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Alexis Roulhac ENC 1102 Ms. Angela Jacobs April 1, 2014 The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorne

In The Birthmark, a short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne written in the 19th century a husband is obsessed with his wife Georgiana being perfect. She has a birthmark on her left cheek that he perceives as a flaw, and he strives for perfection by performing a scientific experiment to remove the birthmark which ends in her death. The story explores the themes of conflict between science and morality, feminism, and uses the birthmark as an explicit symbol of imperfection. Feminism is used throughout the story because Georgianas death Is the effect of mans scrutiny to a woman, and the powerlessness of women. The husband Aylmer is a scientist therefore, he wanted to manipulate nature and change something about his wife. The birthmark demonstrates consequences of women being trapped in the labatory of a mans mind. According to Judith Fetterly, the birthmark contends to explore mens compulsions to idealize women, and the story is a study of sexual politics, of the powerlessness of women and the psychology which results in that powerlessness. Feminism is shown throughout the story because the story tells about a mans scrutiny towards his wife. The consequences of women being trapped in the laboratory of a mans mind is also evident because the experimentation of Aylmer on Georgiana caused her death. Implicit feminism is portrayed because if the story were in reverse and told about a woman that was trying to perfect her husband, she would only get so far however, like in The Birthmark where if a man tries to perfect his wife, she will become under his examination

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and cause the wife to become insecure due to his scrutiny. Aylmer leaves Georgiana with a sense of self consciousness which leads to shame and self-hatred