Response Paper #2: “The Birthmark

Response Paper #2: “The Birthmark
How our modern society manifests an obsession with physical perfection and how “The Birthmark” reflects this early version of the obsession:
Our society promotes and idealizes physical attractiveness through widespread media exposure. Magazines, television, movies, and social media bombard us with images of seemingly flawless bodies and faces (1). This constant exposure normalizes narrow beauty standards that few can realistically attain. As a result, many feel pressured to alter their natural appearance through cosmetic procedures to conform.
According to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, there were over 18.1 million surgical and minimally-invasive cosmetic procedures performed in the United States in 2020 alone (2). Popular procedures include liposuction, breast augmentation, rhinoplasty, and Botox injections. This reflects a multi-billion dollar cosmetic industry capitalizing on society’s obsession with erasing signs of aging and imperfections.
Published in 1843, “The Birthmark” by Nathaniel Hawthorne depicts similar themes that remain relevant today. In the story, Aylmer is repulsed by his wife Georgiana’s small birthmark on her cheek, viewing it as an imperfection marring her otherwise flawless beauty (3). Georgiana allows Aylmer, a brilliant scientist, to conduct an experiment to remove the birthmark, ultimately leading to her death. This reflects societal pressures even in the 19th century to attain unrealistic physical standards through drastic measures like surgery (4).
In conclusion, both modern society and “The Birthmark” demonstrate obsessions with achieving physical perfection through minimizing or eliminating natural flaws and signs of aging. This reflects the deeply ingrained and often unattainable beauty ideals promoted through mass media that continue to shape perceptions of attractiveness.
References:
Mulvey, L. (1975). Visual pleasure and narrative cinema. Screen, 16(3), 6-18.
American Society of Plastic Surgeons. (2020). 2020 plastic surgery statistics report. https://www.plasticsurgery.org/documents/News/Statistics/2020/plastic-surgery-statistics-full-report-2020.pdf
Hawthorne, N. (1843). The birthmark. https://www.gutenberg.org/files/512/512-h/512-h.htm
Wolf, N. (1991). The beauty myth: How images of beauty are used against women. HarperCollins.