In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The House of Seven Gables, the unfortunate life and history behind the once-wealthy and cursed Pyncheon family is exploited. Due to selfishness and greed over a plot of land to build what is known as the House of Seven Gables, bad blood came about between the Pyncheon family and the Maule family. The novel picks up over a century after the murder of the man who stole the plot of land from the Maule family, Colonel Pyncheon. The main character, Hepzibah Pyncheon, lives alone in the House of Seven Gables while her brother, Clifford, is in jail for the framed murder of their uncle. Jaffrey Pyncheon, their cousin, is the wealthy yet greedy judge that accused and framed Clifford for this murder. Regardless of the negative reputation that sits with the Pyncheon family, characters such as Clifford, Hepzibah and Phoebe all act as silver lining to this preconceived negativity; this emphasizes that society must understand that individuals have the power to shape their own destiny rather than to simply accepting a predetermined fate. …show more content…
Innocent and confused, Clifford begs to be left alone yet Judge Pyncheon continues to threaten him. The contrast between Clifford’s innocence and Judge Pyncheon’s greedy actions goes to show that a “curse” or a negative family history has no direct effect on an individual. Although Judge Pyncheon is carrying on the trend of a tainted family name through his selfishness, the reality is that Clifford’s innocence goes to show that individuals have the power to the direction of their
In The Scarlet Letter Hypocrisy is evident everywhere. The characters of Hester, Dimmesdale, Chillingworth, and the very society that the characters lived in, were steeped in hypocrisy. Hawthorne was not subtle in his portrayal of the terrible sin of hypocrisy; he made sure it was easy to see the sin at work , at the same time however, parallels can be drawn between the characters of The Scarlet Letter and of today’s society.
Without an honorable reputation a person is not worthy of respect from others in their society. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter, the struggle to shake off the past is an underlying theme throughout the novel. Characters in this novel go through their lives struggling with trying to cope with the guilt and shame associated with actions that lost them their honorable reputation. Particularly, Hawthorne shows the lasting effect that sin and guilt has on two of the main characters in the book: Hester Prynne and Reverend Dimmesdale.
The Dark Side of Judge Pyncheon in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Novel, The House of the Seven Gables
Nathaniel Hawthorne portrays the ideology of Puritan society in the novel the Scarlet Letter; however reader also get to witness his characters being an illustration of hypocrisy and victims to their own guilt. In the Scarlet Letter, as in many of Hawthorne’s shorter works, he makes profuse use of the Puritan past: its odd exclusionary belief, its harsh code of ruling, its concern with sex and witchcraft. The Scarlet Letter is a story that is embellished but yet simple. Many readers may view this novel as a soap opera due to the way Hawthorne conveys this Puritan society’s sense of strictness and inability to express true emotion along with the secrecy and how deceiving the characters are being. As the story unfolds the main character Hester Prynne is bounded in marriage at an early age. She engages in an adulterous affair with an unknown member of their small village. Hester soon becomes pregnant and with her husband’s absence the chances of this child belonging to her husband are slim. The towns’ people know that she has committed a sin and imprisons her for her crime.
This ridicule has a trickle down effect on Hester as she too is banished from her own community for committing adultery. The comparison between Hester and Hawthorne defines the external struggle for the reader to fully understand the effect of opinions from society on them Although reluctant to allow Hester to leave prison, the members of the town suggest that her punishment be to wear a scarlet red letter A on her bosom, thereby allowing all to know of her crime. The scarlet letter “ was red-hot with infernal fire, ” (Hawthorne 81) and defined the state she was currently in, that being eternal hell. Though she was forced to marry an older man at a young age, her rebellion to have an affair is not seen as an internal struggle that she overcame; rather, it is merely seen as a woman who sinned, a woman who shall therefore endure the punishment for the sin, rather than a woman who was never given a say in what she wanted with her life. Time and again, Hester Prynne is seen defying society by allowing herself to stand out from societal norm just as the roses “with its delicate gems, which might be imagined to offer their fragrance and fragile beauty to the prisoner“ (Hawthorne) did. Instead, she returns to the community and is observed aiding those in need, all with seven year old Pearl by her side.
Nathaniel Hawthorne, one of America's most renowned authors, demonstrates his extraordinary talents in two of his most famed novels, The Scarlet Letter and The House of the Seven Gables. To compare these two books seems bizarre, as their plots are distinctly different. Though the books are quite seemingly different, the central themes and Hawthorne's style are closely related (Carey, p. 62). American novelist Nathaniel Hawthorne is most famous for his books THE SCARLET LETTER and THE HOUSE OF THE SEVEN GABLES, which are closely related in theme, the use of symbolism, characterization, and style.
