Superstition And Greed In The House Of Seven Gables
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Hawthorne states in his preface that "the wrong-doing of one generation lives into the successive ones, and, divesting itself of every temporary advantage, becomes a pure and uncontrollable mischief." Consider all the bad things that have happened to the Pyncheons since their ancestor Colonel Pyncheon caused the hanging of Matthew Maule in order to seize his property. Are these things the result of the Maule curse, or can each unfortunate event be attributed to an expression of the same greed that motivated the Colonel Pyncheon?
Superstition and Greed in the House of Seven Gables In The House of Seven Gables, Matthew Maule Senior’s curse and the greed within some of the characters were two of the biggest themes. The curse of Matthew Maule…show more content… The curse was laid upon the family when Colonel Pyncheon, the head of the family at the time, falsely accused and convicted Matthew Maule as a witch. The curse was said to be what he uttered before his death. Colonel Pyncheon perpetrated this evil deed so that he could acquire the land belonging to the Maule family. After building the House of Seven Gables, he died unexpectedly by choking on his own blood. It was rumored that a bloody hand-print was found around his neck when he was found, dead, in his study. This was believed to be a result of the…show more content… Although he invoked much fear in the resident Pyncheons of the House of Seven Gables, he was stopped from interacting with Clifford by Hepzibah. Although he attempted to feign concern and offered to supply them with aid, Hepzibah stood her ground and protected Clifford to the best of her ability. Unfortunately, she was forced to comply with Jaffrey when he threatened to have Clifford imprisoned yet again. Clifford was terrified of Jaffrey. He knew that he would do anything in order to get what he wanted. As if by a miracle, Judge Jaffrey died choking on his own blood, the same way Colonel Pyncheon had a century or so before. As it turned out, it was a medical condition that had run in the family. This would lead us to believe that the death of Colonel Pyncheon by the curse was a coincidence instead. Jaffrey’s death brought about the end of the Pyncheon’s grief and