Feminist Criticism In The Birthmark And Girl By Jamaica Kincaid

A person’s beliefs and actions do not form by themselves, rather it is created and influenced by the people and society surrounding them, which is an issue presented in both The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorne and Girl by Jamaica Kincaid. In both stories of The Birthmark and Girl, they share the same theme of how perfection does not equal happiness, which can be observed through the inescapable relationship, the final results to both stories and through the analysis of feminist criticism.

To begin with, both texts are situated with characters that deal with inescapable relationships, such as husband and wife or mother and daughter. Ironically, both stories share the similarity that it is their loved one, who pressures them to change. In The

Through this approach, a person can better understand how society and its distinction between men and women play a part in the theme of perfection. The story of The Birthmark is told through a third person narration, so it is easier to understand both characters in the story and their point of views. Aylmer is the person who urgently seeks perfection in his Georgiana, his wife’s appearance. He desperately wants to remove the birthmark that is shaped like a small hand on Georgiana’s face and she is seen as reluctant at first, but changes her mind shortly after. The story conveys the idea of male dominance, as displayed through how she speaks. She never debates against Aylmer in defending her birthmark, but simply questions him with her concerns. After she accepts his request to remove the birthmark, she says “Aylmer, spare me not, though you should find the birth-mark take refuge in my heart at last” (Hawthorne 343). Her resistance to say more is not due to mutual feeling of discontent towards the birthmark, rather it is the feeling of obedience and the idea that she belongs to him and is willing to devote her life to him. Even by the end of the story, she displays the possibility of death from consuming the potion, yet she drinks it for him anyway. In relation to The Birthmark, the story of Girl can be viewed through a feminist approach as well, as it provides readers with a better understanding to the mother’s way of shaping her daughter. The type of perfection that the mother aims for is based on what society considers as a “respectable women.” The majority of the things that she tells her daughter are a reflection on how society pictures the role of a woman. Her idea of perfection simply revolves around the expectations of society on female sexuality. As a result, the mother enforces these expectations of society, such as how