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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. How is Clifford related to Hepzibah?

2. For what crime has Clifford been convicted?

3. How does Clifford react to Hepzibah’s welcome?

4. What did Maule do just before his death?

5. What has Hepzibah refused to accept?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does the Judge try to do?

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

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

4. What did Maule do right before he died?

5. Who built the House of the Seven Gables? Why is this ironic?

6. Describe the events surrounding the murder that was committed 30 years before the start of the story.

7. What do Hepzibah's feelings towards the Judge seem to be?

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

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

10. Who is Phoebe and how does Hepzibah react to her arrival?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay analyzing The House of the Seven Gables through the lens of American Romanticism. How does the novel express the values and attitudes of the Romantic era? How is the novel a counterpoint to the Transcendentalist movement of the time?

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay that explores character changes throughout the novel. Which characters undergo important changes and are these changes a function of direct or indirect characterization? Why are these character shifts important? How do they help develop themes or motifs in the novel?

Essay Topic 3

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.

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