Who doesn't have a deep, dark or secret sin? Unfortunately, no one does. Everyone lives their life hiding it from the public, keeping it out of people's sight. The reason we behave this way is because people tend to judge each other without knowing the true meaning or reason behind their judgment. A group of English Protestants called Puritans believed that everyone is born a sinner and can never escape their sinful nature. Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote a wonderful book on literacy. The Minister's Black Veil, one of his most famous stories of all time. In the story, Hawthorne illustrates and critiques some of the behaviors of the Puritans in their obsession with judging others and attempting to live a pure, sinless life. There are certain key elements of Puritan theology that are relevant to the characters, which Hawthorne demonstrates throughout the story. history. Mr. Hooper behaved differently from other Puritans regarding their sins. Hawthorne describes Mr. Hopper as "a good preacher, but not energetic: he strove to win his people to heaven by gentle and persuasive influences, rather than to drive them there by the thunders of the Word." He did not preach the horrors of hell; instead, it reveals their deepest sins. The Puritans “trembled,” they were afraid of Hooper and they felt that he had discovered their secrets. People cowardly try to hide their sins from each other and from God. However, they could hide their “secret sin and… sad mysteries”; however, God is “All-Knowing.” God can detect all their secrets. At the funeral, the girl's body moved when the veil was pulled away from Hooper's face. Furthermore, "and the spirit of the maiden walked hand in hand", evidence which has not been elucidated as to the relationship...... middle of paper ...... er's BlackVeil' . " Studies In Short Fiction 17.1 (1980): 15. Literary Reference Center Plus Web. February 19, 2014. Carnochan, W. B. "'The Minister's Black Veil': Symbol, Meaning, and Context of Hawthorne's Art. Nineteenth-Century Fiction 24.2 (September 1969): 182-192. JASTOR Web February 19, 2014. Fogle, Richard Harter. 2014. Hawthorne, Nathaniel "The Minister's Black Veil." New England Quarterly 46.3 (September 1973): 454-463. JASTOR Web. February 19, 2014. Stibitz, E. Earle. “The Ironic Unity in Hawthorne's “The Minister's Black Veil.” 182-190 Web.. 2014.