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? The House of the Seven Gables by Nathaniel Hawthorne tells the story of the ancient Pyncheon family, and their struggles with the curse that has plagued them for generations. This supposed curse is said to have been placed on their ancestor, Colonel Pyncheon, by a man named Matthew Maule, in his final words just before being hanged on the …show more content…
If the latter is true, then one cannot hold any Pyncheon particularly responsible for the misfortunes that befall them, for the curse that has surrounded them their entire life seems inescapable. On the other hand, if their misfortunes are actually a result of their ancestral greed, then there is some blame to be placed on many – though perhaps not all – of the family members who have met with adversity in their lives. There is substantial evidence for both possibilities, and many believe that it is either one or the other that is the true origin of the sorrows of the Pyncheon family. I believe that in reality, it is their own hereditary greed in combination with their fear of Maule’s curse that has brought these various afflictions upon