The Birthmark

            "Avarice is the root of all evil- was so aptly penned by Geoffrey Chaucer in The Canterbury Tales. In the short story written by Nathaniel Hawthorne The Birthmark, Aylmer, a passionate man of science, has everything a man in the late 1800's could want. He has good looks, intelligence (which was of high value at the time), a beautiful marriage, and above all a stunningly gorgeous wife named Georgiana. However, this is not enough for him. He needs more! In the center of Georgiana's luscious left cheek lies a birthmark the size of a fairy's hand and crimson in color. And despite her great beauty and elegance Aylmer could not see beyond it; in his eyes, she is imperfect. All he sees is a birthmark "an unbearable flaw in his wife. Aylmer devises a plan that will rid the birthmark off his wife's tender skin making her seemingly perfect. Yet, his greed for perfection will ultimately force him to finally see beyond the birthmark and kill his sweet wife.
             Aylmer sees the fairy's hand that is imprinted on his wife's left cheek as detestable. Some of Georgiana's past lovers thought that the birthmark was a "token of the magic endowments that were to give her such sway over all hearts."" Even she did not mind the presence of the birthmark; she had grown accustomed to it. At times she even called it a "charm,"" her lucky charm. But, Aylmer did not see the birthmark as being such. To Aylmer, the "bloody hand destroyed the effect of Georgiana's beauty, and rendered her countenance even hideous."" Aylmer would not even look at the little hand upon his wife's cheek. If he did he would gaze at Georgiana with disgust, angered at her imperfection. Yet, Georgiana "soon learned to shudder at his gaze."" Even when Georgiana would ask her husband for a simple kiss on the cheek, Aylmer to turn to her right cheek, her unblemished cheek pure from all contamination. Georgiana had grown used to this also.