The Birthmark
Enriched edition. A Tale of Obsession and Human Nature: Unveiling the Price of VanityBy Nathaniel Hawthorne
Length6h 2m
About this audiobook
In Nathaniel Hawthorne's profound short story "The Birthmark," the author explores the tension between the pursuit of human perfection and the acceptance of inherent flaws. Set against a backdrop of early 19th-century scientific curiosity, the narrative masterfully intertwines gothic elements with a psychological depth that questions the implications of obsessive ambition. Hawthorne's prose, characterized by rich symbolism and evocative imagery, encapsulates the haunting journey of Aylmer, a scientist fixated on eradicating a small birthmark from his wife Georgiana's cheek, viewing it as a blemish on her perceived perfection. This thematic engagement with humanity's relationship to nature and art embodies the transcendental skepticism of the era, situating it firmly within American Romanticism. Nathaniel Hawthorne, an astute observer of the human condition, was profoundly influenced by the Puritan heritage of New England and the burgeoning scientific developments of his time. His own struggles with identity and societal expectations manifest in his characters, making him a poignant commentator on the dilemmas between science, morality, and the essence of true beauty. "The Birthmark" serves as a critique of the Enlightenment's emphasis on rationality over the emotional and inherent imperfections of human existence. This compelling tale is highly recommended for readers seeking a rich exploration of moral complexity and the philosophical questions surrounding the quest for perfection. Hawthorne's insightful narrative not only engages the mind but also stirs the soul, making it a timeless read that resonates with contemporary discussions on self-acceptance and the paradoxes of human nature.
In this enriched edition, we have carefully created added value for your reading experience:
- A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes.
- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.
- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing.
- An Author Biography reveals milestones in the author's life, illuminating the personal insights behind the text.
- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.
- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 3.8 (6K)
Includes Goodreads, LibraryThing, Amazon, StoryGraph
GenreLiterary Classics, General Fiction
Length6 hrs 2 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateDec 28, 2023
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Introduction
2Introduction
3Synopsis
4Historical Context
5Author Biography
Mostrar todos os capítulosVer menos
6The Birthmark (Psychological Thriller) (pt. 1)
7The Birthmark (Psychological Thriller) (pt. 2)
8Analysis
9Reflection
10Memorable Quotes
RAPPACCINI'S DAUGHTERNathaniel Hawthorne6h 51m4.0 (18.6K)$1.99 · $0.00
Our Old HomeNathaniel Hawthorne13h 6m3.6 (682)$12 · $0.00
The Blithedale RomanceNathaniel Hawthorne7h 32m3.6 (9.8K)$6 · $0.00
The House of the Seven GablesNathaniel Hawthorne10h 15m3.7 (63.1K)$10 · $0.00
