The story springs from the actions of Colonel Pyncheon, whose mysterious death seems to have been a direct result of his prior evil conduct. He built The House of the Seven Gables on a plot of land that he had wrongly taken from Matthew Maule in Salem, Massachusetts. Maule, who, was hung during the Salem witch hunts in 1692 for allegedly practicing witchcraft, suspected Colonel Pyncheon of encouraging the persecution so that he could take his property. Colonel Pyncheon's evil scheming would be the root of the curse that would loom with the Pyncheon family. Hepzibah Pyncheon, an aging spinster, inherits the house that Colonel Pyncheon had built and opens a small cent shop in the face of growing impoverishment. The house has lost all its former grandeur and presents a dismal appearance. Hepzibah allows the bright-spirited17-year-old Phoebe Pyncheon to come live in the house along with an artist, Holgrave, who occupies one of the gables and is a descendant of Matthew Maule, the old enemy of the Pyncheons. Holgrave is an artist, and he and Phoebe fall in love. Phoebe "is like a ray of sunshine flooding a dark corner." She signifies the future hope of the Pyncheon family and eventually marries Holgrave. The secret of the portrait of Colonel Pyncheon is explained at last. A hidden spring releases the frame and reveals a hiding place where the now useless deed to the territory in Maine has been for two hundred years. Hepzibah, Clifford, Phoebe, and Holgrave decide to leave the house of the seven gables and live in the country estate they inherited from Jaffrey. With this, the curse is lifted.
             How Did This Book/Author Affect His Time Period?
             Hawthorne's novel, The House of the Seven Gables, has had great significance in the world of historical literature since it was published. Hawthorne is seen today as a writer of great influence on subsequent generations of storytellers. The effect of
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