1. The Minister's Black Veil by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Feature Menu
Introducing the Story
Literary Focus: Symbol
Reading Skills: Drawing Inferences

2. The Minister's Black Veil by Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Sermon by Julius Gari Melchers

3. The Minister's Black Veil by Nathaniel Hawthorne
There is the fear that we shan’t prove worthy in the eyes of someone who knows us at least as well as we know ourselves
Robert Frost (1874–1963)

4. The Minister's Black Veil by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Mr. Hooper, a young Puritan clergyman, shocks his congregation by appearing at the church one Sunday in a black veil.
Why, the people wonder fearfully, is their minister hiding his face?
Is the veil related to the topic of Mr. Hooper’s sermon—secret sin?
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5. The Minister's Black Veil Literary Focus: Symbol
A symbol is something that
has meaning in itself
also stands for something beyond itself
love
passage of time
peace

6. The Minister's Black Veil Literary Focus: Symbol
Hawthorne’s central symbol in this story is a black veil.
Notice how Hawthorne’s descriptions of the veil suggest its symbolic importance.
“horrible”
“gloomy shade”
“mysterious emblem”
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7. The Minister's Black Veil Reading Skills: Drawing Inferences
When you read a story, you make inferences about characters and events.
An inference is an educated guess based on
clues in the text
your own knowledge and experience

8. The Minister's Black Veil Reading Skills: Drawing Inferences
Watch for this line:
“Our parson has gone mad!” cried Goodman Gray
from “The Minister’s Black Veil” by Nathaniel Hawthorne
At that point in the story, write down three inferences you could make to explain
why the minister has covered his face
why he has chosen black crape, the material traditionally used by mourners
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9. The Minister's Black Veil Background
Like much of Hawthorne’s best work, this story is set in the time of his Puritan ancestors, an era he said was noted for its gloom and piety.
According to Hawthorne, the black veil—although not its meaning in the story—is based on the eccentricity of a real person.
A New England clergyman named Mr. Joseph Moody accidentally killed a beloved friend.
From that day until his death, he hid his face from other people.

10. The Minister's Black Veil Background
Hawthorne’s subtitle, “A Parable,” indicates the importance of the story’s moral theme.
A parable is a short, usually simple story
based on events from ordinary life
containing a moral lesson

11. The Minister's Black Veil Background
Famous Parables
One of the most famous parables is that of the Good Samaritan, who stops and helps a stranger who has been robbed and beaten. Today we still call caring strangers good Samaritans.
The Good Samaritan by Vincent van Gogh, after Delacroix
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12. Vocabulary

13. The Minister's Black Veil Vocabulary
Previewing the Vocabulary
semblance n.: outward appearance.
obscurity n.: darkness.
iniquity n.: wickedness.
ostentatious adj.: deliberately attracting notice.
sagacious adj.: wise; keenly perceptive.
portend v.: signify.
pensively adv.: thinking deeply or seriously.

14. The Minister's Black Veil Vocabulary
Previewing the Vocabulary
antipathy n.: strong dislike.
plausibility n.: believability.
resolute adj.: determined.

15. The Minister's Black Veil Vocabulary
Vocabulary Activity
Match each word with its Greek or Latin origin.
portend
L pensare, “to weigh or consider”
pensively
L plaudere, “deserving applause”
antipathy
L portendere, “foretell”
plausibility
Gr anti-, “against” + patheia, “feeling”
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16. Meet the Writer

17. The Minister's Black Veil Meet the Writer
Although he struggled both creatively and financially, Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804–1864) earned recognition as a writer and the admiration of his contemporaries. Yet his dark insights into the human heart seemed to reflect an inner gloom that he never overcame.
More About the Writer
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