Life and Genius of Nathaniel Hawthorne: Letters, Diaries, Reminiscences and Extensive BiographiesNathaniel Hawthorne, Herman Melville, Julian Hawthorne, F. P. Stearns, G. P. Lathrop139h 37m$1.99 · $0.00
The Scarlet Letter & A Scarlet Stigma: A Novel and Adapted Play (Illustrated Edition)Nathaniel Hawthorne, James Edgar Smith15h 26m$1.99 · $0.00
Rappaccini's Daughter (Gothic Classic) (Annotated)Nathaniel Hawthorne7h 5m3.9 (8.1K)$2 · $0.00
Collected Poems of Nathaniel Hawthorne (Annotated)Nathaniel Hawthorne7h 4m$2 · $0.00
The House of the Seven Gables (Annotated)Nathaniel Hawthorne17h 23m3.9 (2.6K)$2 · $0.00
Die Blumen des Bösen (Kommentiert)Nathaniel Hawthorne, Franz Blei11h 49m3.1 (28)$1 · $0.00
The Complete Novels (All 8 Unabridged Hawthorne Novels and Romances) (Annotated)Nathaniel Hawthorne70h 42m4.4 (126)$2 · $0.00
Die besten Gruselgeschichten (Kommentiert)Nathaniel Hawthorne26h 8m$1 · $0.00
Amerikanische Kurzgeschichten - Die Besten Erzählungen von Poe, Mark Twain, Herman Melville, O. Henry, Washington Irving und anderen (Kommentiert)Nathaniel Hawthorne, Washington Irving, Edgar Allan Poe, Bret Harte, Mark Twain, O. Henry, Ambrose Bierce, Herman Melville19h 49m$1.50 · $0.00
Collected Poetry of Nathaniel Hawthorne (Annotated)Nathaniel Hawthorne6h 54m$2 · $0.00
The Dolliver RomanceNathaniel Hawthorne1h 50m3.9 (18)$2 · $0.00
Sketches and StudiesNathaniel Hawthorne5h 58m$2 · $0.00
The Toll Gatherer's Day (From "Twice Told Tales")Nathaniel Hawthorne1h 30m3.6 (16)$2 · $0.00
Old News (From: "The Snow Image and Other Twice-Told Tales")Nathaniel Hawthorne1h 4m$2 · $0.00
A Select PartyNathaniel Hawthorne1h 49m3.4 (37)$2 · $0.00
The Threefold Destiny (From "Twice Told Tales")Nathaniel Hawthorne1h 36m3.5 (38)$2 · $0.00
To Kill a MockingbirdHarper Lee12h 18m4.5 (7.4M)$29 · $0.00
These Precious DaysAnn Patchett11h 14m4.5 (45.2K)$29 · $0.00
Pride & Prejudice (Annotated)Jane Austen15h 10m4.7 (13.3K)$2 · $0.00
The Jeeves and Wooster Stories: The Complete Collection (33 Books)P. G. Wodehouse21h 57m4.7 (2.8K)$15 · $0.00
The Gulag Archipelago Volume 3Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn21h 56m4.7 (8.9K)$46 · $0.00
This Side of Paradise - The Original 1920 Edition (Annotated)F. Scott Fitzgerald11h 30m4.6 (1.6K)$2 · $0.00
The Great Gatsby: Original 1925 Edition (An F. Scott Fitzgerald Classic NovelFrancis Scott Fitzgerald4h 45m4.6 (9.3K)$18 · $0.00
The Complete Histories / History Plays of William Shakespeare (Annotated)William Shakespeare29h 42m4.6 (2.3K)$1.99 · $0.00
Braving the TruthRachel Held Evans11h 31m4.7 (359)$29 · $0.00
The Old Man and the Sea (Annotated)Ernest Hemingway4h 27m4.6 (1.4K)$2 · $0.00
Twelfth Night (The Unabridged Play) + The Classic Biography (Annotated)William Shakespeare, Sidney Lee16h 38m4.6 (1.4K)$2 · $0.00
Henry V (The Play, Historical Background and Analysis of the Character in the Play)William Shakespeare, William Hazlitt8h 50m4.6 (1.3K)$1.99 · $0.00
H. P. LOVECRAFT Ultimate Collection: Novellas, Short Stories, Poetry & Essays (Annotated)H. P. Lovecraft12h 28m4.6 (2.3K)$2 · $0.00
Time RegainedMarcel Proust16h 8m4.5 (10.6K)$1.99 · $0.00
