Professor Brady 1

The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorne - Lecture Notes 3/17

Students’ hand in Paper #2 – Feedback -Discussion

Writing Prompt: Motivation (5min) – Students are asked to Interpret, Evaluate and Respond to the
following quotes.

“ Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder”

- Anonymous

“ Man is not perfect; nothing is perfect”

-Anonymous

Who is Nathaniel Hawthorne? (1804-64)

 A well-renowned and prolific writer. He was born in Salem
Massachusetts. His is a descendant of Puritan Immigrants.
 Famous for the novel The Scarlet Letter (1850).
 Among Hawthorne's most widely anthologized stories are 'Young
Goodman Brown' (1835), originally published in the New-England
Magazine, 'The Birthmark (1843), published in Pioneer, and
'Rappacini's Daughter' (1844)
 Hawthorne, similar to that of Edgar Allen Poe possessed a dark
view of human nature.
 Hawthorne later in life became friends with a group called
Transcendentalists. Among this famous group included Ralph
Waldo Emerson. The man we quote as our motto- “Nothing Great
was ever achieved without enthusiasm” Transcendentalism in
simple terms is founded on the premise that the human spirit
cannot be free if it is restrained by conformity. The human spirit
(mans spirit) cannot only be filled with happiness and peace if it is
strongly connected to Nature. Nature is all that God has created.
This way of thinking inspired many great thinkers and authors.
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Keep in mind this was during the time of the Industrial Revolution – Man Was
Obsessed with SCIENCE…. The Transcendentalists were interested in nature
and the natural world. At the same time Transcendentalism spun from the
belief that creativity and the human spirit needs to be present for humanity to
flourish.. hence the American Renaissance.

“Transcendentalism dominated the thinking of the American Renaissance, and

its resonances reverberated through American life well into the 20th century.
In one way or another our most creative minds were drawn into its thrall,
attracted not only to its practicable messages of confident self-identity,
spiritual progress and social justice, but also by its aesthetics, which
celebrated, in landscape and mindscape, the immense grandeur of the
American soul” (pbs.org).

* Hawthorne used fiction as a means of “exploring the moral dimensions

of sin and the human soul.”

The Time Period – Before Transcendentalism there was Romanticism!

Elements of the Romantic Period –

Note to self/class- (people were agitated, they moved away from the agricultural age and into an industrial society
that was large, impoverished and encompassed a restless working class).

 Emphasis on imagination and emotion, individual passion and

inspiration
 Rejection of formal, upper class works and a preference for writing
(poetry) that addresses personal experiences and emotions in
simple, language.
 A turn to the past or an inner dream world that is thought to be
more picturesque and magical than the current world (industrial
age)

 Fascination with nature; perception of nature as transformative

 A good example is Frankenstein by Mary Shelley
 Favored democracy
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 Desired radical change- journey away from corruption of

civilization and limits of rational thought toward the integrity of
nature and freedom of the imagination

 Nature should be untamed ( Do NOT Tamper with NATURE)

NATURE was viewed as a RESTORATIVE Power –
TRANFORMATIVE

“The Birthmark “

Plot – The story is about a young scientist who marries a beautiful

young woman with a god given birthmark. Before he marries her
he is acceptant of the birthmark. However, as the story progresses,
he becomes more and more tortured by her birthmark. He feels this
birthmark leaves her less than perfect. Repulsed by her birthmark ,
the protagonist makes his wife feel abhorrent and rejected.

Setting – Late 1700’s

Allegory by definition: Objects, people and actions are a

representation or connect to a larger meaning outside the narrative.
The larger meaning has social, political or religious meaning.
Characters usually personify these larger ideas (i.e.; Lord of the
Flies) Aylmer and Georgiana represent ideas far greater than what
is communicated in the story.