The Birthmark
The story is about a talented scientist, Alymer, in the late eighteenth century who falls in love with a beautiful woman, Georgiana. She unfortunately has a tragic birthmark on her cheek. His obsession with her imperfection possesses him to find a scientific cure, which turns out to be a fatal mistake.
It is set in the romantic period of literature, a time when beauty and nature was glorified in writing. This was under the influence of the Great Awakening, when innovative thought was pursued, as a result of religion. Hawthorne was a main proponent of the period, believing in what were called “fringe sciences” rather than physical sciences. He held contempt for such rational ideas, preferring emotions of the heart as a better alternative for discovering truth. Naturally, he would choose to write about an alchemist rather than a rational scientist. Alchemists believed in the power of man over God, and Alymer is no exception. The birthmark on his beloved’s cheek is God’s symbol of imperfection in every human, ie original sin, and mankind’s inability to remove it.
Same as time depicted
There are several reasons why this short story is befitting of the class. The protagonist is a scientist, which is of utmost importance. He has moral conflicts that involve the three determining factors of a mad scientist: motivation, maturity, and responsibility. His motivation is misconstrued. Initially, the reader is led to believe that he just wants his wife to be beautiful, but it isn’t so. Alymer has a fascination with the idea of the Elixir Vitae. His wife’s birthmark is a trivial matter in comparison. He would love to possess the ability to turn metals into gold. Here, we see his alchemist nature. His maturity is rather hard to describe. Because he cannot accept the one physical distortion of his wife, he must risk her life in order to make her beautiful, rather than looking past physical appearance to see her real beauty. He also is very blunt about his feelings towards his birthmark, moving her to tears. He seams almost selfish and unfeeling. He is responsible, however. He tested his potion before giving it to his wife, and it proved effective. He was not going in blind. The death of his wife is a form of punishment. The imagery of her life ending as the scar is disappearing is a clear example of wanting what you can’t have. He paid a hefty price for wanting perfection. With this in mind, we can say he is an intellectually good scientist, but a morally bad scientist. What adds to this image is his underworker, Aminadab. He is described as ‘low’ and ‘bulky’. These are very typical characteristics of the ‘mad’ scientist..
"Great Awakening." American History. 2009. ABC-CLIO. 21 Apr. 2009 <http://www.americanhistory.abc-clio.com>. Haynes, Roslynn D. From Faust To Strangelove. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press,1994. Hawthorne, Nathaniel. “The Birthmark.” Anthology of American Literature. George McMichael. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. 1993. 1099-1109. Toumey, Christopher P. “The Moral Character of Mad Scientists: A Cultural Critique of Science.” Science, Technology, and Human Values 17 (Autumn, 1992): 411-437. JSTOR. Simpson Lib., Fredericksburg, VA. 20 April 2009. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/689735>
This story is very appropriate for a classroom setting. It’s short and sweet. It not only exposes the students to an unfamiliar alchemist story, very different from Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde, it also shows them the wonderful romantic language of Nathaniel Hawthorne. Frayling actually uses The Birthmark in his book From Faust to Strangelove. He talks about the focus on alchemy and morals versus real science, something we actually read in class. The Birthmark would be such a good addition to the list of books we need to read. It’s fictional, completely relevant for the class, and can lead to a great in-class discussion