People have been stereotyping outcasts since the beginning of time. This behavior is a crucial component of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel, The Scarlet Letter. The main character of the story, Hester Prynne, resides in a community of Puritans; who are notorious hypocrites. Their harsh rules are basically impossible to follow, therefore setting their citizens up for failure and punishment. Hawthorne tells the story of Hester Prynne with the elements of sin, judgement, and revenge.
The story begins as Nathaniel Hawthorne lays down the setting and describes the house of the seven-gables and the story of its creation. The house is old and overrun by moss weeds and bushes, but the greatest aspect is the gigantic tree in the front of the house that seems to grow in size as it feeds off the misery of the inhabitants and the decay of the house. The very land that the house was built on was stolen from Matthew Moule. Since Colonel Pyncheon liked the location he helped accuse Matthew Moule of witchcraft and had him hung from the gallows pole. At his death, Matthew Moule curses Colonel Pyncheon saying, 'God will give him blood to drink!" One hundred and sixty years ago, when Colonel
The elderly are known to be wise, and the young are known to be restless. When the young are restless “even now, the inevitable force of circumstances should occasionally make you do one questionable deed…” In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s novel The House of Seven Gables, the character of Judge Pyncheon is revealed through the description of his life both his past and present. The narrator makes fun of the Judge’s life in order to convey a new message of society’s high value on public opinion. The selection can be divided into sections. First being that the narrator knows that Judge Pyncheon has a secret and is hiding something. Secondly, the narrator gives a description of everything good and contrasts that to his superficiality, and the unveiling
In the case of Mrs. Foster in Hallowell, the unequal influential power of a judge versus an ordinary citizen may have largely influenced the outcome of the trial. The judge’s words may have given greater worth, weight, and authenticity due to his position in society. As mentioned in the text, the judge was an influential person in society and unequal status was reflected in the court system (Davidson & Lytle, 2010, p.
In The House of the Seven Gables, Nathaniel Hawthorne uses the Maules’ witchcraft as a key to revenge on the Pyncheon family. Many Pyncheon generations later, they still believe they have control of the Maules because they ended up with the land. They possess a sense of entitlement because they believe they are becoming close to millionaires and the Pyncheon inheritors are willing to do anything to obtain the fortune. The Maules, however, have their secret legacy, guaranteeing them to receive not only the money, land, and house but also revenge for the years of superiority from the Pyncheon’s.
In the novel The House of the Seven Gables, Hawthorne portrays Alice Pyncheon as a unique and compelling character, placing her in contrast with a story full of greed, lies and betrayal. Hawthorne reveals her fantastic character to us in numerous uses of symbolism throughout the novel. By painting a picture of a gentle yet proud woman, Hawthorne chooses to represent Alice's impressive characteristics using images that come up repeatedly in his novel such as the nature and flowers in the garden as well as Alice's Posies. Hawthorne also makes reference to the Maule "mastery" and its power over Alice and the playing of the harpsichord during a Pyncheon death. All the
The House of The Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne chronicles the generations of a Puritan family and the curse which haunts their fates. Although the Pyncheons are a respected family in their small Massachusetts town, their past is riddled with secrets, mysterious deaths, and the curse of a dying man. Few in the family ever believed in the curse, giving the generational disasters of the family the name of coincidental misfortunes, the simple results of human action. And, while the author attempts to explain away these coincidences with logic and science, he also conveys mysterious hints as to the supernatural phenomena existing within the house of the seven gables. Because of the secrecy surrounding the story, we, as readers, are
Nathaniel Hawthorne extensively weaves symbolism into the pages of The House of the Seven Gables to bring the house and the items within it to life. The use of gothic elements within the house directly reflects upon the decaying of the Pyncheon family. Their once lively home stands as a constant reminder of the family’s legacy.
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The House of the Seven Gables shows that family blood runs through many of the same generation. 19th century Lenox, County of Essex is a place where this family had first began. The Pyncheon generations of family members has been living the house of the seven gables, where Miss. Hepzibah Pyncheon and Clifford Pyncheon currently live. Phoebe Pyncheon, a nice and cheerful girl living the country side, decides to visit the Pyncheon relatives, but sees that the conditions are poor because of Judge Jaffrey Pyncheon, a richest folk in town, has been visiting the house of the Pyncheon’s to get Clifford to tell him where the family’s riches are currently located. The Judge wants these riches due to his greed. Thus, through the