Summary Of The Book ' Gaia ' By Caragh M. O ' Brien

Georgiana had always lived with the birthmark, and was quite fond of its charm. Many people in the town believe it was a fairy’s handprint left to sway all hearts; to them the mark only magnified her appeal. The mark’s charm had rarely been questioned by anyone other than the jealous women of the town, and its peculiar nature had once intrigued Aylmer and amplified his attraction to Georgiana. He begged for her hand in marriage, but soon after they were wed, he queried whether Georgiana had ever considered having the birthmark removed. She was hurt by the implication that the mark depreciated her and grew upset with her husband. As time passed, Aylmer continued to stare at the mark, unable to keep his eyes from wandering to it. This continued until Georgiana was no longer able to ignore the way his eyes were always fixated on this sole imperfection, the crimson hand that kept him up at night and plagued his dreams. She asked Aylmer to remove the mark, or take her life because she no longer wanted to live if she had to live with the mark. She preferred death to the harsh scrutiny from her husband.

In the literary work Brave New World by Aldous Huxley, both negative and positive impacts of exile are evident. The exile of John the Savage had been from birth, as he was born outside of his rightful “home,” the futuristic society.When John returned home, the effects of his exile were clearly negative, but the learned reader can also understand why his exile may have been the “potent” and “enriching” experience Edward Said suggested.

Georgiana’s birthmark is unique to her, and in many ways, it is symbolic of her true self though her birthmark is what leads to her ultimate downfall. The minuscule and nearly transparent reddish pink handprint that inhabited Georgiana’s left cheek was a point of contention in her marriage. Georgiana loved her birthmark, “it has been so often called a charm, that I was simple enough to imagine it might be so,” it was a mark of her individuality and beautiful in its own and rare way (Hawthorne 340). It was only when Aylmer, her husband, expressed his interest in removing it calling it, the visible mark of earthly imperfection,” that Georgiana begins to loathe her birthmark (Hawthorne

The “Birthmark” is set in the late 1700s as the narrator states that it takes place “in the latter part of the last century” (Hawthorne, 1843). This historical setting shaped the characters’ behavior. Women were supposed to be submissive and could not question their husbands’ decisions, even if they affected them. This is clearly seen when Aylmer insisted that Georgiana remove her birthmark. She was at

Though with each passing day it became more clear to him the crimson hand birthmark upon her cheek. He didn’t voice his opinion at first; he saw how the men of the town looked at the mark as something that just made her more beautiful. Though soon enough, this was no longer the case for Aylmer as he saw the birthmark as a nuisance that needed to be removed at once (Hawthorne 1). The voicing of his plan to remove the blemish slowly transformed the relationship between Aylmer and Georgiana. Georgiana’s self-image became tainted by a mark that had never before been a problem: “Not even Aylmer now hated it as much as she” (Hawthorne 6).

In “The Birthmark” the relationships and behaviors of the character reveal much more than the story itself does. The characters of Aylmer, Georgian, Amenidab and Nature itself, through their words, actions, and behaviors give insight into a much more meaningful story. A deeper analysis of the characters reveals that they are archetypes, and as archetypes they provide a deeper hidden meaning to the story. By looking at Aylmer, Georgiana, Amenidab and Natures relationships and actions throughout the story we can see how they are used to give deeper significance.

Nathaniel Hawthorne's, "The Birth-Mark," follows the story of a brilliant scientist and philosopher named Alymer. Alymer has just married the beautiful Georgiana, but even in their newly-wedded bliss, Alymer finds himself fighting the urge to ask his wife if she has ever thought removing the birthmark on her cheek. Once he cannot stand it any longer, he asks her the question. She playfully tells him no, she has never considered it, and that people often regard it as part of her charm. But Georgiana soon becomes wary of her husband's gaze when he retorts that her face is almost perfect, but the birthmark taints her beauty – her perfection. At first, Georgiana is angry with her husband, but then becomes upset as she questions how Alymer can love her if he considers her birthmark so unattractive.

In “The Birthmark”, the relationships and behaviors of the characters play a significant role in the story by revealing more than the story itself does . Through the character’ different actions, characteristics, and behaviors, Nathaniel Hawthorne gives a deeper insight into his life, such as revealing his worldview to his readers, and also gives insight into a more relevant story. Hawthorne’s transcendentalist worldview is conveyed through Aylmer’s and Georgiana’s obsessions, Aylmer’s manipulation of nature, and the birthmark.

