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Sula's Difference: The Journey Of The Birthmark

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Sula’s Difference; The Journey of the Birtmark
Edward Siu
Mr. Boskovich
Period 1
03/06/2023
In the novel Sula, written by Toni Morrison, Sula Peace’s most obvious physical characteristic is her blaring birthmark immediately above her eyes, with the birthmark being intimidating and frightening even, yet exotic and enticing as it grows darker growing older, seemingly representing her age, maturity and growing sadness; the very things she is trying to fight against with all her might, which proves to be essentially impossible as more variables prevent her from doing so as her mark gets darker. The people of Bottom mark Sula as evil, while other characters have difference interpretations: a rose, a snake, and a tadpole. Sula was born with a …show more content…

First, Teapot “turned around” when “Sula said no” and “fell down the steps”, causing him to get a fracture, plus Mr. Finley choking “on a [chicken] bone and [dying] on the spot” (Morrison 114). The coincidences with Sula being at both of the unfortunate scenes make the people of Bottom to link her with evil, which becomes more tenous and proving that the people of Bottom are desperate to blame their troubles on some external source; they are blaming Sula for nonsense, like an old man choking on food. Then, Sula meets Nel’s husband, Jude, who thought her birthmark a “[stinging] rattle snake over her eye” which is softened from her wide smile (Morrison 104). To Jude, Sula’s birthmark is something that at first seems like something evil or ugly, but it also represents a phallic sign for Jude’s immediate attraction to Sula; snakes symbolize temptations of sin, and later foreshadows the “sin” that Jude commits by having an affair with Sula. Finally, when Sula succumbs from some disease, Shadrack seems to remember Sula as that “same little-girl face, same tadpole over the eye”, and then says “‘always’” to comfort Sula young self, that she does not need to worry about the changes of her face (Morrison 157-158). Incidentally, Sula’s birthmark is the proof that she was the “little girl” Shadrack remember–the mark can look like anything: a rose, a snake, or a tadpole. Furthermore, Shadrack was the only character to

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Intro: Nathaniel Hawthorne’s fictional short story “The Birthmark” and The Twilight Zone’s darkly romantic episode “Eye of the Beholder” both use gothic elements and delve into the realm of science to explore concepts of beauty and perfection. Through their contrasting characterizations of the scientist and employments of irony and allusions, each work comes to its own conclusions about how to define and treat beauty. Body #1: The Birthmark From the very first paragraph, Hawthorne’s story revolves around Aylmer, a scientist who supposedly gives up his career to marry the beautiful woman of his dreams, Georgiana.

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The first and most important use of symbolism we receive is that of the birthmark. We learn that, “in the centre of Georgians's left cheek, there was a singular mark, deeply interwoven, as it were, with the texture and substance of her face” (205). Upon further reading Hawthorne tells us that, “Its shape bore not a little similarity to the human hand” (205). Georgiana had a birthmark right in the middle of her left cheek that resembled a tiny hand in which Aylmer thought was very imperfect. The birthmark symbolizes mortality or an imperfection of

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Toni Morrison’s Sula celebrates liberation from society’s constraints on individuality and self-discovery, and illustrates the negative impact of conformity. The novel follows the lives of several members of The Bottom’s community who refuse to relinquish their identities to fit the expectations of how a certain race or gender should act and the impact it has on their lives and their society. This society, influenced by the 1900’s racial segregation in America, enforces specific standards, and ostracizes whoever defies the cultural norm. Although certain characters choose to retain individuality and isolate themselves, they never fully establish their identities and desperately search for something in order to do so. The characters cling to

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Argumentative Essay: Final Draft - Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Birthmark" is a short story that explores the dangers of obsession with perfection and the cost of valuing physical beauty over inner qualities. The story follows the relationship between Aylmer and Georgiana, as Aylmer becomes increasingly fixated on removing a small birthmark from Georgiana's cheek, leading to tragic consequences. In the story, Aylmer's obsession with perfection and his attempt to remove Georgiana's birthmark symbolizes the destructive effects of a patriarchal society's unrealistic expectations of women's physical beauty, ultimately highlighting the dangers of valuing external appearances over inner qualities, as well as the emotional toll that these standards have on women. Aylmer''s perfectionism basically is also

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In the story “The Birthmark” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, he uses several techniques to help build his story. Hawthorne tells a story of a man of science whose name was Aylmer. He married a beautiful women named Georgiana, although she was quite beautiful she had a birthmark on her face which, in Aylmer’s eyes was an imperfection. Aylmer tries to perfect Georgiana, but in the end Aylmer’s attempts to change Georgiana causes him to lose her. Aylmer does not accept the idea of imperfections in people.

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It shows that our flaws make up a large part of who we are which make it very difficult to separate the two. To remove it would only result in failure. Aylmer finally is able to remove “the last crimson tint of the birthmark -- that sole token of human imperfection” (13). The mark shows that people are inherently imperfect and it’s what makes us human. Once Aylmer removes that imperfection, Georgiana dies because it is impossible to obtain perfection as a person.

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The author does this to give us the impression that the birthmark is no ordinary birthmark, but that it has some sort of mystical tie to Georgiana. Another example is how the story talks of how Georgiana was like a celestial being after Aylmer had relieved her of her only flaw but he regretted removing it for it also ridded

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Sula at least wholly claims her life, including its failure, while others deny their human connections in favor of simpler, safer ways.” (Carmean 159), Carmean appears to make an accurate statement. Sula is a character who acts as she pleases, what can be considered a more wholesome life than that? While the people of the Bottom are fastened into their traditional roles, Sula is unburdened from responsibilities. She is free.

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(Hawthorne 295) This shows that she could not get out of her head the way Aylmer would looked at her birthmark. It scared her to she would continue to have to deal with the ridicule from him. No Matter how many times Georgiana hints at not wanting the procedure done, Aylmer continues to reassure her that she would not be harmed. Aylmer is so overjoyed about the birthmark being gone that he barely realizes his wife is in distress.

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Natural Beauty is Perfection Itself In the short stories “The Birthmark” and “Rappaccini’s Daughter” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, the value of science over human life is established. Nathaniel Hawthorne explores the characterization of beauty, emotion over love, versus intellect over science, and an exploration of creator over creation. He presents an idea about scientific research, especially regarding feminine beauty. These tales are told with a motive to give the audience a sympathetic understanding of women’s beauty; which is something precious and already the model of nature’s perfection.

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In the novel, “Sula”, author Toni Morrison addresses a series of obstacles faced by individuals who find themselves entrenched within marginalised societies. Morrison’s writing style differs from most other authors in the sense that it sheds light on imperative issues that would otherwise remain concealed; issues such as internecine racism, patriarchy and scapegoating within the African-American context. In “Sula”, Morrison introduces the question: What is the relationship between the individual and the community? She manages to do so by describing the conflict that exist between the Sula Peace and her local community. As a consequence of this conflict Sula, one of the main protagonists in the novel, becomes the scapegoat of her community.

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