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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What does the Judge repeatedly try to prevent Phoebe from doing?

2. Hepzibah is whose sister?

3. Which of the following best describes the Maules?

4. What is unusual about the harpsichord at the House?

5. Who passes by the shop but does not enter at the beginning of the novel?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe some of the "eerie" qualities of the House.

2. What were the Maules like as a family?

3. Describe Holgrave and Uncle Venner.

4. How would you describe the House of Seven Gables?

5. After the Colonel's death, what happened to the Pyncheon family?

6. What did Maule do right before he died?

7. Describe Phoebe's first visit to the garden.

8. Describe how Phoebe comes to stay at the House.

9. What tragedies soon afflicted the Pyncheon family?

10. Who is Hepzibah Pyncheon and why does she run a shop out of the house?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Natural details in the novel play a small but noteworthy part in developing the setting and supporting the themes. Write an essay on the importance of natural elements, including the tree, the garden and the posies.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay exploring the relationships among the characters in the house. Consider Hepzibah's, Phoebe's, Clifford's and Holgrave's relationships with one another, whether these relationships are implicit or explicit, and why these relationships are important.

Essay Topic 3

Hawthorne wrote The House of Seven Gables about a real house in Salem, Massachusetts--a town with a notorious history and strong ties to Hawthorne’s own past. Write an essay that explains why Salem’s history has a personal significance for Hawthorne, and why he chose to set his novel there.

(see the answer keys)

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