The House of the Seven Gables Summary

Nathaniel Hawthorne's The House of the Seven Gables, first published in 1851 by James T. Fields, is a novel that blends elements of satire, horror, and moral fable. Written between 1850 and 1851 in Lenox, Massachusetts, the novel is set in a fictional New England town resembling those in Essex County during the 1850s. The story is narrated in the third person, often adopting a gloomy and sarcastic tone, and occasionally delving into the perspectives of key characters such as Hepzibah, Clifford, Holgrave, and Phoebe Pyncheon. The central conflict revolves around Judge Pyncheon’s relentless pursuit of information from Clifford regarding their uncle’s missing inheritance. Representing the Pyncheon family's legacy of greed and ambition, Judge Pyncheon’s persecution of Clifford and Hepzibah serves as a microcosm of their struggle against the family’s dark past. The novel’s narrative is shaped by village gossip, and the narrator frequently questions the reliability of the so-called “facts,” adding to the novel's layered complexity.

The House of the Seven Gables begins with a preface in which Nathaniel Hawthorne tells readers that the book is a romance, not a novel. This means the story will mix realistic details with elements of fantasy. The preface also explains the main idea of the book: the actions of one generation can have lasting effects on future generations, sometimes leading to serious problems.

In a small New England town, an old house with seven gables stands. (A gable is a triangular part of a roof.) The house belongs to the Pyncheon family and has a long, troubled history. In the mid-1600s, a farmer named Matthew Maule builds a house on a piece of land with a nice spring. Later, in the late 1600s, the area becomes desirable, and a rich man named Colonel Pyncheon wants Maule’s land. A few years later, Maule is accused of witchcraft and hanged. Many people believe that Pyncheon arranged for Maule’s execution. As he is about to die, Maule curses Pyncheon, but Pyncheon is not bothered. He even hires Maule’s son to build a mansion with seven gables on the same land. On the day of a grand party to celebrate his new home, Colonel Pyncheon is found dead in his study with blood on his beard. In his will, he states that no one should remove his portrait, but a very important document—the deed for a large piece of land in Maine—is missing. No one ever finds the deed, though many Pyncheons search for it over the years. The house continues to bring misfortune to the family, leading to the false accusation that young Clifford Pyncheon murdered his uncle.

Many years later, an old woman named Hepzibah Pyncheon lives in the house alone. She is poor and has to open a small shop in her home to survive. Hepzibah is ashamed of running a store, even though her kindly neighbor Uncle Venner and her young lodger, Holgrave, try to encourage her. Holgrave is a rebellious young man who takes daguerreotype photographs, an early form of photography. Hepzibah struggles with running the shop because her stern face scares customers. On the very day she opens the store, she receives a visit from Phoebe, a cheerful young cousin from another branch of the Pyncheon family. At first, Hepzibah worries that Phoebe’s presence will disturb her brother, Clifford, who is coming home after years in prison. However, Phoebe is so kind and helpful that she wins Hepzibah over. When Clifford returns, he is weak and confused from his years in jail, but he finds comfort in Phoebe’s presence. Instead of being upset about Hepzibah’s store, Clifford is more troubled by their poverty.

Despite Phoebe’s cheerful influence, Clifford and Hepzibah are deeply frightened when their cousin, Judge Pyncheon, visits. Judge Pyncheon has a friendly smile and speaks politely, offering to help Hepzibah with money, but she angrily refuses and blocks him from entering the house. Inside, Clifford begs the Judge to leave. Even Phoebe, who is usually friendly, feels uneasy around the Judge. Holgrave, the only lodger in the house, also seems mysterious. He and Phoebe spend time together caring for the garden and feeding the chickens, which once belonged to a grand breed but are now weak—just like the Pyncheon family. Holgrave has radical political ideas and believes that each generation should destroy what the previous one built. He often asks Phoebe about Clifford’s past.

One day, Holgrave tells Phoebe the tragic story of Alice Pyncheon. A hundred years earlier, Alice’s father, Gervayse Pyncheon, invited a young carpenter named Matthew Maule (the grandson of the first Maule) to the house. Gervayse hoped that because Maule’s father built the house, he might know where the missing deed was. The young Maule, still bitter about how the Pyncheons treated his family, agreed to help in exchange for the house and land. To find the deed, Maule hypnotized Gervayse’s daughter, Alice, and called upon the spirits of his ancestors and Colonel Pyncheon. However, the spirits refused to reveal the deed’s location, so the deal was canceled. Maule then realized that Alice remained under his control, and he used his power to torment her. On his wedding night, he forced Alice to serve his bride. When Alice suddenly woke from her trance, she ran home through the snow, caught pneumonia, and died. Maule was devastated by what he had done.

As Holgrave finishes the story, he notices that he has accidentally hypnotized Phoebe, but he chooses not to take advantage of his power and gently wakes her up. Later, while Phoebe is visiting her home in the countryside, Judge Pyncheon comes back to the house and forces Hepzibah to bring Clifford downstairs. He threatens to send Clifford to an asylum if she refuses. The Judge believes Clifford knows the location of their late uncle’s inheritance. Hepzibah looks for Clifford but cannot find him. When she returns downstairs, Clifford is pointing excitedly at Judge Pyncheon’s lifeless body. The Judge is dead. Fearing that Clifford will be blamed for the Judge’s death, Hepzibah and Clifford flee the house.

When Phoebe returns, she finds Holgrave alone in the house. He happily shows her a daguerreotype of the dead Judge and tells her that the family curse has been broken. He then confesses his love for her, and Phoebe admits that she loves him too. Meanwhile, the neighbors begin to gossip about the Judge’s sudden death. Soon, Hepzibah and Clifford return, and it becomes clear that Clifford was never a suspect in the Judge’s death. Rumors spread that the Judge himself may have framed Clifford for the crime that sent him to prison thirty years earlier. News arrives that the Judge’s estranged son has died in Europe, meaning that Clifford will inherit the Judge’s fortune. With this newfound wealth, Clifford, Hepzibah, Phoebe, Holgrave, and Uncle Venner leave the old house and move to the Judge’s country estate. They leave the house of the seven gables behind, allowing it to decay and disappear over time.