While reading The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorne, it got me thinking about my own ideas of beauty, perfection, plastic surgery, and also male/female conceptions of beauty. Beauty can be broken down into categories, physical beauty and intellectual beauty. The physical beauty is what attracts the eye at a quick glance, what reels you in, the hook, what gets you to want more. But, on the opposite end of the spectrum is intellectual beauty. Intellectual beauty is the way someone composes themselves, their personality, their aura. Physical beauty can be deterred from intellect. If someone's intellectual properties do not intrigue you, their physical beauty can change in your own eyes, and vice-versa. Perfection is a really ironic word to use, because when most people think of perfection they think of something without flaws. When I think of perfection I think of flaws. Without flaws, people wouldn't be unique, wouldn't be their own person. It would deface the way they feel and the way they present themselves. In this day and age the male/female conceptions of beauty relate to people who are flawless, who have no blemishes and are considered perfect. This picture of David and Victoria Beckham shows how the image of a perfect man and woman are conceived today. 

Yes, I'm sure most of us can agree that David and Victoria are easy on the eye, but what makes them so perfect? They do not show any flaws while on the red carpet, they have no blemishes that make themselves unique.

In the story The Birthmark one of the main characters, Alymer tries to relieve his wife Georgiana of a blemish she has on her face. He tries to take away what makes her unique, beautiful and perfect. Without her blemish, she is just another woman, who may or may not be easy on the eye. Once Alymer finally gets the blemish to go away, Georgiana's soul follows with it, she ends up dying. To rid someone of their own personal beauty, their blemishes, their uniqueness, their perfection, can rid them of existence. At least to themselves, and the ones around them who find them beautiful and perfect for such reasons. Please let me know your thoughts.

Thank You,
Matt Membrino