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The Minister's Black Veil Audiobook
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(3.01) - 3,472 listener ratings
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‘The Minister's Black Veil’ by Nathaniel Hawthorne, first published in 1832, is a grim tale about Mr Hooper, a preacher, who starts wearing a veil over the upper part of his face. He first wore the veil while delivering a sermon on secret sin, and never removes it, despite the dismay of the congregation or the pleas of his fiancée, who leaves him. Mr Hooper develops into Father Hooper, a figure who makes converts of people who imagine themselves to also hide behind the veil. Through the narrative technique, Hawthorne ultimately implies that the exposed faces of people also function like veils in order to cover one or more of the deadly sins.
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"I loved these short stories. This was the type of read that has stayed with me for a long time. The whole tone of the book is very New Englandy and as usual with Hawthorne his focus is on the moral struggle of early Americans, with a strange gothic twist - one of my favorite books ever. "
— Liz (5 out of 5 stars)
The Minister's Black Veil Listener Reviews
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" And hence it shall glimmer in the dark grave! "
— Inga, 12/21/2013 -
" Shows peoples true colors. "
— Katya, 12/19/2013 -
" It reminded me a lot of The Scarlet Letter, though. "
— Brandi, 12/11/2013 -
" This was a very condensed version of the Scarlet Letter to me, because it had the same thematic concepts involved. Although in this, the minister is willing to accept that he committed a sin, and shows it off by wearing a black veil. "
— Cindy, 11/12/2013 -
" American Literature Book "
— Hui, 11/5/2013 -
" This short story is amazing. I think it's a great commentary on religion and how people can be manipulated by fear of the unknown. It's really a genius piece. "
— Andalee, 10/23/2013 -
" This narrative is very like Hawthorne's YOUNG GOODMAN BROWN, except a bit more sinister. Well, maybe not. They are both creepy but poignant. "
— Tammy, 10/19/2013 -
" This narrative is very like Hawthorne's YOUNG GOODMAN BROWN, except a bit more sinister. Well, maybe not. They are both creepy but poignant. "
— Tammy, 10/4/2013 -
" This is one of my favorites from Nathaniel Hawthorne. I think that it is an excellent short story, and I really enjoy teaching it with my 11th and 12th graders. "
— Jessica, 9/22/2013 -
" It was dark and haunting but greatly-written and true to human nature. "
— Karissa, 9/13/2013 -
" My favorite of his works. Didn't make me want to vomit! "
— Madison, 9/9/2013 -
" And hence it shall glimmer in the dark grave! "
— Inga, 8/15/2013 -
" I'm not a fan of Hawthorne, I think he forsook logic and coherence for symbolism - which I hate. I mean, this story makes sense, it's just stupid. "
— Nicholas, 8/10/2013 -
" American Literature Book "
— Hui, 5/29/2013 -
" This was a very condensed version of the Scarlet Letter to me, because it had the same thematic concepts involved. Although in this, the minister is willing to accept that he committed a sin, and shows it off by wearing a black veil. "
— Cindy, 5/9/2013 -
" Another short story I was forced to read in school. I think I will never till the end of my days understand Nathaniel Hawthorne. After all the analysis we did in class I still do not understand the point of this story. "
— Julia, 12/6/2012 -
" Another short story I was forced to read in school. I think I will never till the end of my days understand Nathaniel Hawthorne. After all the analysis we did in class I still do not understand the point of this story. "
— Julia, 9/25/2012 -
" This short story is amazing. I think it's a great commentary on religion and how people can be manipulated by fear of the unknown. It's really a genius piece. "
— Andalee, 8/12/2012 -
" It was dark and haunting but greatly-written and true to human nature. "
— Karissa, 6/10/2012 -
" One of my favorite of Hawthorne's short stories, The Minister's Black Veil encourages the reader to ponder which is worse, someone else's sin or the feelings we get when someone else's sin sheds light on our own depravity. "
— Shanna, 4/20/2012 -
" This is one of my favorites from Nathaniel Hawthorne. I think that it is an excellent short story, and I really enjoy teaching it with my 11th and 12th graders. "
— Jessica, 4/20/2012 -
" U.S. Literature "
— Ashley, 3/27/2012 -
" it is interesting how people were terrified by the veil. the story depicted how people are fearful to find their true nature, especially through others "