Lessons in TruthH. Emilie3h 50m4.6 (1.4K)$4.70 · $0.00
TORAH - Bilingual Edition: English/Hebrew (Annotated)Max Margolis, JPS28h 26m4.6 (1K)$2 · $0.00
Betty Crocker picture cooky bookBetty Crocker, Inc. General Mills2h 13m4.5 (6.5K)$1 · $0.00
The Complete Tales of Beatrix PotterBeatrix Potter3h 36m4.5 (75K)$3 · $0.00
Anne of Green GablesL. M. Montgomery11h 1m4.5 (1.2M)$2.30 · $0.00
Crime and Punishment (The Unabridged Garnett Translation) (Annotated)Fyodor Dostoevsky24h 25m4.5 (15.4K)$1.99 · $0.00
WhistlerAnn Patchett10h 45m4.6 (4.6K)$29 · $0.00
Demon CopperheadBarbara Kingsolver21h 3m4.5 (949.4K)$46 · $0.00
To Kill a MockingbirdHarper Lee12h 18m4.5 (7.4M)$29 · $0.00
Remarkably Bright CreaturesShelby Van Pelt11h 17m4.4 (1.7M)$29 · $0.00
Desperate MeasuresBrenda Jackson8h 59m4.7 (670)$28 · $0.00
This Side of Paradise - The Original 1920 Edition (Annotated)F. Scott Fitzgerald11h 30m4.6 (1.6K)$2 · $0.00
War LordBernard Cornwell13h 21m4.6 (33.1K)$33 · $0.00
The Great Gatsby: Original 1925 Edition (An F. Scott Fitzgerald Classic NovelFrancis Scott Fitzgerald4h 45m4.6 (9.3K)$18 · $0.00
Something Like LoveBeverly Jenkins10h 21m4.6 (2.7K)$29 · $0.00
Black History CollectionFrederick Douglass, Harriet Ann Jacobs, Booker T. Washington, W.E.B. Du Bois27h 9m4.6 (2.6K)$18 · $0.00
The Old Man and the Sea (Annotated)Ernest Hemingway4h 27m4.6 (1.4K)$2 · $0.00
White HotIlona Andrews13h 18m4.5 (136.9K)$5 · $0.00
The Ghost by the Billabong (The Matilda Saga, #5)Jackie French14h 58m4.6 (773)$33 · $0.00
Cast in BloodMichelle Sagara16h 35m4.6 (607)$33 · $0.00
The Captain Blood Trilogy (Annotated)Rafael Sabatini29h 20m4.6 (1K)$3 · $0.00
Ship of the Line (Annotated)Cecil Louis Troughton Smith11h 13m4.6 (1K)$2 · $0.00
The George Orwell CollectionGeorge Orwell24h 46m4.5 (14.4K)$12 · $0.00
Time RegainedMarcel Proust15h 38m4.5 (9.2K)$2 · $0.00
Driving ForceElle James4h 58m4.6 (407)$20 · $0.00
When God Calls the HeartBrian Bird, Michelle Cox3h 24m4.6 (439)$10 · $0.00
You may also like
How to Survive in the WoodsKat Rosenfield11h 39m3.7 (2.6K)$29 · $0.00
For LoveSue Miller13h 29m3.6 (2.5K)$33 · $0.00
The Days of AbandonmentElena Ferrante7h 36m4.0 (71.7K)$17 · $0.00
MercuryMargot Livesey9h 23m3.5 (6.2K)$29 · $0.00
BereniceEdgar Allan Poe25m3.9 (9K)$1
Hedda GablerHenrik Ibsen3h 57m4.0 (55.5K)$1.20 · $0.00
Mosses from an Old Manse, and Other StoriesNathaniel Hawthorne7h 49m4.0 (4.6K)$1 · $0.00
To the LighthouseVirginia Woolf9h 37m4.0 (262.7K)$20
Good CompanyCynthia D'Aprix Sweeney8h 59m3.5 (65.5K)$29 · $0.00
ExposedAnna J.6h 55m4.2 (842)$20
Social CrimesJane Stanton Hitchcock11h 50m3.6 (2.7K)$23
The Perfect GirlfriendKaren Hamilton11h 46m3.6 (26.4K)$29 · $0.00
When I Was YouAmber Garza9h 47m3.8 (21.9K)$29 · $0.00
The GirlfriendMichelle Frances10h 4m3.8 (47.5K)$20
The Perfect GirlfriendKaren Hamilton11h 46m3.6 (27.7K)$29 · $0.00
In Judgement of OthersEleanor Anstruther7h 18m4.1 (42)$20 · $0.00
The InvadersKarolina Waclawiak6h 49m3.2 (1.6K)$20
SamLonnie Coleman7h 46m3.8 (38)$5.20 · $0.00
Tortoises and Wintry PeacockD. H. Lawrence58m$2.30
O Youth and Beauty!John Cheever25m3.6 (46)$7 · $0.00