How does Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Birth Mark" reflect its time period?

The major concepts or themes in "The Birthmark" which I would identify as typical of its period are 1) man's striving for the impossible and for perfection, 2) the use of science and technology to achieve that goal, and 3) the exploration of the irrational side of man and his resistance to, or his attempt to transcend, reason and religion, which in previous ages were the main guides in human life.

Aylmer becomes obsessed with his wife Georgiana's birthmark and the imperfection it supposedly represents. In our time we might consider this a symptom of OCD, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. But in the story, it's also symbolic of man's newfound belief, in the aftermath of the Enlightenment, that he is no longer bound by the limitations and restrictions imposed by religious beliefs. Aylmer can be likened to Mary Shelley's Victor Frankenstein, who has the audacity to create life and thus to defy the supremacy of God. Both Frankenstein and the stories of E.T.A. Hoffmann, such as "The Sandman," set the tone for other authors' concerns about speculative science and just how much man will be able to accomplish with it. Aylmer is a researcher who believes he can eliminate his wife's "flaw," as he views it, by applying his scientific discoveries, but his attempt backfires. This theme similarly occurs in Hawthorne's "Rappaccini's Daughter," and, in a somewhat different form, in "The Artist of the Beautiful."

The irony is that although Aylmer is a scientist, his whole mindset is irrational and even approaches psychosis. Nineteenth-century writers were obsessed with the darker, perverse impulses of human nature. It's a paradox that futuristic science is often presented in conjunction with supernatural, Gothic elements. Hawthorne sets "The Birthmark," like other stories, in the past, in "the last century," in a seemingly dark, remote place. And Aylmer is an example of an ambiguous Romantic figure who is, or thinks himself, a kind of demigod, trying to achieve what is normally considered impossible for man. Other examples of such heroes or anti-heroes, with or without the trappings of science, are Melville's Ahab, Emily Bronte's Heathcliff, and Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll.

Nathaniel Hawthorne was a part of the American Romantic movement (1830-1860), more specifically the Dark Romantic (or Gothic). Romantics, and their texts, tended to idealize the individual, the imagination, the emotional, and the exotic. Hawthorne's "The Birthmark" is representative of the period based upon the imagery and themes of the text. 

Georgiana's birthmark represents two very different things: mortality/imperfection and original sin. Both of these ideas speak to the thoughts of the Romantic. Imperfection makes a human mortal. Being mortal means that one will die, and death is a typical subject within the Romantic genre. This speaks to the idea that all will die; death is simply a part of nature (another important idea within Romantic literature). (On a side note, the Romantics believed nature to possess power which was superior to that of man.) 

In regards to the birthmark representing original sin, all humans are born with this (original sin). The birthmark symbolizes the sin of vanity. As soon as the birthmark fades, Georgiana dies. The vanity of both her and Alymer (her husband) illustrate mankind's vanity and need for perfection. Given that mankind is not perfect, given they possess original sin, the removal of sin (the birthmark) removes one's life as well (since it is only through death that sin can be removed). 

How does Hawthorne's "The Birthmark" differ from other stories of its time?

Nathaniel Hawthorne's "The Birthmark" is somewhat different from other texts of the period. Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote during the Romantic period. That said, "The Birthmark" falls into a subcategory of Romanticism: Dark Romanticism or Gothicism. 

Typical Romantic texts contained references to imagination, nature, the idea of the noble savage (the unrestrained), and individualism. "The Birthmark," while Romantic, is Gothic in nature as well. Not as much "direct" attention is given to nature. In fact, Alymer tries to control nature by getting rid of Georgiana's birthmark. Since she is born with it, her birthmark should be considered a part of her nature. By removing the birthmark, Alymer goes against nature and Georgiana pays the price--with death. The imagination is highlighted in regards to Alymer thinking about how to get rid of the birthmark. That said, the text is about the love between Alymer and Georgiana--not a life alone (at least not until after the death of Georgiana will Alymer be alone). 

While many Romantic texts dealt with death (like Emily Dickinson's "Because I could not stop for Death"), many others tended to look at the more grotesque aspects of human life (such as texts by Edgar Allen Poe and Hawthorne). Georgiana's birthmark is disgusting to Alymer. He wants nothing more than to rid both him and Georgiana of the mark. This mark is made out to be horrific and disturbing--typical of the Gothic text.