numbereight[8]

Nathaniel Hawthorne Quotes.

"...That they longed for a breath of wind to blow aside the veil, almost believing that a stranger's visage would be discovered, though the forn, gesture, and voice were those of Mr. Hooper."

This quote is very ironic. The viewers of Mr. Hooper's veil saw him as a different person than he was. The church- goers wished to see what they did not know. They were thirsty for knowledge. Since they didn't know what was under the veil, they guessed and assumed that what they conjured up was correct. These judgements changed who Mr. Hooper was. Such a simple thing making such a big impact. The irony is that something that is not at all Mr. Hooper, became him.

"Strange and bewildered looks repaid him for his courtesy."

This ties into the quote above this. The viewers of Mr. Hooper didn't understand him, but they very much wanted reasons as to why he draped the black cloth over his face. This made him far more mysterious than he actually was. The mystery mixed with the dark nature of the veil and it made him appear far darker than he was. This is not who he was however. One could argue that his sadness actually was love since love is what caused his sadness. This quote shows how the townspeople were unfair to Mr. Hooper, because they did not bother to find out the real reason why he wore the veil. Their assumptions, they thought, were sufficient. The teachings of Mr. Hooper did not finally get out until he reached his deathbed, which is ironic in that he was teaching to treasure what you have even until he had nothing. At first I judged him hypocritical for preaching one thing and doing another, but then I realized that the purpose of the veil was not to hide his face but to teach others not to. This makes him a very strong teacher as opposed to the feeble one I assumed he was.