— Nick, 2/20/2012 -
" It reminded me a lot of The Scarlet Letter, though. "
— Brandi, 1/17/2012 -
" My favorite of his works. Didn't make me want to vomit! "
— Madison, 12/8/2011 -
" Read it in class and if I didn't have our teacher explain what everything meant and what it was symbolizing I wouldn't of gotten the story at all. But the meaning of the book is really good and interesting and kind of sad that he thought that the sin he held was going to be with him till death. "
— Candace, 10/25/2011 -
" U.S. Literature "
— Ashley, 10/23/2011 -
" As usual, boring enough to leave me wondering why Hawthorne incessantly uses so many exclamation points. I don't know what he's so excited about. "
— Paquita, 9/3/2011 -
" I'm not a fan of Hawthorne, I think he forsook logic and coherence for symbolism - which I hate. I mean, this story makes sense, it's just stupid. "
— Nicholas, 8/28/2011 -
" Read it in class and if I didn't have our teacher explain what everything meant and what it was symbolizing I wouldn't of gotten the story at all. But the meaning of the book is really good and interesting and kind of sad that he thought that the sin he held was going to be with him till death. "
— Candace, 4/30/2011 -
" it is interesting how people were terrified by the veil. the story depicted how people are fearful to find their true nature, especially through others "
— Nick, 3/30/2011 -
" One of my favorite of Hawthorne's short stories, The Minister's Black Veil encourages the reader to ponder which is worse, someone else's sin or the feelings we get when someone else's sin sheds light on our own depravity. "
— Shanna, 1/6/2011 -
" Hawthorne went to great lengths to make the Puritans seem moronic and life-crushing. A few of the stories were (somewhat) interesting, but I found most of them quite tedious. I was glad when I finished the book! "
— Laura, 12/15/2010 -
" Shows peoples true colors. "
— Katya, 7/26/2010 -
" I started out really disliking this book. All the stories were either boring or preachy. But, towards the middle and through the end there were several stories I did like. I think on the whole I don't regret reading it. "
— Kienie, 7/21/2010 -
" As usual, boring enough to leave me wondering why Hawthorne incessantly uses so many exclamation points. I don't know what he's so excited about. "
— Paquita, 7/19/2010 -
" My English teacher friend hates Nathaniel Hawthorne. But these stories are a fun read. "
— Patiki, 4/29/2010 -
" Great book today as it was when written. A great bedtime read as each story is about 10 pages long. "
— Suzanne, 11/21/2009 -
" Re-read this one since I knew I liked it and it has been more than 2 decades. Some stories were better than others, but I can really appreciate the work for its time. "
— Cheryl, 6/18/2009 -
" Twice-Told Tales (Modern Library Classics) by Nathaniel Hawthorne (2001) "
— Laura, 5/29/2009 -
" Very good but a little depressing. "
— Fred, 3/18/2009 -
" The originator of the good campfire stories. "
— Dave, 3/7/2009 -
" "The Artist of the Beautiful" and "Rappacini's Daughter" are definitely five-star stories. The rest: OK, but not masterpieces. "
— April, 2/24/2009 -
" A nice dose of classic spooky. "
— Heather, 11/7/2008 -
" Hawthorne's writing is sometimes stiff, his treatments sober, even dour. But he has an earnestness that pulls the reader in. And I think that it is that quality of earnestness that has qualified him to be generally regarded as an American Master. "
— John, 8/7/2008 -
" These are really interesting stories. They all seem to be dark and full of unanswerable questions. I haven't read them all, but I intend to through the years. "
— Christina, 6/7/2008 -
" These stories are a great read--strange, wierd but great-Hawthorne uses language so well -the words can have many meanings "
— Gretchen, 3/23/2008
About Nathaniel Hawthorne
Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804–1864) is considered to be one of the greatest American authors of the nineteenth century. He was born in Salem, Massachusetts, and made his ambition to be a writer while still a teenager. He graduated from Bowdoin College in Maine, where the poet Longfellow was also a student, and spent several years traveling in New England and writing short stories before his best known novel, The Scarlet Letter, was published in 1850. His writing was not at first financially rewarding, and he worked as measurer and surveyor in the Boston and Salem Custom Houses. In 1853 he was sent to Liverpool as American consul and then lived in Italy before returning to the United States in 1860.