Examining Hawthorn's Use of Metaphors

Examining Hawthorn's Use of Metaphors

  • Submitted By: mikeeim
  • Date Submitted: 02/10/2009 6:52 PM
  • Category: English
  • Words: 476
  • Page: 2
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Kyung Eim
English 205
4 February 2009 Understanding Hawthorne’s Allegories by Examining the use of the Symbols The second metaphor of the veil is from Hooper’s statement that he made just before his death, along with the sermon that he delivered while wearing the black veil. Within those events, Hooper clearly points out the secret sins of all men even though they pretend they are holly. For this reason, the minister wears the veil in order to appeal to the people in the town that every man has sins, and by hiding them, they will not have a chance to repent for their sins. He wants to tell people that only by admitting their sins; they can have a chance to revive their souls. Concerning the second interpretation mentioned, it remains a question of the minister’s role in the story. His intention to inform the people of their sins is understandable, but what could possibly be the reason for him hiding his face to his death? One possible reason is the writer’s intentions. Although the minister’s role in the story was more like a messenger from God to make people acknowledge their sins, the writer did not want to make the minister a person who knows his sin. Instead, Hawthorne wants to make everyone in the story a sinner who is not aware of his/her sin. If the minister was only to inform people the sin that every men has, he had to unveil himself at the end because only by doing so, he can complete admitting his secret sin, which is what he want the people do. However, he refuses to unveil his veil which is the symbol of his and every men’s sin. How genius Hawthorne is to make everyone in the story perfect sinners even the minister himself. The minister is the writer himself. While Hawthorne wants to give the important metaphor to his readers, he did not forget that he is like them, and he is aware of the sin that every men kind has. Overall, Hawthorne achieved a great deal of symbolism to create spiritual allegories. The definition of the word “allegory” is...

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