A birthmark as referred to in this short story is the “Differences of temperament”, the inborn traits someone can develop. In Nathaniel Hawthorne 's "The Birthmark" there are many different themes such as, nature versus science, and perfection. We see Aylmer struggle with his own temperament. For him the birthmark becomes the symbol of Georgiana’s flawed humanity, which he tries to alternate. Throughout the story, we come across several observances of otherness revolving around “The Birthmark”.

Nathaniel Hawthorne in his story “The birthmark” has done an exceptionally good job at developing the main characters and making them extremely dedicated to their beliefs and values. Aylmer gradually spins out of control and becomes obsessive with the idea that he can remove the birthmark from his wife’s face and is willing to do so at any cost. Aylmer is a very forceful character who only wants to do things his way and strongly believes that by using science and logic he can overcome anything and become God like. The story of Aylmer’s obsession with Georgiana’s birthmark leads both characters to a tragic end. Aylmer’s search for happiness took him in the wrong direction and caused his to lose “The best the earth had to offer” (19). This short story comes to teach the reader valuable morals and lessons about life and the world we live in. Throughout the course of the story the birthmark on Georgiana’s face is interpreted differently and comes to symbolize how purposely imperfect we are created. The constant battle between nature and science is also quite evident and elaborated on by the narrator who communicates the voice of the author himself.

Character Analysis: "The Birthmark" Nathaniel Hawthorne did not do much explaining when it came to the characters involved in "The Birthmark". He did not portray the main characters: Aylmer, Georgiana, and Ambidab as human beings, but rather as symbols. While reading the story "The Birthmark", I have achieved some great insight of the author's articulate writing style; especially, his style of making characters have symbolic meaning. In this story, Hawthorne uses his characters to symbolize specific things. Although Hawthorne did not do much explaining when it came to the characters, he did not describe Aylmer, Georgiana, and Ambidab as human beings, but rather as symbols.

The Birthmark is the story set in the late 18th century, it tells about the scientist named Aylmer who wants to remove the birthmark from his wife’s cheek as he believes it makes her imperfect. Also, he sees it as a sign of Georgiana’s «liability to sin, sorrow, decay, and death». He is sure that it needs to be removed. Aylmer succeeds in his attempt to remove the birthmark, but destroying the original design of Nature, he also destroys his wife. She eventually becomes perfect and

In other words the birthmark represents Georgiana's mortality and human imperfection. Hawthorne suggests that the deviation from mortal imperfections and true humanity will inevitably lead to deadly consequences. He also argues that although there is a general positivity surrounding science, there will always remain certain things that humans are not privileged to know, and not adept enough to achieve. The story suggests the inherent hazards of playing God and challenging nature. Hawthorne utilizes the playing of God to illustrate the major flaw of the human race and the consequences of foolish

By looking at symbolism in The Birthmark, the reader can interpret that the birthmark is a symbol for imperfection and mortality which is not obvious to most people. This is important because it turns the birthmark into something all readers can relate to since no one is perfect. Georgiana’s birthmark was “the fatal flaw of humanity which Nature, in one shape or another, stamps ineffaceably on all her productions” (Hawthorne 12). As stated before, nothing is perfect, Nature has a flaw on everything and Georgiana’s was her birthmark. Her husband, Aylmer, notices the birthmark and also sees it as an imperfection even though other men would often tell her it was a charm. “No, dearest Georgiana, you came so nearly perfect from the hand of Nature that this slightest possible defect, which we hesitate whether to term a defect or a beauty, shocks me, as being the visible mark of earthly imperfection” (Hawthorne 11). Aylmer at first is the only one, other from jealous women, to point out her birthmark as an imperfection but his constant talk began to make her believe she was in fact flawed. This is important because it ultimately leads to the death of Georgiana.

“The Birth-Mark” a short story written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, a tragic love story about a man of science named Aylmer and his beautiful wife Georgiana. Aylmer a man who loves perfection wants to remove his wife birthmark from her face. Georgiana was born with a with a birth mark of the color red and shaped like a little hand on her face. Aylmer loves his wife, but he can not stand the mark on her face. Aylmer becomes obsessed with removing the mark from her face and eventually ends up killing his wife in the process. Hawthorne uses the main conflict in the story to drive his type and style of narration, figurative use of language, and imagery and symbols to write his tale.