The villagers in "The Minister's Black Veil" suggest that the black veil symbolizes either a secret sin or a great sorrow. The popular theory within the village seems to be that the veil is a symbol of sin; however, for Hawthorne, I think that the veil symbolizes something more abstract and, ultimately, more pervasive. Throughout the story, the veil has the effect of driving everyone away from Mr. Hooper and isolating him from others. After he dons the veil, they can no longer identify with him or understand him and everyone drifts away. I think that ultimately, for Hawthorne, the veil symbolizes isolation from others and that no matter how hard we try to connect with others we will always be isolated because others can never truly understand us.
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