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finds himself easily manipulated and this fault will ultimately lead him to failure. Dorian has his picture…
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Basil is greatly influenced by Dorian Gray, who was his inspiration for the painting that causes all the conflicts of the novel. When Basil met Dorian Gray he became so captivated by him that it influenced him to make many paintings of him. Basil does everything in his power to keep Dorian the way he is by telling him to not listen to Lord Henry, to no avail. Furthermore, when Dorian became upset over the fact that the picture would stay forever youthful and he would not, Basil was prepared to destroy the painting just for Dorian. Dorian’s reaction to the painting influenced Basil’s actions. As the years go by, as Dorian’s personality changes for the worse, Basil still believes that there is still good in him. Basil believed that Dorian was the same innocent man he met many years ago up until the moment he was murdered by…
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Henry-What matters most to Dorian, Lord Henry, and the polite company they keep is not whether a man is good at heart but rather whether he is handsome.In this novel, Lord Henry Wotton creates a conflict with the naïve and innocent Dorian Gray by influencing and mentally corrupting him. Under this influence, Dorian becomes a hedonist, constantly pursuing pleasure and everlasting beauty. This one-way conflict, where Lord Henry almost completely controls Dorian's emotions, is the cause for Dorian's downfall and death.…
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Within Oscar Wilde’s novel ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’, the author opposes the East End of London to the West End, creating a gulf between social classes in the Victorian Society. By incorporating Dorian Gray to these settings, Wilde is able to emphasise the difference of the lifestyles between these two ends of London.…
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In The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde constructs a tale in which Dorian Gray’s desire to stay young forever becomes a Faustian pact. His journey begins when Basil insists on painting him even though Dorian resists this. It is possible he protests too much, but it is also possible he feels a bit embarrassed as well as flattered with the attention. One might consider this the gate into the garden (of Eden) where Sir Henry plays the part of the devil tempting Dorian to take youth and beauty serious when he says:…
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Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) also faces allegations of possible homosexuality. His novel The Picture of Dorian Gray causes scholars to speculate about his attraction to men. This novel is about beautiful, wealthy, and young Dorian Gray who wishes to remain young forever. He meets artist Basil Hallward who quickly becomes obsessed with Gray. Hallward’s portrait of Gray is what keeps him young. He then meets Lord Henry who pushes Gray live his life selfishly. Gray falls in love with actress Sibyl Vane who quits her acting career for him. He broke their engagement, which led her to kill herself. Gray reunites with Hallward who begs him to change his lifestyle, but Gray refused and killed Hallward. He finally realizes he needs to change, and his decision to repent is reflected in his portrait. In a bout of rage, he attempts to destroy the painting that shows him as a beautiful young man. He ends up killing himself, and his servants find him dead next to the painting as an old man. Wilde’s decision to write so fondly of a beautiful young man raised suspicions amongst his peers who took him to court. “There are a number of direct parallels between Dorian Gray and those [Shakespeare’s homoerotic sonnets] poems. Wilde himself pointed this out. When questioned about the homoeroticism of the novel during his first trial, he told the court: "The whole idea was borrowed from Shakespeare, I regret to say — yes,…
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Throughout the novel, the characters, specifically, Basil, utilize moral ambiguity in order to deceive themselves and others. By doing so, the characters allow themselves to live guilt-free and unaware of their actions, and subsequently, the consequences. Throughout the novel, Basil repeatedly claims that he cares deeply for Dorian, and that Dorian is the best friend that he has ever had; therefore, his actions are well-intentioned. While it is true that Basil cares deeply for Dorian, he does not care for him in the way that he claims; thus, his motives are selfish. However, Basil disguises his selfishness in the flourishes of artistic brilliance, true friendship, and the love of Dorian’s ‘personality’.…
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Dorian’s change in personality reinforces Oscar Wilde’s idea. This is because Dorian is living a double life, and in regards to the novel elements of his good and bad side is shown. This is shown with hints in the novel and shows the cautionary tale of the novel. As his friends, such as Lord Henry attempted to “spoil” his “beautiful nature” one of his closest friend Basil was cautious this was going to turn young Dorian from good to evil. Wilde does this to show how Dorian’s lifestyle can be corrupted morally and immorally, as things such as the painting make him accomplish the things he always wanted accepting pleasures moral or immorally. In spite of this, Lord Henry threatens Dorian’s fear of the…
