What Is The Birth Mark Short Story

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 “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid and in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Birth-Mark”, the two shorts stories come out to have more similarities than it does with differences; in the manner of theme, narrative point of view and the plot. In “Girl”, a mother who simultaneously tells her daughter what she can do, what she cannot do and when she can do it in order to be the perfect lady while growing up in the Antiguan society. In “The Birth-Mark”, the main character Aylmer tries to change the way his wife Georgiana looks because of a “flaw”, a birthmark that is on her face in the shape of a hand. Kincaid’s and Hawthorne’s short stories both share a resemblance in theme with the contrast of gender and view, and plot; however, both of their short stories share a divergence in the narrative point of view.

Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story, “The Birthmark”, demonstrates how Georgiana’s image of herself changed throughout the story. At the beginning of the story, Georgiana felt as if her birthmark was beautiful, but as the story progresses, she begins to view that the mark as an imperfection. When Aylmer first addressed Georgiana about her birthmark appearing as an imperfection, Georgiana stated, “To tell you the truth it has been so often called a charm that I was simple enough to imagine it might be so" (“The Birthmark”). She had always viewed her mark as a unique and positive addition to her beauty.

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 Birth-Mark,” Aylmer, a natural philosopher, became obsessed with a hand shaped birthmark on his wife’s face. Being completely consumed by the notion of imperfection that graced the face of his wife, Georgiana, he attempted to remove the mark which resulted in her death. Aylmer views Georgiana’s birthmark as something more than a

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.

Hawthorne’s “The Birthmark” centers around a character named Georgiana. Georgiana is a representation of the sin and imperfection within the world. Georgiana is perfect except for the birthmark

One of the most striking aspects of the 19th century is the distinctive use of gender roles and expectations. Specifically, these aspects are provided strongly in the “The Birthmark” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, a short story that demonstrates the 19th century couple, Aylmer and Georgiana, who are faced with the predicament of an imperfection taking the shape of a birthmark upon Georgina's cheek. By 19th century standards, Georgiana is successful at fulfilling the role of a wife.

Written by Nathaniel Hawthorne during the American Renaissance, the short story “The Birth-Mark” details the events of a brilliant scientist and natural philosopher named Aylmer who obsesses about his wife Georgiana’s birthmark in the shape of a tiny hand on her left cheek. The symbol of the birthmark causes the plot to advance in the story, as Aylmer is compelled by this red mark to act upon his emotions. Aylmer views his wife’s birthmark as an imperfection in her virtually flawless beauty and as a result, attempts to it via a potion that he strongly believes cannot fail. His interpretation of the birthmark creates conflict in the story, which is shaped by the symbolic meaning that he attributes it to. Aylmer’s failure to accept his wife’s appearance for who she is leads to misunderstandings, pain, and ultimately, death.

The story begins with Aylmer asking Georgiana if she had ever thought to remove her birthmark. Upon her answering that she had always thought it to be endearing, as her other suitors had always made it appear that way, Aylmer insists it is ruining her perfection. The pivotal moment is when Georgiana asks about the dream Aylmer had the night before. After the description of his dream that we see how prideful Aylmer is. Though he feels guilty for dreaming of cutting the mark out with a knife and only then was he made "aware of the tyrannizing influence acquired by one idea over his mind", this clarity does not keep him from being determined that he can and must remove her birthmark. We see how prideful he is in his work as he tells Georgiana

The birthmark represents Georgiana’s humanity as well as an indication of her flaws to Hawthorne in that it is human nature to be imperfect and mortal, and this defines what it means to be human. Hawthorne symbolically refers to the birthmark as being “deeply interwoven” with Georgiana’s countenance to show the reader how a person’s flaws are an inseparable part of their character (Hawthorne 614). Hawthorne gives life to Georgiana’s birthmark by showing how its visibility shifts with the changing color of her face such as “when she blushed it gradually became more distinct… but if any shifting motion caused her to turn pale there was the mark again” and also how it “faded from her cheek [along with] the parting breath of the now perfect woman” to symbolize her mortality (Hawthorne 614, 623). As well as showing mortality, Jeffrey Howard refers to the birthmark as being “a vital symbol in ascertaining Aylmer’s motivation to remove his wife’s blemish” that “exists as a reaction to the birthmark which [Aylmer] perceives as a threat to his masculine dominance” because of the mark’s placement on Georgiana’s cheek (Howard

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.

In the story “The Birth-Mark” Nathaniel Hawthorne illustrates a man with an obsession for perfection of the human body. With a desire to reach the ultimate level of perfection, Aylmer’s obsession ultimately creates a path of destruction that tragically ends in the death of his devoted wife, Georgiana.

Nathaniel Hawthorne was the author of multiple short stories and poems, all of them in the Dark Romantic genre. Hawthorne gained his inspiration at home with his mother, sisters, and his wife, Sophia Peabody who was a poet as well. In his writing, one of his strongest traits was his use of allegory. Hawthorne often uses allegory in his short stories to add a different perspective onto his many works. In his short story, “The Birthmark,” Hawthorne utilizes foreshadowing and symbolism to portray the allegorical lesson that striving for perfection results in troubling outcomes.