# The Old Pyncheon Family explained — The House of the Seven Gables

> Chapter companion for The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne.

## What happens

The chapter introduces the House of the Seven Gables, its history, and the Pyncheon family lineage, tracing back to Colonel Pyncheon's acquisition of the land from Matthew Maule. It explores the curse placed by Maule, the family's inherited guilt, and the recent tragedy of a murder within the family, leading to the imprisonment of a young Pyncheon. The current heir, Judge Pyncheon, is presented as a respectable figure, though the shadow of the past looms over the family.

## Themes in this chapter

### Inherited Sin and Guilt

The Pyncheon family is burdened by the original sin of Colonel Pyncheon's acquisition of Maule's land, with each generation inheriting the guilt and the curse.

### Class and Social Decline

The Pyncheon family, once prominent, has diminished over two centuries, with the house and its inhabitants reflecting a faded grandeur.

### The Past vs. the Present

The chapter contrasts the ancient history of the house and family with the present day, emphasizing how past events shape current realities.

### Fate and Free Will

The curse and inherited guilt suggest a deterministic fate for the Pyncheons, yet individual actions, like the old bachelor's scruples, hint at the possibility of choice.

## Character check-ins

### Colonel Pyncheon

Founder of the family's fortune, built the House of the Seven Gables on land disputed with Matthew Maule; his portrait remains in the house, symbolizing the family's curse.

### Matthew Maule

Original occupant of the land, executed as a wizard; his curse on the Pyncheon family is a central theme.

### Judge Jaffrey Pyncheon

Current heir and a prominent figure in society; inherited the house after the death of his uncle, the old bachelor.

### Clifford Pyncheon

Nephew convicted of murdering his uncle; sentenced to perpetual imprisonment, now rumored to be released.

### Hepzibah Pyncheon

Mentioned as a current inhabitant of the house, though not yet detailed; part of the family's present generation.

## Key lines

> From father to son, they clung to the ancestral house with singular tenacity of home attachment.

Each generation of Pyncheons held tightly to the family home.

_Highlights the family's deep attachment to the house despite its troubled history._

> old Matthew Maule, it is to be feared, trode downward from his own age to a far later one, planting a heavy footstep, all the way, on the conscience of a Pyncheon.

Matthew Maule's curse has weighed on the conscience of every Pyncheon descendant.

_Illustrates the enduring impact of Maule's curse on the family._

> the ghost of a dead progenitor—perhaps as a portion of his own punishment—is often doomed to become the Evil Genius of his family.

The spirit of an ancestor may haunt and harm his own descendants as part of his own punishment.

_Reflects the theme of inherited guilt and the supernatural influence of the past._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_house_of_the_seven_gables_se/chapters/i-the-old-pyncheon-family
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_house_of_the_seven_gables_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_house_of_the_seven_gables_se/chapters