What does Hawthorne gain by describing the house as if it were a face?
The House of the Seven Gables
30 minutes total
ByNathaniel Hawthorne
Grade11-12
Time30 minutes
Essential question
What does Hawthorne gain by describing the house as if it were a face?
Marked passage
Passage location
Chapter I · The Old Pyncheon Family
Start anchor
Halfway down a by-street of one of our New England towns stands a rusty wooden house
End anchor
The aspect of the venerable mansion has always affected me like a human countenance
Passage focus
The house has a human face
Ways to teach it
Listening
Listen to the exact passage; visual following is optional. Same question and evidence demand.
Solo
Read the exact passage independently.
Supported
Use narration and sentence highlighting while reading the same passage.
Teacher guide
Close
Name the single detail that most changed or sharpened your interpretation, and explain why.
Evidence
Use one physical feature of the house and the human-face language attached to it, then connect that feature to history or atmosphere.
Mark
Underline the physical details of the house’s exterior. Circle the words that belong more naturally to a human face or expression. Draw arrows connecting each human feature to a piece of accumulated history.
Instructional move
Turn setting into a record of accumulated history
Notice
• What can an old building literally show about time? • What does the face comparison let Hawthorne suggest that ordinary architectural description would not? • How does personifying the house prepare it to function almost like a character?
Strong answer
The face comparison lets the house appear to carry memory and character. Weathering, age, darkness, and architectural features become expressions of accumulated family history rather than neutral description.
Think
Answer provisionally: What does Hawthorne gain by describing the house as if it were a face? Choose the strongest interpretation you can defend from this passage alone.
Watch for
Do not say the house literally has emotions. Explain what personification allows the setting to record.
Why this passage
Hawthorne’s comparison of the house to a human face makes architecture carry memory. Age, weather, family history, and moral atmosphere become visible as if the building itself had lived through them.
Write
Write a short evidence-based response to: What does Hawthorne gain by describing the house as if it were a face? Use at least two details from the assigned passage and explain how they support your interpretation.
Student tasks
Mark
Underline the physical details of the house’s exterior. Circle the words that belong more naturally to a human face or expression. Draw arrows connecting each human feature to a piece of accumulated history.
Notice
What can an old building literally show about time? What does the face comparison let Hawthorne suggest that ordinary architectural description would not? How does personifying the house prepare it to function almost like a character?
Think
Answer provisionally: What does Hawthorne gain by describing the house as if it were a face?
Write
Write a short response using at least two pieces of evidence from this passage. Use evidence from the assigned passage. Show what you noticed and how the text supports your interpretation.
Ready-to-teach lesson
TumbleTA 6-12 · TEXT-BASED LESSON
BATCH 07 · 11-12 · LESSON 147
The House of the Seven Gables
Nathaniel Hawthorne
What does Hawthorne gain by describing the house as if it were a
face?
TOTAL TIME
PASSAGE
30 minutes
The house has a human face
FIND THE ANCHOR TEXT
Use the Anchor Text Table of Contents in the Enhanced Reader to open the START anchor. Then use the dropdown to select the END anchor.
SECTION / LOCATION
Chapter I · The Old Pyncheon Family
START
Halfway down a by-street of one of our New England towns stands a rusty wooden house
END
The aspect of the venerable mansion has always affected me like a human countenance
PASSAGE ID
sec-h7g-01
THE MOVE
Turn setting into a record of accumulated history
WHY THIS PASSAGE
Hawthorne’s comparison of the house to a human face makes architecture carry memory. Age, weather, family history, and moral atmosphere become visible as if the building itself had lived through them.
MARK
Underline the physical details of the house’s exterior. Circle the words that belong more naturally to a human face or expression. Draw arrows connecting each human feature to a piece of accumulated history.
page 1
NOTICE
What can an old building literally show about time?
What does the face comparison let Hawthorne suggest that ordinary architectural description
would not?
How does personifying the house prepare it to function almost like a character?
THINK
Answer provisionally: What does Hawthorne gain by describing the house as if it were a face?
Choose the strongest interpretation you can defend from this passage alone.
WRITE
Write a short evidence-based response to: What does Hawthorne gain by describing the house as if it were a face? Use at least two details from the assigned passage and explain how they support your interpretation.
CLOSE
Name the single detail that most changed or sharpened your interpretation, and explain why.
STRONG ANSWER
The face comparison lets the house appear to carry memory and character. Weathering, age, darkness, and architectural features become expressions of accumulated family history rather than neutral description.
EVIDENCE
Use one physical feature of the house and the human-face language attached to it, then connect that feature to history or atmosphere.
WATCH FOR
Do not say the house literally has emotions. Explain what personification allows the setting to record.
SOLO
Read the exact passage independently.
SUPPORTED
Use narration and sentence highlighting while reading the same passage.
LISTENING
Listen to the exact passage; visual following is optional. Same question and evidence demand.
page 2
STUDENT PAGE · SAME PASSAGE, SAME THINKING
The House of the Seven Gables
Nathaniel Hawthorne
What does Hawthorne gain by describing the house as if it were a
face?
START ANCHOR
Halfway down a by-street of one of our New England towns stands a rusty wooden house
END ANCHOR
The aspect of the venerable mansion has always affected me like a human countenance
Use the Anchor Text Table of Contents in the Enhanced Reader to open the START anchor. Then use the dropdown to select the END anchor.
OPEN THE MARKED PASSAGE IN TUMBLELIT
SOLO: read independently. SUPPORTED: use narration + highlighting. LISTENING: listen to the exact passage. The question and evidence task stay the same.
1.MARK - Underline the physical details of the house’s exterior. Circle the words that belong
more naturally to a human face or expression. Draw arrows connecting each human feature to a piece of accumulated history.
2.NOTICE - What can an old building literally show about time? What does the face comparison
let Hawthorne suggest that ordinary architectural description would not? How does personifying the house prepare it to function almost like a character?
3.THINK - Answer provisionally: What does Hawthorne gain by describing the house as if it were
a face?
4.WRITE - Write a short response using at least two pieces of evidence from this passage.
Use evidence from the assigned passage. Show what you noticed and how the text supports your interpretation.
page 3
Original printable PDF
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