Hawthorne’s characters should never be studied in isolation. They are basically symbolic, and out of context they often appear incomplete and unsatisfactory. Hawthorne’s writing does not permit a dominant “hero” or “heroine,” nor does he encourage us to identify with his fictional characters as individuals. In all his major novels, […]
Read more Character Analysis IntroductionSummary and Analysis Chapter 21
Summary Before Holgrave can throw open the doors of the house and admit the warm sunlight, Hepzibah and Clifford enter and embrace Phoebe, now happily returned to them. After what is soon termed a “natural death,” Judge Pyncheon is quickly forgotten. A theory is advanced that as a youth he […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 21Summary and Analysis Chapters 19-20
Summary The morning is gloriously sunny. The once old and dark Pyncheon house now seems alive and happy, and Alice Pyncheon’s posies glow red in a corner of one of the upper mossy eaves. Uncle Venner tries to obtain some leftover vegetables for his pigs, but no one answers his […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapters 19-20Summary and Analysis Chapter 18
Summary Meanwhile, back in the old Pyncheon house, Judge Jaffrey Pyncheon remains seated in the foreboding house, heedless of time. This is odd, because he is burdened with engagements — he should see Clifford, and then he should see his broker, attend an auction to add a parcel of land […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 18Summary and Analysis Chapter 17
Summary Hepzibah and Clifford dash out through the summer rain and soon find themselves at a railroad station; they board a train and Clifford seems to be almost bubbling; Hepzibah, however, views the passengers about them as though they were figures in a dream. Clifford then strikes up a wild […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 17Summary and Analysis Chapters 15-16
Summary Several sunless, stormy days pass after Phoebe’s departure. Then one morning, Judge Pyncheon ponderously enters the shop and responds to Hepzibah’s scowl with his usual hypocritically genial smile. He wants to see Clifford, but Hepzibah refuses to permit this, accusing her dark visitor of hounding her nearly demented brother. […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapters 15-16Summary and Analysis Chapters 12-14
Summary Clifford, who becomes fatigued easily, is now in the habit of retiring early, which is fortunate for Phoebe, who thus has a good deal of time to herself. Interestingly, she is changing; her eyes are now larger, darker, and deeper, and she seems to be less girlish. In the […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapters 12-14Summary and Analysis Chapters 9-11
Summary Since Clifford dislikes Hepzibah’s ugliness, rustiness, and scowl, she soon quits reading to him and playing the harpsichord for him, and she sadly and reluctantly (but without jealousy) resigns to Phoebe the task of pleasing him. This pretty young girl, therefore, who is really without true intellectual depth, sings […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapters 9-11Summary and Analysis Chapters 7-8
Summary In the morning, Phoebe tenderly helps the nervous and uneasy Hepzibah to prepare an unusually fine breakfast for Clifford, who finally appears in a faded damask gown. This soft, gray-white man is ravenously hungry and is sensually delighted with the food and the flowers which Phoebe presents to him. […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapters 7-8Summary and Analysis Chapters 5-6
Summary The next morning Phoebe awakens, says her prayers, and visits the rose garden where she picks some of the prettiest blossoms. Returning to the house, she meets Hepzibah, who tells her that she has no financial means to keep her and that Phoebe must return home. As they talk, […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapters 5-6