Symbolism In Nathanial Hawthorne's 'The Birthmark'

Nathanial Hawthorne’s “The Birthmark” is a story that symbolically reveals how love conquers the evils of mankind. The main character Aylmer is a scientist who lives and breathes the wonders of science. Aylmer eventually falls in love with Georgiana and decides to marry her. Once they are married he realizes she has a birthmark on her face that he finds so repulsive he shudders when he looks at her. The disgust Aylmer has for this birthmark leads him to create a concoction that he claims will cure her face and inner body of the birthmark and make her perfect. Georgiana is so in love and infatuated with Aylmer to the point where she almost worships him that she is willing to do what it takes to make Aylmer think she is perfect including her

Georgiana is a representation of human life and her birthmark is a symbol of the deep-rooted imperfections all humans have. Aylmer begins to dream about her birthmark which leads him to believe that the mark is more than just a physical imperfection but linked to who she is as a person. This symbolism shows that the imperfections in humans are related to what makes a person unique. The understanding that human imperfections will never be removed leads the reader to know that the only way for Georgiana to be perceived as perfect would to be inhuman. Aylmer eliminated her one imperfection and erased her humanity with it. This message is strong in showing that being imperfect is human nature and science cannot alter

He wanted to be perceived as a genius to his assistant Aminadab and his wife Georgiana but knew that most of his personal experiments failed. Once again, his failed attempts using science to alter nature were would never succeed. The failure of the experiment was foreshadowed time and time again through Georgiana reading Aylmer’s failed research, Georgiana touching a flower Aylmer created and it dying on contact, and the major event of Aylmer dreaming of Georgiana’s death. Aylmer’s dream was about trying to remove the birthmark and it being deeply rooted to her heart which killed her. This dream is what drives Aylmer to believe that Georgiana’s mark is much more than just a cosmetic defect. Georgiana continuously referred to death when speaking of drinking the liquid and Aylmer would say “But why do we speak of dying? The draught cannot fail... The concoction of the draught has been perfect…Unless all my science has deceived me, it cannot fail." Georgiana knew the risks of involving herself in Aylmer’s experiment but was blinded by her love for him to have any rational in her mind that she deserved better than Aylmer from a husband. Georgiana’s love is what prevailed no matter what Aylmer said about her she continued to love him endlessly. In the world, there will always be evil but love will never die. This is a message Hawthorne creates when he describes Aylmer’s state of mind post Georgiana’s