Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colors
used to represent abstract ideas or concepts.
The House
The house of the seven gables is an obvious symbol of
the declining Pyncheon fortunes, but it also stands as a more general
warning against the dangers of becoming too embedded in the past.
Holgrave repudiates the connection of family and property when he explains
that true political freedom lies in the ability of each successive
generation to tear down the old structures and replace them with
its own. When Clifford flees the scene of the Judge’s death and gets
his first taste of freedom on the train, he validates this viewpoint by
characterizing the house as a dungeon from which he has escaped and
touting the railroad as an invention that will bring humanity back
to its original nomadic state. Although the novel concludes with
its protagonists finding comfort within the walls of the Judge’s country
estate, the house of the seven gables lingers as a testament to the
incarceration of the human spirit. (Note that the Judge himself
is described as a mansion soured by a rotting corpse buried somewhere
in its walls.)
The Portrait of Colonel Pyncheon
Of all the symbols in The House of the Seven Gables, none
is more prominent than the portrait of the Colonel, who watches
generation after generation of Pyncheons fall prey to the same ambitions
that brought him down. Judge Pyncheon strongly resembles the portrait, our
first indication that he too may be corrupt. Clifford recoils at
the sight of the portrait, which may be read as evidence of his
more honest, upstanding character. As Gervayse Pyncheon agrees to exchange
the house for young Matthew Maule’s help in finding the Maine land
grant, he thinks he sees the portrait frown with disapproval, signaling
both that Gervayse’s deal may not satisfy the Pyncheon standards
for greed and that something awful may be about to occur. That the
much-sought-after deed is hidden behind the portrait is symbolic
of the frustrations that greed inevitably brings, as the ambitions
of the Pyncheons are indirectly stymied by a portrait of their own
ancestor.
The Chickens
The Pyncheon chickens are a scraggly bunch, a clear symbol
of the waning fortunes of the family that breeds them. Once the
size of turkeys, the chickens have shrunk to regular size and now
look weak. Their perseverance remains admirable, however. Like the
garden and the fortunes of Clifford and Hepzibah, the chickens are
also on the mend. Clifford’s declaration that the chickens shall
be freed from their coop indicates the importance of freedom and
release. The chicken seems like an odd bird for Hawthorne to have
selected to represent the Pyncheon family, and his choice introduces
a satirical touch to the novel. In using the chickens to symbolize
the proud, aristocratic Pyncheons, Hawthorne has in effect denigrated
them to a gaggle of constantly fighting, squawking birds.
