What is Change?

***Before reading, one thing to note:
1) I have a different version of the novel from the one in the university bookstore, so my citations will differ from yours. If you need me to verify my citations, I can present a "general area" where the quotes can be found.

Steve Clark

English Compostion 0200

Dr. Adam Johns

09 September, 2008

What is Change?

The House of the Seven Gables is a literary masterpiece that brings up the question of whether or not change is possible. As humans, change may seem necessary; without it, how would we have developed as a species? A seemingly easy question to answer: “We wouldn’t have.” However, in order to truly understand what Hawthorne is saying, we must flip the question on its head and rephrase it to ask: “What is change?” As a species, we have developed, but have we really “changed”? Hawthorne teases our notion of change with characters like Phoebe and Holgrave. The truth is, however, that Hawthorne is using them to prove the opposite, that there is no real change. If the House of the Seven Gables were an allegory, it could be illustrated to show that Phoebe and Holgrave are nothing more than additives. They are more or less spices added to the recipe that have no effect on the end product. They preach change, both individually, and collectively (i.e., the world), but neither one has any real effect on the story’s main principals. Hepzibah is still a scowling old woman, Clifford is still a complacent and seemingly depressed individual, the drunk on the streets will always be a drunk on the streets, and the Pyncheon Family Curse will always be acknowledged. Hawthorne’s idea of change is quite clear; although change can occur to individuals or even collectively to a society, humanity’s obsession with the past will forever disallow them to truly change.

Hepzibah and Clifford are the true main characters in this story. Going back to the example of an allegory, Hepzibah can be interpreted as the poor helpless society, and Clifford the newly “freed” society. Since the time period embodied an era of revolution, it is easy to see why Hawthorne would choose these two societies to represent. Nationalism, both constructive and destructive, as well as revolution were major themes of the mid 19th century. Even though Hawthorne was an American author, and more than likely did not care about Europe at the time, it is also important to note that America had a similar falling out in the Civil War. Historical background aside, it had to be pointed out exactly why Hawthorne chose Hepzibah and Clifford to be the principal characters of the story, and not Phoebe and Holgrave instead. No matter how much Phoebe brightened up Clifford’s day, or how convincing Holgrave was to Hepzibah about revolution and a new political order, neither character could find the strength to even leave the house when they wanted to. They attempt to leave the house to attend church when Clifford exclaims, “We are ghosts! We have no right among human beings—no right anywhere, but in this old house,” (Hawthorne 498) Keeping with the idea of an allegory, the house is more or less the modern-day world, and Hepzibah and Clifford are the struggling nations that are forced to be a part of it, in spite of their want to change and venture out.

To show Hawthorne’s true perspective on change, one must turn their attention to a very specific scene near the beginning of chapter 11 in which Clifford begins to search for beauty, and discovers some rather new improvements to the house of the seven gables from when he last saw it. Hawthorne describes the scene from the typical third-person point of view:

“The Italian turned a crank; and, behold! Every one of these small individuals started in the most curious vivacity. The cobbler wrought upon a shoe; the blacksmith hammered his iron; the soldier waved his glittering blade; the lady raised a tiny breeze with her fan; the jolly troper swigged lustily at his bottle; a scholar opened his book, with eager thirst for knowledge, and turned his head to-and-fro along the page; the milk-maid energetically drained her cow; and a miser counted gold into his strong-box;” (Hawthorne 492)

A rather long, and difficult scene to interpret, but a crucial one to understanding Hawthorne’s true perspective on change. This passing scene uses stereotypes in order to explain how society never changes, despite how the things involved in the society have. That was worded extremely vaguely, and so must therefore be further analyzed. Take, for example, any one of those “scenes” going on in the large passing scene. Hawthorne is trying to show that no matter how far society progresses, there will always be the scholar who reads; there will always be the drunkard who constantly has a bottle; there will always be the greedy man who counts change. Each part of this scene that Clifford sees is just an example that Hawthorne chose to show that people have niches in society and as a result, society will never really change.

Hawthorne, although presenting it in a very roundabout and difficult to decipher manner, has most definitely made it clear where he stands on the notion of true change and whether it is possible. However, every good argument needs to provide at least one good counterargument. Hawthorne’s counterargument is Phoebe. Rather than just believing that however, it is again helpful to refer to a very specific scene in which Phoebe and Holgrave are talking and Holgrave is forced to reveal the entire Pyncheon Family story to Phoebe. After Holgrave tells the story, Phoebe is put into a trance, similar to the one that Holgrave refers to in the story. When she awakens from her trance and is forced to think back on the story she says this: “Ah, poor me!”…”I shall never be so merry as before I knew Cousin Hepzibah and poor Cousin Clifford. I have grown a great deal older, in this little time. Older, and, I hope, wiser, and—not exactly sadder—but, certainly, with not half so much lightness in my spirits!” (Hawthorne 537) Hawthorne presents Phoebe as the sort of change that is typical, and almost inevitable in all humans: maturation. As humans learn and their emotional prowess is expanded, they are forced to mature. Hawthorne presents Phoebe as a naïve girl, who acts much like a child, always laughing and happy with no real acknowledgement of the future, and pushes through a stage of maturation in more or less a few seconds. He could have showed her maturing throughout the entire story, but instead makes it abrupt to prove a point: maturation is something that everyone goes through, and although it is a real change to a person, it doesn’t have any real bearing on changing the world or that person’s previously defined ‘niche’. Shortly after this conversation with Holgrave, Phoebe leaves. Even though she returns later in the story, the fact that she leaves shows that her new found maturation would have no effect on either Hepzibah or Clifford.

Hawthorne’s notion of change is one that all people must acknowledge. Hawthorne’s argument requires that all humans take a step back and really analyze their position in society. History textbooks, professors, politicians, constantly preach this idea of moving forward, and collective progression, but Hawthorne suggests that although we may be able to move forward, and we may be able to progress, we never truly change as a society. Does that mean that humans can not better themselves? Does he suggest that we are on some pre-determined path, completely contradictory to many contemporary ideologies? Hawthorne’s vision of change is a very important one that, whether or not it is actually true, must not be taken lightly. It teaches humans to fully analyze progress and take a more realistic viewpoint on changes that they have made in their own lives. Rather than over or underestimating change, keeping Hawthorne’s notion of change in mind will require that these changes be estimated for what they are really worth.