Georgina's Use Of Symbolism In The Birthmark By Nathaniel Hawthorne

The Birthmark, 1843 is a story written by Nathaniel Hawthorne an author who has written several well-known literary classics. This author is known for his excellent use of literary elements. In the story, The Birthmark, Hawthorne does a great job of capturing symbolism throughout its entirety. The author is able to incorporate everyday things into his story and give them a meaning beyond their everyday definition. The biggest and most important example of this would be the birthmark.
The birthmark is on the lead female’s character face, Georgina. She is known for her great beauty and revered by many. She is also the wife of Aylmer who is a great scientist. Aylmer feels that Georgina’s beauty only has one fault. It is the birthmark on her face

As a reader it can be interpreted as the birthmark becoming a representation of the world’s humanity and imperfection. Originally, Georgina’s husband held his wife’s beauty in high regards. Sadly, the birthmark becomes what in his mind links her to the imperfections of the world. As it often happens in today’s world, Aylmer is striving for perfection. He is attempting to achieve this through his wife. In Aylmer’s mind the removal of the birthmark represents reaching the epitome of perfection. Aylmer becomes so focused on the birthmark that it turns into one of the only things that drives him. Unbeknownst to his wife, he even begins to think of ways he can use his knowledge a as a scientist to remove the birthmark from her face. He gradually begins to transfer his issues with the birthmark onto his

He continuously use this form of literary element. He uses symbolism when he talks about a “geranium diseased with yellow blotches which had overspread all its leaves” (Hawthorne,342) . This continues to exhibit how things that are seen daily can be seen through different perspectives depending on the reader. The reader’s attention is brought to the imperfection of the flower. Aylmer is desperate to erase any signs of faults. He is blind to the beauty that is right in front of him. He does not appreciate the world that he is in or the true beauty that the flower holds much less his wife.
As the reader becomes more intrigued with the outcome of Aylmer’s and Georgina pursuit of what they believe is perfection, it becomes very clear that there will be a price to pay for this undertaking. The reader is well aware that on earth there is no perfection. In fact people are all flawed. Which in a funny way is perfect. The truth is that Georgina may achieve perfection but the only way that she will achieve this unattainable goal is through