In American Literature, one can find the everyday struggles of our existence

reflected. The authors of this literature, old and modern, communicate the meanings and

lessons of their works directly and indirectly. The text itself plainly tell us a story, but an

author also uses symbols to relay his message in a more subtle way. Nathaniel Hawthorne

does this in his novel The House of the Seven Gables. The symbols in The House of the

Seven Gables enhance the story the text tells by giving a deeper insight into Hawthorne's

themes, such as the past haunting the present, in the novel.

One of the first symbols introduced in the novel is the house itself. Through

Hawthorne's description in the opening chapters, the house takes on a human-like

character. It is described as "breathing through the spiracles of one great

chiminy" (Hawthorne, 7). It is descriptions like this that make the house into a symbol of

the lives that have been lived there. It has the "persona of a living creature that exists and

influences" the lives of everybody that even steps foot into it (Curtis, 162 ). The house is

also a symbol of the collection of hearts tha

where Clifford and Hepzibah want so desperately to escape. The bustling life of the train

the lives of Hepzibah, Clifford, and the others (Hawthorne, 319). The well is used in

have moved past the house and its perplexities, she alone remains there, living off of her

spirit is like that of the Colonel's as well. The sin and injustice remains in the family

guilt passed from generation to generation over the Colonel's sin. Having the portrait

seems to renew clifford. Upon entering the train, Clifford tells Hepzibah, "Let you and I

The house also symbolizes the history of the Pyncheon family, dating back to the

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2325
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)