's name?
What effect did the veil have when the congregation first saw it? How did that effect change over time?
What were some of the various explanations by members of the congregation for this strange object? Which of the explanations was finally strongest?
What effect was the veil and Hooper said to have had on the corpse at the funeral?
When will all the veils of all the people be taken away?
What effect did the veil have on the wedding?
When Mr. Hooper saw himself in the mirror, how did the veil affect him?
What's Elizabeth's relationship to Hooper? What eventually happens to her? What does she become?
What did Hooper see when he looked into the burial ground?
Eventually, when Hooper got older, the community began to call him . . . "?
Who was Hooper most close to, most attached to when he died? (trick question?)
On his deathbed, what did Hooper say was the real reason children ran from him and people shrank from him?

1) How does Hawthorne describe the veil?

2) How do the paritioners react to the veil?

3) What is the significance of the topic of the first sermon?

4) How does the quote by "the lady" that starts "How strange" summarize the short story?

5) What does "the man" mean by saying men are "sometimes afraid to be alone with himself"?

6) Why does the veil become an appropriate symbol in the afternoon service?

7) In the paragraph describing the afternoon service, count the number of terms that support Hawthorne's intended mood. How is this similar to Poe's "Fall of the House of Usher"?

8) What is the definition of "black"/"white"?

9) What does Minister discover about his marriage/the strength of his relationship with his wife?

10) How does Hawthorne use "the wind"?

11) How does the world outside the town react to the veil?

12) Why is Father Hooper wearing a veil?

13) Why does Hawthorne refer use Mr. Hooper at times, and Father Hooper at other times?

14) What do Father Hooper's final words disclose about his possible reasoning for wearing the veil?

15) What word can best take the place of "veil"?