"He has changed himself into something awful only by hiding his face." How is this similar and dissimilar the masks in Lord of the Flies? Has Parson Hooper really changed himself into something awful or merely made plain his horrific interior? Why is his interior so horrific?
"That mysterious emblem was never once withdrawn. . . " What is another word for emblem? Why would anyone want to hide their face (especially the inner face of their conscience) from God?
"Each member of the congregation, the most . . . " Why would the minister's black veil remind people of their own sin?
Why would the corpse shudder at the sight of Parson Hooper? What do we all fear regarding our afterlife?
"For the Earth, too, had on her Black Veil." How does the Earth suffer it's own kind of original sin? (Answer: it isn't heaven -- it's an imperfect shadow of Paradise according to Puritan theology.)
"If I hide my face for sorrow. . . " What is Pastor Hooper's secret sin? (Answer: This is a little complicated. Yes, it is his Original Sin, the sin all men are born with because of Adam's fall from grace. But it is more. It is our potential for sin that exists because we are not purely divine creatures, but are flesh and blood animals that have animal passions and animal savagery (think Lord of the Flies). Pastor Hooper's secret sin is the same thing as the Beast).
"Do not desert me. . . " How does original sin/potential for sin/refusal to look out sinful selves square in the face separate Paster Hooper and Elizabeth?
"Why do you tremble at me . . . " Why did Hawthorne right this allegorical tale? (Look up allegory in the glossary of your PH Lit books.) To tell us all that we are hypocritical sinners? To encourage us not to be so? Does Hawthorne believe this is possible or impossible? Why? If it is impossible for us to change, then why right this story?