man and woman looking at one another and the woman is filled with plants and vines that are creeping into the man's body

Rappaccini's Daughter

by Nathaniel Hawthorne

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Discussion Topic

Character dynamics and manipulation in "Rappaccini's Daughter."

Summary:

The character dynamics in "Rappaccini's Daughter" revolve around manipulation and control. Dr. Rappaccini manipulates his daughter Beatrice by exposing her to poisonous plants, making her toxic to others. Giovanni, initially infatuated with Beatrice, is manipulated by Professor Baglioni, who uses Giovanni to undermine Rappaccini. These manipulations highlight themes of power, ethics, and the consequences of scientific experimentation.

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How do Rappaccini and Baglioni use Beatrice and Giovanni in "Rappaccini's Daughter"?

When Giovanni first speaks with his father's old friend, Professor Baglioni, the professor tells him that Dr. Rappaccini cares a great deal more about science than he does about people and that he only sees individuals as potential subjects of his experiments.  However, the narrator implies that Baglioni has an axe to grind because Rappaccini and Baglioni are at odds professionally and that Rappaccini "was generally thought to have gained the advantage" in their disagreements. Therefore, it should not be terribly surprising when Baglioni continues to try to arouse Giovanni's suspicions of Rappaccini and his daughter's motives.  In the end, he gives Giovanni an antidote that should reverse Beatrice's poisonous nature, and, when it kills her, he calls out triumphantly to rub the death of this experiment in his rival's face.  Thus, it appears that he has manipulated Giovanni so that he could use the youth to ruin Rappaccini's most precious experiment: his daughter.

However, Rappaccini has also manipulated Beatrice and Giovanni in order to see if he could convert and procure a husband for his poisonous daughter.  He seems to have purposely cultivated her poison from her birth for the sake of science, and now he wishes to take the experiment to the next level.  He wants to see if he can transform a healthy youth into a poisonous one to be a mate for her daughter in this corrupted Eden.  He doesn't ask his daughter what she wants, and he certainly doesn't consult Giovanni before his conversion.  Beatrice ends up so miserable that she actually embraces death because "the evil" that her father has "striven to mingle with [her] being, will pass away like a dream."  It doesn't seem to be her happiness that her father has sought but rather a continuation of his experiments.

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Compare and contrast Giovanni and Beatrice in "Rappaccini’s Daughter."

In "Rappaccini's Daughter," the two primary characters are Beatrice and Giovanni.  They end up in the same place, but they're certainly more different than alike.

Beatrice is the daughter of a doctor and lives in Padua.  She is beautiful and trusting and rather naive because she has not been exposed to any of the world beyond the confines of their garden. People in the town are under the impression that she has been studying medicine with her father; in fact, though, she has little knowledge of anything beyond caring for the flowers in the garden.  She enjoys spending time with Giovanni both for himself and for the knowledge of the world she learns from him, like a child soaking it all in.  She understands her circumstances, to some degree, and is saddened but not surprised when she wilts flowers and kills insects by her touch and breath.  She appears to genuinely love Giovanni.

Giovanni has come to Padua to study at the University.  He is not wealthy, as he only has a few gold ducats in his pocket and a letter of introduction when he arrives.  He is homesick upon his arrival and is cheered at the sight of Beatrice in the garden.  He is warned that Dr. Rappaccini is a scientist who cares more for his experiments than the patients whom he treats.  He dismisses this information and continues to pursue the lovely Beatrice, even when he sees evidence that she can wilt flowers and kill insects.  He enjoys spending time with Beatrice, teaching and talking with her about many things, but never touching. He does appear to love Beatrice--until he thinks he's been duped by by the Rappaccinis and has been poisoned.

At this point, though their stories aren't particularly similar, their paths converge.  Beatrice is infuriated at what Rappaccini has done--"created" an artificial world in which these two people will be powerful and untouchable...and forever isolated from the rest of the world.  Once Giovanni realizes that Beatrice is an innocent pawn he forgives her; and he, too, is infuriated with the doctor.  It seems to me this is really the only point of comparison between the two of them.

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