William Hawthorne s The Birthmark Destruction And...

Yana Kopylova Irene Kanurkas EAC217YA February 5, 2015 How Aylmer’s obsessive nature led to his destruction and Georgiana’s tragic ending. Nathaniel Hawthorne in his story â€Å"The birthmark† has done an exceptionally good job at developing the main characters and making them extremely dedicated to their beliefs and values. Aylmer gradually spins out of control and becomes obsessive with the idea that he can remove the birthmark from his wife’s face and is willing to do so at any cost. Aylmer is a very forceful character who only wants to do things his way and strongly believes that by using science and logic he can overcome anything and become God like. The story of Aylmer’s obsession with Georgiana’s birthmark leads both characters to a tragic end. Aylmer’s search for happiness took him in the wrong direction and caused his to lose â€Å"The best the earth had to offer† (19). This short story comes to teach the reader valuable morals and lessons about life and the world we live i n. Throughout the course of the story the birthmark on Georgiana’s face is interpreted differently and comes to symbolize how purposely imperfect we are created. The constant battle between nature and science is also quite evident and elaborated on by the narrator who communicates the voice of the author himself. To better understand Aylmer’s obsession we would need to analyze the symbolic meaning of Georgiana’s birthmark. After being with his wife for a while Aylmer acknowledges