Rappaccini's Daughter - An Exploration of Human Nature The key to my understanding of Hawthorne's perspective on science and nature in Rappaccini's Daughter was his cheeky introduction, when he placed himself somewhere between the transcendentalists and the “writers”. and men in ink who appeal to the intellect and sympathies of the multitude” – too unpopular for the multitude, and too popular for the transcendentalists. Choosing not to fit into either camp, he seems to tease us with the merits and faults of each – science and nature as well. It is not a question of balance, nor of weighing arguments. His device here is to play on the tensions linked to these apparent polarities. On first reading, "Rappaccini's Daughter" appeared as a cautionary tale, a warning about the dangers of too much science, of excessive manipulation of nature - leading to "thwarted nature." », the “fatality which accompanies all these acts of perverted wisdom”. Rappaccini is described as a "vile empiricist" and "unrestrained by a natural affection for his daughter". Beatrice, his daughter, describes herself as simply his earthly child, while the plants are the “offspring of his intellect”. Beatrice is described by her physical beauty and her venomous physical nature. She is also described by the “pure light of her character.” Giovanni, the future lover, alternates between obsession with Beatrice - which could be love - and horror of her. The obsession is with its beauty and simplicity – its goodness. The horror comes from its venomous physical nature. Giovanni's character, however, leaves something to be desired when he urges Beatrice to take the fatal antidote to her poisoning. Beatrice protected Giovan... middle of paper ...... science was represented by her behavior with her daughter and her garden - not touching anything directly, only watching and tending from afar. Baglioni sought power in a manipulative and political manner – represented by his academic rivalry with Rappaccini, his plan to kill Beatrice, and his manipulation of Giovanni as an instrument to kill Beatrice. Giovanni wanted to have power over Beatrice – he wanted to reshape her into a form he could “love” – he couldn’t love her as she was. Beatrice and the plants in the garden were the innocents in this story: they were simply born. The poison in their physical nature was simply: there was no malice in them. Beatrice was the only human who showed true love and only wanted to love/love. She expressed her love for Giovanni by dying - and in dying, she freed herself (transcended) from the power of each of these men..