Noble Love in The Birthmark Essay - 1710 Words

Noble Love in The Birthmark Often billed as a story of an unsuccessful attempt to beat Nature at her own game, â€Å"The Birthmark† by Nathaniel Hawthorne certainly lends itself to a somewhat deeper interpretation. Over the years many scholars have noted that the story of Aylmer and Georgiana is riddled with traditional Hawthorne themes such as the evils of selfishness and pride, coupled with an element of solitariness (Arvin xvi). However, we are want to consider whether Aylmer’s motives in this story are purely selfish. Does this man perhaps deserve a touch of human sympathy? With blazingly obvious symbolism, clearly defined by the author himself, the reader can choose to take the tale for what it seems to be, a purely†¦show more content†¦Immediately we are warned that this love will survive only if it can be â€Å"intertwined†¦with his love of science† (148). This issue presents itself almost immediately after Georgiana and Aylmer are married, when the former discovers that Nature has left his near-perfect wife with a tiny blemish on her ivory cheek; the small imprint of a hand. Of this Robert H. Fossum writes: â€Å"Like Eve entering the Garden, Georgiana has brought love and human warmth into Aylmer’s cold and lonely laboratory†¦she has brought the blemish of her birthmark†¦Ã¢â‚¬  (Fossum 78). When asked about how she herself views her mark, Georgiana replies as one who has not given the subject much thought: â€Å"To tell the truth is has been so often called a charm that I was simple enough to imagine it so.† (148) In fact, when first love is mentioned it is only a few lines later when Georgiana responds to Aylmer â€Å"†¦you cannot love what shocks you!† Hurt and surprised, she equates, (quite accurately), Aylmer’s ability to love her with his need to see her sans birthmark. It is after this first confrontation that as the reader struggles to understand Aylmer’s motives, Georgiana gradually moves towards seeing her mark in much the same as light as her beloved husband. When first she entered Aylmer’s home, Georgiana was almost a child, both intellectually and morally. Now, as she learns how deep Aylmer’s thoughts go when concerned with the tiny hand, she begins to grow towards aShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of The Book The Birthmark 905 Words   |  4 PagesThe Nathaniel Hawthorn story â€Å"The Birthmark† is a about a scientist who strives to fix the imperfections of human nature. Not only does he kill his wife during the process, his attempt to have any control over human nature dies as well. This story is ironic in the way Hawthorne uses his symbolism in his characters to portray. 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This town hasRead MoreFigurative Language and the Canterbury Tales13472 Words   |  54 Pagessnouts toward the rim of the hills, the planes raked the underbrush with gunfire. †¢ ..and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. -Abraham Lincoln 11. aubade: a poem about dawn; a morning love-song; or a poem about the parting of lovers at dawn 12. ballad: a song, transmitted orally, which tells a story. Usually narrator begins with a climactic or traumatic episode, tells the story tersely by means of action and dialogue and tells it without