The Birthmark

A detailed Summary of The Birthmark

"The Birthmark" A Quest for Perfection

In the short story "The Birthmark," Nathaniel Hawthorne uses the characters, foreshadowing, and symbolism to demonstrate the theme that physical perfection cannot be reached through science and technology.

Hawthorne uses the characters in "The Birthmark" as an instrument to fulfill his motives. Aylmer marries Georgiana and finds her only imperfection, a birthmark. This imperfection bears the resemblance of a tiny "crimson hand" and is visible on Georgiana's left cheek. Aylmer renders Georgiana birthmark "as the symbol of his wife's liability to sin, sorrow, decay, and death" (Hawthorne 2). Aylmer breaks down Georgiana's self-esteem by convincing her with his involuntary shudders and nightmares that the birthmark upon her face is not the charm that she believed it to be. He views his wife as imperfect and becomes obsessed with this superficial imperfection. His obsession is self-created and becomes physically and emotionally damaging for his wife's well-being. When Georgiana comes into the laboratory unannounced, Aylmer grabbed her arm and left his finger marks on it. This violent activity may also insinuate that Aylmer might have a history of an obsessive personality, which is a brain di

Hawthorne uses foreshadowing throughout the story to warn the readers of Georgiana's impending fate. The day before the removal of Georgiana's birthmark, Aylmer has a dream that he is cutting out the birthmark on her cheek. The deeper he cuts the deeper the little hand goes into her body and eventually grasps her heart. Aylmer feels that he must remove the hand at all costs, even if it means losing his wife. At one point, Georgiana says, " let the attempt be made at any risk. Danger is nothing for me; for life, while this hateful mark makes me the object of your horror and disgust, --life is a burden I would fling down with joy. Either remove this dreadful hand, or take my wretched life!" (Hawthorne 3). Georgiana shows what she is willing to give up to be beautiful, her life. Once Georgiana agrees to the removal of the birthmark, the readers are presented with further clues as to how Aylmer's obsession will end. On the day of the removal, Georgiana notices a vessel in Aylmer's laboratory of a growing flower. Aylmer instructs Georgiana to pluck the flower and inhale its perfume. As soon as Georgiana touched the flower, it leaves turn "coal-black" and the flower dies. Aylmer then takes Georgiana into a decorated room where she will be subject to his experiments. Here Georgiana comes across his journal of all of his experiments and discovers that his successful attempts are dwarfed by his failures. After reading the jo

Some common words found in the essay are:
Georgiana Aylmer, God Hawthorne, Nathaniel Hawthorne, Georgiana Aminabad, Aylmer's Aminadab, Quest Perfection, crimson hand, hawthorne characters, characters foreshadowing symbolism, georgiana's left cheek, hawthorne characters foreshadowing, hawthorne 5, georgiana comes, georgiana's left, scientific knowledge, left cheek, birthmark symbol, flaw mistake, foreshadowing symbolism,

Approximate Word count = 960
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English