Date of Award
7-1-2007
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.A. in English
Department
English
First Advisor
Benjamin F. Fisher
Second Advisor
Colby Kullman
Third Advisor
Natalie Schroeder
Relational Format
Dissertation/Thesis
Abstract
This work is a study of the threshold image of The House of the Seven Gables, which I believe is the central image of the novel. The threshold serves as a picture of "spiritual irony": two worlds of dark and light (that is, the spiritual and physical, the invisible and visible) which are thoroughly fused yet contradictory. Standing at the threshold, the reader is allowed an ironic consciousness, and is therefore able to perceive deeper truths concerning appearance and reality.
In the first chapter I discuss how Hawthorne's creates the threshold image; I also emphasize the threshold's importance throughout the novel. Chapter Two is a study of Hepzibah's crossing of the threshold, a venture which begins a thorough examination of the threshold's meaning. In Chapter Three, I explore the political ramifications of the threshold. In Chapter Four, I expand upon the thoughts of the preceding chapter, discussing the threshold and spirituality; in this chapter, I introduce the related concepts of spiritual irony and "pseudo-spirituality."
Recommended Citation
White, Troy Nelson, "Treading the threshold of The House of the Seven Gables" (2007). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 3434.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/etd/3434