Rappaccini's Daughter

Rappaccini’s Daughter Vs. The Fall of Man

“Rappaccini's Daughter” is a story about the human struggle to overcome the evil

side of human nature. Each character shows their good and evil side, and in some way

tries to battle the evil nature inside himself or herself. Thus, in this story, Hawthorne tries

to recreate the story of Adam and Eve, only with many more complications.

The intermixture of good and evil within people can be examined through the

relationships of the story's main characters. The lovely and yet poisonous Beatrice, the

daughter of the scientist Rappaccini, is the central figure of the story, while her neighbor

Giovanni becomes the observer, participant, and interpreter of the strange events that

transpire within the garden next door. It is Giovanni's inability to understand these events

that eventually leads to Beatrice's death. Giovanni is unable to see the

. . .

Symbolically, the plants in the garden mimic God's creation in an "evil mockery of

beauty. Rappaccini, tries to help Giovanni escape the evil that Beatrice presents to him.

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**Bibliography**

. " This passage describes Giovanni's feelings

towards the beautiful Beatrice. During the

story, Hawthorne gives us many clues of Giovanni's selfish and fickle nature. Although it is lovely and

appealing, like the tree of knowledge, it is fatal and causes Beatrice to become poisonous

herself. It suggests that the

true subject of the story is the dual nature of humanity. By entering her

world in a fit of physical desire, Giovanni exposed Beatrice to everything that laid beyond

her garden walls. Thus by feeding on knowledge, Beatrice “fell” into a sadness of want

and desire for the unattainable.

Two main objects in the garden are repeatedly brought attention to.

In contrast, Hawthorne portrays sympathetic and reverent tones towards Beatrice. " In this passage, Hawthorne again shows that Giovanni's love was

actually lust. This

garden, filled with beautiful, and yet poisonous plants, symbolizes the dominant motif of

the story: the intermixture of good and evil at all levels. Baglioni converses with Giovanni in this mansion chamber and tries

to manipulate him in his attempt to destroy Rappaccini.

Rappaccini which Beatrice calls her “sister”.

Common topics in this essay:
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Approximate Word count = 1986
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page double spaced)

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