Things Alike
In a relationship convincing a persons partner to do something that they themselves don't want to do is not always the way to go about things. This is the basis of both stories “The Birthmark” by Nathaniel Hawthorne and “Hills Like White Elephants” by Ernest Hemingway. These stories are similar in many ways and there is one main theme across both. Selfishness in a relationship can lead to dwindling relationships and in turn can form pivotal points in anyone’s life. These are moments when a person would have to decide whether to keep trying to fix their partner how they want them or if the person can just love their partner for who they are. Pushing someone to do something for the good of only yourself can end in many bad ways. The common theme of relationship selfishness that leads to dwindling relationships is widely apparent in both Hawthorne and Hemingway's short stories.
In Hawthorne's story “The Birthmark,” there are two main characters. Aylmer is the man and Georgiana is his wife. Aylmer was a man of science and was very focused on only his studies and experiments before he married Georgiana. Not long after their marriage Aylmer mentions to his wife that he doesn't quite like the birthmark that is on her cheek. The conflict about the birthmark gets so bad that Aylmer cant even look at his wife without feeling disgusted. Georgiana was seen by others as perfect in every way, even with her birthmark. "If she were my wife, I'd never part with that birthmark” (Hawthorne). This quote from the story, said by Aylmer's assistant Aminadab, proves that the birthmark was not as hideous as Aylmer has said. Aylmer wanted his wife to be so perfect that he would be willing to go to any length to remove that birthmark from his wife’s cheek, even if it meant to experiment on her. In the end of the story, Georgiana drinks a potion that fades her birthmark and just when Aylmer gets so excited that Georgiana is now perfect, Georgiana dies. Aylmer’s...