In “The Birthmark,” Hawthorne develops the theme that, for some, physical flaws are evidence of character flaws. Which details from the story contribute to the development of this theme?

Select the two correct answers.

a"'…you came so nearly perfect from the hand of Nature that this slightest possible defect, which we hesitate whether to term a defect or a beauty, shocks me, as being the visible mark of earthly imperfection.'"

b"In this manner, selecting it as the symbol of his wife’s liability to sin, sorrow, decay, and death, Aylmer’s sombre imagination was not long in rendering the birthmark a frightful object…"

c"His love for his young wife might prove the stronger of the two; but it could only be by intertwining itself with his love of science, and uniting the strength of the latter to his own."

d"'No, indeed,' said she, smiling; but perceiving the seriousness of his manner, she blushed deeply. 'To tell the truth it has been so often called a charm that I was simple enough to imagine it might be so.'"