In the novel, The House of the Seven Gables, written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, distributes symbolism from a home that belonged to a family who prided themselves the best in the whole society. The House of the Seven Gables is built on land that is owned by Matthew Maule. Colonel Pyncheon built a massive house and took the land from Maule.
The house of the seven gables was built with pride and cursed with death. These are symbols that destroy the Pyncheon family. The house suffers from decay and disrepair, like the Pyncheon family. It was built one hundred and sixty years; according to the novel. The massive elm tree has however flourished throughout the years. It represents new life for the house. It known as "the Pyncheon Elm."(1) The house is the very first symbol in the novel. It represents death and rebirth. "The House of the Seven Gables, antique as it looks, was not the first habitation erected by civilized man on precisely the same spot of ground."(2) Before the House of the Seven Gables was built, the land was owned by Matthew Maule. He was hung to death. Colonel Pyncheon took over the land and was killed by the curse that Maule had cast on the house. The house is also the symbol that represents the pride of the Pyncheon family. The portrait of Colonel Pyncheon is a symbol of a gloominess shadow over the house of the seven gables. The curse is a major symbol in this story. It plays an important role from the beginning to the end of the novel.
When Colonel Pyncheon pasted away, there was a small window shop that was closed when he died. As the generations pass there are very few members of the Pyncheon left. One of the few remaining members of the Pyncheon family is Hepzibah. She becomes a shopkeeper in order to support herself and go on in life. Her sight is a symbol of trouble that she has seeing life. She is the cousin Judge Pyncheon. "For above a quarter of a century gone by, has dwelt in strict seclusion, taking no part in the business of life, and just and just as little in its intercourse and pleasures.
