The European standard of beauty has been pushed upon us for thousands of years. The European standard of beauty is the notion that the more closely associated a person is with European features, the more attractive he/she is considered. These standards deem attributes that are most closely associated with white women such as fair skin, straight hair, a thin nose, and light colored eyes. The beautifully unique features each race possesses are often viewed as unattractive because it does not fit into this standard. In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s story, The Birthmark, we are introduced to Aylmer, who is obsessed with his wife’s birthmark. Aylmer’s attempt to cure his wife’s deformity and popular culture’s fascination with plastic surgery share the same tactics of psychological manipulation to fit the ideal standard of beauty. They both make women feel insecure about their physical appearance to the extent of putting their lives in danger to resolve a physical imperfection that was never an issue to begin with.
In The Birthmark, Aylmer asks, “Georgiana, has it never occurred to you that the mark upon your cheek might be removed?” Georgiana becomes shocked when she realizes that he views her beauty
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Many women begin to cover up or change their natural beauty through plastic surgery as a result. Society has so extensively glamorized plastic surgery that we fail to realize how invasive and barbaric these procedures actually are. Magazines, movies, advertisements, the media, and the warped thinking that has been passed down for generations have brainwashed women since birth into believing that the natural beauty they possess is undesirable. It’s a sign of our culture where we become so obsessed with beauty, appearance, fame, and wealth that we drive ourselves insane attempting to attain these unrealistic
The words “beautiful” and “perfect” are both vague yet relative concepts as they are defined from person to person. In Hawthorne’s “The Birth Mark,” imperfections perceived by one are also seen as defining in beauty by another. Perfection, as sought by Aylmer, became an obsession which in the end required Georgiana to undergo a process of transmutation to become perfect and therefore a more desirable human being in Aylmer’s eyes. The concept of “bodily perfection” remains the same today as it was in Hawthorne’s time: beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but it is who the beholder is that is of greatest importance when determining the value of the opinion being shared. For Georgiana, Aylmer’s happiness, or lack thereof, defined the way in
Uttering heartless words to a partner about their flaws is a reflection of one’s insecurity in the relationship. The short story “The Birthmark” gives readers insight into Aylmer, a questionable scientist who fails at experiments, and his wife Georgiana, an obedient wife who fulfills her husband’s commands. Aylmer is insecure and as a result denigrates Georgiana about her birthmark to purposefully make her despise the mark. Georgiana never thought of her birthmark as a flaw because men were enchanted by her fairy-like miniature hand with a shade of crimson. However, Georgiana being the good wife that she is, agrees to become her husband’s experiment to get the birthmark removed in order to make Aylmer happy. In this story it is evident that
Aylmer gives it to his wife to drink. Shortly after she drinks it, she falls asleep. The birthmark fades almost completely off of her face. Sadly, Georgiana wakes up, she tells Aylmer that she is dyin...
In “The Birthmark,'; by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Georgiana’s futile attempt to be flawless by cooperating in her own murder doesn’t make her any wiser, especially because such a sacrifice does not earn her closeness with her husband. The character of Georgiana epitomizes the virtues upheld by the conventions of her time; she is beautiful, docile and has no ambitions of her own other than to make her husband happy. In addition to this apparent perfect union
The Romantic Era of literature produced some of the most well known American authors and short stories today, most especially including The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Extending from the mid to late nineteenth century, a great number of essayists, dramatists, authors, and impressionists contributed to the overall advancement of literature as a whole before leading up to the Transcendental movement that Hawthorne chose to break apart from. The division from popular literary movements that Hawthorne underwent stemmed from the isolated and mysteriously dark life that he led leading up to the publication of The Birthmark. The authorship of this short story emulates an obscure, gloomy form of literature that became custom for Hawthorne around 1847 when he published such a controversial masterpiece. The lively and bright pieces of fiction that were published around this time did not appeal to Hawthorne, but instead, a more twisted and gruesome plot concerning the struggle for human beauty better portrayed his traditional writing style. Physical beauty and the unmoral evil that imperfection calls upon is represented through the protagonists wife Georgiana. The themes of sin and morality fit within the tradition of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s isolated lifestyle, the dark form of romanticism that depicts humans as naturally evil, and elements of fiction centered around human imperfection.
