What Does Aylmer Characterize In The Birthmark
“The Birth-Mark”: A Characterization of Aylmer
Joel Krauss
English 122 – Academic Writing II
16 Jul. 2013 draft
20 Jul. 2013 polished
Saint Leo University
I, Joel Krauss, do pledge that this is my original work. What would a person risk to please the one that they love? Would they even risk their life to gain a loved one’s acceptance? “The Birth-Mark”, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is a tragic story that explores the depths that Aylmer and Georgiana face answering this dilemma. Aylmer, a noted and respected scientist, is Georgiana’s husband who becomes overwhelmingly obsessed with the tiny birthmark on her cheek and an ill-conceived notion that it can be removed. High intelligence, profound egotism, and a fanatical perfectionism are …show more content…
In one instance he asks Georgiana if she had ever thought that “The Birthmark” could be removed. She had not and even replied that it had for so long been called a charm. However, Aylmer rebutted that she had “came so nearly perfect from the hand of Nature that this slightest possible defect…as being the visible mark of earthly imperfection” (Hawthorne 506). As the final effort to remove the tiny birthmark from Georgiana’s cheek, Aylmer gives his beautiful wife a goblet of a clear concoction that he believes will perform the miracle. While she drinks, he states, “There is no taint of imperfection on thy spirit. Thy sensible frame, too, shall soon be all perfect” (Hawthorne 515). Soon after she consumes the elixir the tiny imperfection began to wane and disappear. Thus, Aylmer excitedly cries out that he has been successful in his endeavor. However, Georgiana confesses to her husband that though he performed this feat with the noblest of intentions, that he had “rejected the best the earth could offer” (Hawthorne 516). And, in a twist of tragic irony, his beloved and beautiful Georgiana, who Aylmer tried to perfect, died from his science and by his
Joel Krauss
English 122 – Academic Writing II
16 Jul. 2013 draft
20 Jul. 2013 polished
Saint Leo University
I, Joel Krauss, do pledge that this is my original work. What would a person risk to please the one that they love? Would they even risk their life to gain a loved one’s acceptance? “The Birth-Mark”, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is a tragic story that explores the depths that Aylmer and Georgiana face answering this dilemma. Aylmer, a noted and respected scientist, is Georgiana’s husband who becomes overwhelmingly obsessed with the tiny birthmark on her cheek and an ill-conceived notion that it can be removed. High intelligence, profound egotism, and a fanatical perfectionism are …show more content…
In one instance he asks Georgiana if she had ever thought that “The Birthmark” could be removed. She had not and even replied that it had for so long been called a charm. However, Aylmer rebutted that she had “came so nearly perfect from the hand of Nature that this slightest possible defect…as being the visible mark of earthly imperfection” (Hawthorne 506). As the final effort to remove the tiny birthmark from Georgiana’s cheek, Aylmer gives his beautiful wife a goblet of a clear concoction that he believes will perform the miracle. While she drinks, he states, “There is no taint of imperfection on thy spirit. Thy sensible frame, too, shall soon be all perfect” (Hawthorne 515). Soon after she consumes the elixir the tiny imperfection began to wane and disappear. Thus, Aylmer excitedly cries out that he has been successful in his endeavor. However, Georgiana confesses to her husband that though he performed this feat with the noblest of intentions, that he had “rejected the best the earth could offer” (Hawthorne 516). And, in a twist of tragic irony, his beloved and beautiful Georgiana, who Aylmer tried to perfect, died from his science and by his