The Birthmark deals with the husband's deeply negative obsession of his wife's outer appearances and what does that entail for these two young couples. The birthmark represents various things throughout the story. Two of the main representations are imperfection and mortality. American novelist and short story writer Nathaniel Hawthorne's (1804–1864) writing centers on New England, many works featuring moral allegories with a Puritan inspiration. Hawthorne has also written a few poems which many people are not aware of. His works are considered to be part of the Romantic movement and, more specifically, Dark romanticism. His themes often centre on the inherent evil and sin of humanity, and his works often have moral messages and deep psychological complexity.

A stimulating examination of early American literature

Mosses from an Old Manse is a short story collection by Nathaniel Hawthorne, first published in 1846. The collection included several previously-published short stories and was named in honor of The Old Manse where Hawthorne and his wife lived for the first three years of their marriage. Stories include: The Birthmark; Young Goodman Brown; Rappaccini's Daughter; Mrs. Bullfrog; The Celestial Railroad; The Procession of Life; Feathertop: A Moralized Legend; Egotism; or, The Bosom Serpent; Drowne's Wooden Image; Roger Malvin's Burial; and The Artist of the Beautiful.

A young booby bird, born with an unusual birthmark, teaches the Galapagos Islands animals that it's not important what you look like but what comes from the heart.

Tracy Waterhouse leads a quiet, ordered life as a retired police detective -- a life that takes a surprising turn when she encounters Kelly Cross, a habitual offender, dragging a young child through town. Both appear miserable and better off without each other -- or so decides Tracy, in a snap decision that surprises herself as much as Kelly. Suddenly burdened with a small child, Tracy soon learns her parental inexperience is actually the least of her problems, as much larger ones loom for her and her young charge. Meanwhile, Jackson Brodie, the beloved detective of novels such as Case Histories, is embarking on a different sort of rescue: that of an abused dog. Dog in tow, Jackson is about to learn, along with Tracy, that no good deed goes unpunished.

In The Birthmark, Text Publishing's first YA fiction release, debut novelist Beth Montgomery takes us to the fictional island of Tevua, north-east of Australia. The Birthmark interweaves the stories of two generations of Islanders- in 1942 young lovers Tepu and Edouwe struggle to survive under the brutal Japanese occupation; and in 2004 teenage friends Hector and Lily fight an altogether different battle with boredom, poverty and parental neglect. Both outsiders for different reasons, Lily and Hector spend their summer holiday roaming through the island's thick forests and around the coral pinnacles on the beach. They discover a Japanese sword, a relic of World War Two, and soon afterwards an angry Japanese soldier begins to haunt Lily's dreams. What does the ghostly soldier have to tell Lily? When she hears a woman screaming in her dreams, why does Lily's birthmark burn? Will the sword be used again? And can the younger generation somehow resolve the crimes of the past?

"Richard Beere, 1493-1524. Began Edgar Chapel; built crypt under Lady Chapel and dedicated it to St Joseph; built a chapel of the Holy Sepulchre at south end of nave; built the Loretto chapel; added vaulting under central tower and flying buttresses at east end of choir; built St Benignus' Church and rebuilt Tribunal. Richard Whiting, 1525-1539. Completed Edgar Chapel."--Wikipedia.

International Bestseller Chief Inspector Van Veeteren is on the case once more in this breathless thriller of deception, blackmail, and cold murder. Van Veeteren and his associates are left bewildered by the curious murder of a man shot twice in the heart and twice below the belt. An utterly dull man, the only suspicious activity his surviving wife can report is a series of peculiar phone calls. Repeatedly the telephone would ring, offering no answer but an obscure pop song from the 1960s. This siren song would be linked to an identical murder, but the true connection remains unknown. With a cool, critical eye, Van Veeteren pursues his subject across the country, wading through outrageous leads and fruitless tips in this chilling mystery from master crime novelist Håkan Nesser.

A Study Guide for Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Birthmark," excerpted from Gale's acclaimed Short Stories for Students.This concise study guide includes plot summary; character analysis; author biography; study questions; historical context; suggestions for further reading; and much more. For any literature project, trust Short Stories for Students for all of your research needs.