霍桑《牧师的黑面纱》读后感

Mr. Hooper, a gentlemanly person, had the reputation of a good preacher, but not an energetic one: he strove to win his people heavenward by mild, persuasive influences, rather than to drive them thither by the thunders of the Word. However, since a sermon when the congregation is met with an unusual sight: Mr. Hooper is wearing a black semi-transparent veil that obscures all of his face but his mouth and chin from view. This creates a stir among the townspeople, who begin to speculate about his veil and its meanings. People are eager to communicate their pent-up amazement, though the minister remains the same courtsy, paying due reverence to the hoary heads, saluting the middle aged with kind dignity as their friend and spiritual guide, greeting the young with mingled authority and love, and laying his hands on the little children's heads to bless them. Gradually everybody keep away from Mr. Hooper , his fiancee Elizabeth also leave him after talking with him about the whole circunstances but finding any efforts in vain and preceiving the trembling terrors hidden bihind the black veil in a sudden twilight in the air. Since then the simple material emblem has separated him from happiness, though the horrors, which it shadowed forth, must be drawn darkly between the fondest of lovers. But the one positive benefit of the veil is that Mr. Hooper becomes a more efficient clergyman, and is promoted to Father, until his death bed gain many converts who feel that they too are behind the black veil with him. Dying sinners call out for him alone. In this manner Mr. Hooper spent a long life, irreproachable in outward act, yet shrouded in dismal suspicions; kind and loving, though unloved, and dimly feared; a man apart from men, shunned in their health and joy, but ever summoned to their aid in mortal anguish. At last he is deathly ill and Elizabeth comes to his death bed to be by his side. Elizabeth and the Reverend ask him once again to remove the veil, but he refuses. As he dies, those around him tremble. He tells them in anger not to tremble, not merely for him but for themselves, for they all wear black veils. Father Hooper is buried in his black veil. Nathaniel Hawthorne, praised as the greatest writer in exposing the overwhelming power of the darkness, reveal the evil human nature in the core of people’s heart in his writing. In the short novel he conduct a psychological exploration of the themes of secret sin, repentance, and morality. A simple black veil, such as any woman might wear on her bonnet, should become such a terrible thing on Mr. Hooper's face! The black veil, though it covers only our pastor's face, throws its influence over his whole person, and makes him ghostlike from head to foot. The subtle power depress everyone since the minister wears the strange crape. Each member of the congregation, the most innocent girl, and the man of hardened breast, felt as if the preacher had crept upon them, behind his awful veil, and discovered their hoarded iniquity of deed or thought. Maybe this is what the problem lies in. Everybody, outstanding or insignificantly, has their own emotion and judgement, aspiration or greed, tragedy or conspiracy, care and love or anger and animosity. Keeping their privacy is a kind of self-protection and serves as a sense of security. Once people feel it threatened they will be alert and estrange themselves from the danger source. Though the crape seems to enable him to sympathize with all dark affections, perhaps only those who can really admit and face the black vision can accept and enbrace him with true understanding, comfort and love. A veiled corpse, with a faint smile lingering on the lips. The grass of many years has sprung up and withered on that grave, the burial stone is moss-grown, and good Mr. Hooper's face is dust; but awful is still the thought that it mouldered beneath the Black Veil! In the story what impress me most includes not only the black accompanied the minister till death but also the glimmering of a sad smile on his face. The symbolism the veil implies merit particular attention, so does the vague smile suggest the anguish of the minister who is aware of the hidden sin in everybody but who also have to endure it and pray for them. If we say the veil kept the motives unknown to the countrymen as well as the reader stands for the man's concealment or hypocrisy or Hidden nature of guilt, which can’t be cast aside not just phisically, then the melancholy smile could be regarded as an emblem of deeper irony but mingled with pathos, through which we can feel that the writer, though sad for and suspicious of the humanity and the human future, won’t totally fall into despair hopelessly. After all, the people who feel the blackness and evil being deep in the human life shall be more likely to live through the tragic experience and attains maturity as a man, thus learn to be tolerant and forbearing to the sin in everybody. Guilty isn’t terrible, the fear and restrictions with fanatical blandbess is. The world is paradoxical as beauty and virtue tinged with uglinessand and sin so closely and perfectly, maybe that is how it goes with harmony: allowing wrongness and sin and at the same time be sincere, truehearted and seeking paradise. Be forgiving to the darkness, the deiberate avoidance of the sin may trigger more malice, in the good name of correcting wrongness the hostility can change into further crime and iniquity. In addition to the above viewpoint, we can at the same time feel that love may be the only approach to freedom, brightness and happiness. Love means awaiting, mercy, and possibility of breaking fear and evil through soul solace and consolatio by nutual understanding. While the poor warm-hearted minister is abadoned by all the others, Elizabeth bears no horror to him and is willing to pursuade him and support him through the untold sorrow. And altthough Mr. Hooper could not agree, he tells the kind and pure girl his concealed dread and grievous affliction and plead with her to have patience with him and not desert him because he is so lonely and frightened. “Do not leave me in this miserable obscurity forever!” Mr. Hooper does trust the young lady, and though she could not comply with his appeal, she does try her best to be kind ang loyal to his lover. In the end of the story, the minister is dying. But even though Elizabeth break off their engagement, she never marries. She still keeps track of the happenings of his life from afar. “There was the nurse, no hired handmaiden of death, but one whose calm affection had endured thus long in secrecy, in solitude, amid the chill of age, and would not perish, even at the dying hour. Who, but Elizabeth!” I believe this is moving enough: they are apart, but love and care exists as well.