32 pages • 1 hour read
The Birthmark
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Essay Topics
Many of modern medicine’s goals can be contextualized as the pursuit of human perfectibility. What do you think Hawthorne would suggest are the ethical implications of this sort of work?
Explore the gender dynamics of love and marriage as presented in “The Birthmark.” Through the negative example of Aylmer and Georgiana’s relationship, what do you think Hawthorne’s ideal marriage would look like?
Identify one moment in the short story that might inspire a sense of revulsion in the reader and analyze the setting of this moment. How do the environmental details of the setting enhance the gothic reading experience?
Is Aylmer a Romantic hero or a Romantic villain? Support your response with evidence from the text.
What role does Aminadab play in the story? Does Hawthorne look favorably on this character? Support your response with evidence from the text.
What function does Aylmer’s dream serve in “The Birthmark”? Research the role of the dream as a literary device in Romantic literature and situate it in the context of the short story.
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By Nathaniel Hawthorne
