The story opens with Aylmer leaving "his lab to the care of an assistant- and washing "the stain of acid from his fingers- to marry the beautiful Georgiana. In this passage, Aylmer's hands represent the hands of science, leaving science behind (although briefly) by washing it away and giving his hand in marriage. Hawthorne hints that Aylmer will only leave science behind "until the philosopher should lay his hand on the secret of creative force and perhaps make new worlds for himself-. Hawthorne compares Aylmer's love for science to his love for Georgiana and lets us know Aylmer's "love for his young wife might prove the stronger of the two; but it could only be by intertwining itself with his love of science, and uniting the strength of the latter to its own-. If Georgiana is representing Nature in this story, Hawthorne is telling us that science and Nature must be intertwined and work together to be successful. .
Georgiana has a birthmark on left cheek in the shape of a hand. The mark "has so often been called a charm- that she does not really think of it as being problematic. The story goes on to tell us "Georgiana's lovers were wont to say that some fairy at her birth hour had laid her tiny hand upon the infant's cheek, and left this impress there . . . to give her sway over all hearts-. In this way, the birthmark seems to only enhance Georgiana's beauty instead of mar it. Only other women, perhaps in jealousy, would say that it was ugly, calling it a "bloody hand-. Aylmer disagrees with the majority and tells Georgiana she "came so nearly perfect from the hand of Nature that this slightest possible defect . . . shocks me, as being the visible mark of earthly imperfection-. In this, Hawthorne seems to tell us the hand is that of Nature itself, perfecting Georgiana in its own way. "It was the fatal flaw of humanity which.
Nature, in one shape or another, stamps ineffaceably on all her productions, either to imply that they are temporary and finite, or that their perfection must be wrought by toil and pain.
