Dr Heidegger's Experiment

"Dr Heidegger's Experiment"

An eccentric aging physician, Dr. Heidegger, calls together his old

friends and contemporaries to test his waters of the "fountain of

youth." As the doctor himself sits by to enjoy the show, each of his

four aged friends eagerly quaffs more and more of the magic potion,

each draught further carrying them backwards into their shared youth.

Having grown young, smooth-skinned and agile again, the three men begin

to fight for the favors of the fourth compatriot now restored to her

former beauty. In the heat of the fracas, they begin to grow tired and

within minutes the effect of the "waters" has worn away. The

participants in the brief respite from old age are devastated by the

transience of the experience. Despite Heidegger's warning that he has

learned to appreciate the advantage of age by watching the four of them

make themselves fools, they learned no such lesson and resolve to make

a pilgrimage to Florida to seek the Fountain.

"The Birthmark"

A devoted scientist, in a brief step from his laboratory pursuits,

marries a beautiful woman with a single physical flaw: a birthmark on

her face. Aylmer becomes obsessed with the imperfection and needs to

remove it, to be happy with his wife. The tale evolves around his

progressive frenzy to use his scientific skills to render his bride

perfect and the faith of his submissive wife that the union can survive

only if he accomplishes his goal. The author tells us that Aylmer "had

devoted himself, however, too unreservedly to scientific studies..."

and, in the secrecy of his laboratory he prepares the potion for

Georgiana that results in the disappearance of the birthmark and the

death of Aylmer's experimental subject.

Comparison

"Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" and "The Birthmark" can be compared in

many aspects. Nathaniel Hawthorne used many of the same writing

techniques in both stories. Both pieces share two common reoccuring

themes. Also, the symbols in the story have like meanings. In both

"Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" and "The Birthmark", Hawthorne uses the

same writing style. In both stories Nathaniel Hawthorne writes as a

realist, as opposed to a romancer. In "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment"

Hawthorne writes about an actual event in history, Ponce de Leon's

search for the Fountain of Youth on the Florida Peninsula. It does not

matter if the Fountain of Youth exists or not it is a "real" legend.

"Dr Heidegger's Experiment" is a situation that could have taken

place. It is not a fantasy. "The Birthmark" is also a piece that

could have happened. A beautiful woman could certainly be born with a

disturbing birthmark on her face. In "The Birthmark" Hawthorne writes

about a real situation with real characters. Again in both "Dr

Heidegger's Experiment" and "The Birthmark", Hawthorne uses a very

vague title. For the purpose of "Dr Heidegger's Experiment", Hawthorne

wants you to ponder on what kind of experiment Heidegger was

conducting, psychological or p! hysical. In the case of "The

Birthmark", Hawthorne wants you to think if the birthmark was what

made the main character, Aylmer, kills his wife or if it went beyond

just that physical marking. Furthermore, in the pair of stories

Hawthorne uses several of the same literary devices, for instance,

symbolism. In "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment"

Along with the same writing techniques, Nathaniel Hawthorne also used

two of the same themes in the stories. Hawthorne uses reoccurring

themes of his writing in many of his stories. In both "Dr. Heidegger's

Experiment" and "The Birthmark" Hawthorne uses, the impossibility of

earthly perfection moreover the loss of innocence. In "Dr. Heidegger's

Experiment" the doctor's four friends are all in search of earthly

perfection. This is why they choose to drink the water from the

Fountain of Youth, to become forever young. The friends are made young

again by the water, but their youth soon wears away. If it had

remained for ever they would have achieved earthly perfection, and that

is impossible. In "The Birthmark", Georgiana is almost a model of

earthly perfection except for that horrid birthmark. Aylmer believes

that Georgiana can be that model of perfection and he can get rid of

the birthmark. He