Post 3- The Birthmark Questions and The Minister's Black Veil Questions

Note: If you have not finished reading post 1 and 2--go there first and foremost before looking at this post!

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If you did not finish these in class or misplaced them-- here are the questions!

Period 2- The Birthmark

Remember that in the myth, Pygmalion, a sculptor convinced of the faultiness of women, resolves to remain unmarried. Nevertheless, he falls in love with one of his own creations: a beautiful marble statue of a young maiden and prays to the gods that they send him a woman just like her to be his bride. Listening to his prayers, Venus, brings Pygmalion's statue to life and when he returns to his home, he is delighted to find that the marble figure as become a real woman. Venus blesses the wedding between the two.
Hawthorne makes direct allusions to the Pygmalion myth in "The Birth-mark." How does Aylmer act as a latter day Pygmalion? How do these stories differ from each other and, most importantly, what can we learn from these differences?

Period 6- The Minister's Black Veil

1 People often go through five stages when they must deal with loss or change. Can you find an example of each one in the story as people try to understand the change in Mr. Hooper?
Denial
Anger
Bargaining
Depression
Acceptance
2 What incidents start rumors about Mr. Hooper's reason for wearing the veil?
3 Why does Elizabeth break her engagement to Mr. Hooper?
4 As time passes, how do people treat Mr. Hooper? Consider the actions of children and of the dying. Why do you think they treat him that way?
5 Hawthorne is careful to describe Rev. Clark of Westbury as "young and zealous." What difference does Rev. Clark's age make? How might a minister closer to Mr. Hooper's age have handled the situation?
6 Why do you think Mr. Hooper will not remove the veil, even as he is dying?