The birthmark present on Georgiana’s face symbolizes many different things, such as the idea of unattainable perfection of nature even while knowing the inevitable consequences it holds. The main character Aylmer is obsessed with removing
Analysis of The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorne. Although “The Birthmark” by Nathaniel Hawthorne was written in the mid-1800s, its themes and ideas are still a part of society today. The 19th century was a time of change, just like this, the millennium, was a time of great change. Hawthorne’s ideas about science, beauty, and life still play a major part in our lives, despite many improvements.
The birthmark serves both physical and emotional means. Georgiana blushes, cryes, and turns pale through out the whole story. The birthmark causes her own emotions to become public. Whenever she blushes, the birthmark mark becomes invisible, but when she turns pale the birthmark appears again. Alymer does not want to see the appearance and disappearance of the birthmark because both her e...
There are numerous instances of ambiguity in Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Birthmark”; this essay hopes to explore critics’ comments on that problem within the tale, as well as to analyze it from this reader’s standpoint.
Though she consents to having her birthmark removed, Georgiana’s initial reaction to Aylmer’s shock at her facial defect is to redden “with momentary anger” before dissolving into tears (645); though her secondary reaction fits into the stereotypical female response to a physical critique, the fact that her initial reaction is anger implies that she is more than merely a docile housewife. However, her actions still reflect those of a docile housewife; when he confines her to a dimly lit apartment, she acquiesces solemnly and quietly spends her days doing as Aylmer
Even though it is ethical to remove the birthmark for the couple’s culture since it will resolve their looming problem, is it moral in their perspective? Initially, it was implied that Georgina found it wrong to remove it since she first believed the mark as a “charm” (419) but the soon changed when Aylmer believed the opposite of it. Aylmer has always found it morally correct in his eyes that the removal of the birthmark is a need since he only ever saw it as a scorching stigma that derails him from reaching total happiness and bliss. The wrong becomes right and the right becomes wrong, and together, these events led to the ethical extermination of the birthmark.
In today’s society, it seems that we cannot turn the television on or look in a
What extent should science go to in order to “improve” people’s looks? In the short story, “The Birthmark” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the birthmark symbolizes morality that every living thing is flawed in some way and perfection can’t be found on earth. Though this is true, people have the right to seek perfection, and what happens after they think they attain it, is their business. The character Aylmer is a scientist, and his wife Georgiana has a small birthmark on her cheek in the shape of a hand that is barely noticeable. Other men find it charming, but Aylmer convinces Georgiana to let him remove the birthmark for his own peace of mind, then she dies. However, despite how freak accident that may seem, today medical practices are safer than they used to be. Science should be allowed to go all the way in order to improve people’s looks because of want, need and to reflect society as a whole.
In Thailand, women are urged to grow up wearing countless brass rings to elongate their necks. Young Mauritanian girls are sent to “weight-gain” camps by their parents if they are anywhere near slim. Ethiopia encourages women to practice self-scarring of the body in order to appeal sexually to men in their tribes. Last year, approximately 15.6 million cosmetic surgeries were conducted in the United States alone. All of this leads me to say that beauty is a sway for women in our world. The standards enforced by society put so much pressure on womankind that we tend to take in these prototypes and push out the ideals that we should have about self-acceptance, our right to individuality, and the principle that “different
Every man before has always complimented Georgiana on her sweet imperfection. People would tell her all the time that true beauty was in that little blemish. Aylmer, being the man of Science wanted to change what nature had created. Typically, we all know better than to go against Nature, but not Aylmer. Georgiana finally agreed to let her husband remove the birthmark due to a frightening dream Aylmer had encountered. Aylmer started working on a potion to remove Georgiana 's birthmark. As soon as Georgiana sipped the potion, she suddenly falls into a deep coma-like state. The birthmark magically disappears from Georgina 's face. However, as the birthmark fades away, so does Georgina 's life. Hawthorne uses Georgiana 's character to symbolize beauty in this story. Georgiana is already made perfect in the eyes of Nature and all other men, expect Aylmer. Aylmer, representing Science, tries to change Georgiana 's beauty that Nature has created. Aylmer was successful in removing the birthmark, but unsuccessful in keeping Georgiana alive. Aylmer was too intertwined in Science to realize that Georgiana was perfectly made by Nature. Nature paid Aylmer back for trying to correct Georgiana 's face by taking the life of his beloved