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A renowned painter named Basil Hallward meets this young, handsome man named Dorian Gray. Basil is set in a trance with Dorian's beauty from the very start. He asks to paint Dorian to capture and preserve his youth. He has painted him many times, but this final time he paints him how he appears. During the time Basil and Dorian are together Basil cherishes every moment. He notices how innocent the young lad is and, can capture it in his paintings. On a day he is going to start on his painting of Dorian his friend Henry Wotton pays him a visit. Henry is a witty man that manipulates people using his charisma and his lifestyle . Basil who is a polar opposite knows that Henry is bad news and doesn't want Dorian to even meet the guy. The meeting between Dorian and Henry was inevitable by this point. Once they met the bond between them was formed. Basil was filled with fear that…
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This led to a heated conversation where Dorian said to Sibyl: “You have spoiled the romance of my life. How little you can know of love, if you say it mars your art! Without your art, you are nothing. I would have made you famous, splendid, magnificent. The world would have worshipped you, and you would have borne my name. What are you now? A third-rate actress with a pretty face" (Wilde 74). Dorian’s words were in direct contrast to his never-ending accolades of Sibyl that he mentioned prior to his talk with Lord Henry. Rather than viewing Sibyl as a beautiful woman who should be placed on a pedestal, Dorian now backtracked and deemed Sibyl as someone of little or no value without her acting…
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Oscar Wilde’s aesthetic novel pertains to a Faustian contract which allows the titular character to lead a decadent, immoral lifestyle by causing the portrait’s image to change rather than Dorian’s, thus becoming an embodiment of his soul. Basil Hallward, the reclusive artist who painted Dorian’s portrait, is the character wherein the sexual subtext is most prevalent due to his obsessive idolisation of Dorian. This is evident from the incipient passages of the book, due to his reluctance to reveal Dorian’s name to Lord Henry for fear that he would spoil him. Additionally, there are a myriad of passages throughout the novel which hint at an infatuation rather than a simple artistic admiration; Basil professes that he ‘couldn’t be happier if [he] didn’t see him every day’ (Wilde and Elfenbein, 2007), that Dorian is ‘absolutely necessary to [him]’ (Wilde and Elfenbein, 2007),, and that Dorian ‘is much more to [him] than a model or a sitter’(Wilde and Elfenbein, 2007),. These quotes show the intensity of Basil’s affection for Dorian, which seems to extend beyond the realm of friendship. Additionally, Basil is depicted as becoming increasingly jealous throughout the novel, which is most prominent once the engagement of Dorian and Sybil is announced. Basil is described as being ‘silent and preoccupied’(Wilde and Elfenbein, 2007), with ‘a gloom over him’(Wilde and…
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Sibyl Vane is a character of great importance in The Picture Of Dorian Gray. However, she is also a symbol. A symbol of the Dorian Gray of old, the way he was before succumbing to a mind numbing world of guilty pleasures and debauchery. Sibyl also represents the beginning of Dorian Grays’ descent into this dark world. A “love” interest of the young Dorian Gray, Sibyl represents what Dorian wished to be; young, pure, and innocent, and perhaps naïve of the world around her. Dorian first lays his eyes on Sibyl Vane when he enters an old, decrepit theatre and witnesses her prowess in the arts, especially in the art of acting. While Dorian claims to be in love with Sibyl, what he has truly fallen for is her acting prowess. (Wilde p. 55) Dorian soon meets the young Sibyl face to face and begins wooing her. (Wilde p. 57) Sibyl, being young and impressionable, falls for the charming young man and truly believes he loves her (Wilde p. 65) Dorian is so enthralled with the acting prowess of the young woman that he invites his companions to bear witness for themselves. Unfortunately, her performance is lacking tremendously. The acting talent Dorian had fallen in love with seemed to have disappeared entirely and without explanation. This coupled with the fact that his friends also bore witness to the “talents” of young Sibyl Vane, sends Dorian into a fit of rage. Without hesitation he storms into Sibyls dressing room and proceeds to end their relationship, showing no mercy. This crushes poor Sibyls heart. She tries to explain that she is now unable to feign love on the stage, now that she has truly fallen in love in reality, but to no avail, for as previously stated, Dorian had far more interest in the acting talents of Sibyl Vane than anything else. This heart wrenching chain of events will lead to the tragic suicide of this poor girl, overcome with loss. After learning of Sibyls suicide Dorian is initially wracked with guilt. However,…
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In that case, beauty captures the attention of others, but it hides his raw side. Dorian Gray is a young, “...beautiful creature, who should be always here in winter when we have no flowers” (Wilde 3). With that said, the quote confirmed by Lord Henry assures others of Dorian Gray’s worthiness in the following chapters. He will be the main character who will undergo an experiment secretly conducted by Mr.Wotton. Therefore, the description of Dorian’s pleasant appearance highlights an important quality one will adore. But we are conflicted with the main person who influenced Dorian Gray in an evil manner. Could it be Basil his artistic best friend or Lord Henry the passionate hedonistic? From chapter one, Basil has been frightened by Lord Henry’s presence and him wishing to see who was the “young Adonis” in his painting (Wilde 2). Lord Henry seems to be astonished by the this youthful beauty because he describes him as “if he was made out of ivory and rose-leaves” (Wilde 2). For this reason, Basil prevents Lord Henry to interfere with Dorian Gray because his art is based off of him. Lord Henry is known best for altering people’s mind set and to persuade those to consider whether his proposals are correct. By the way, Lord Henry recognizes his intentions when trying to get a hold of this beautiful monster. He confesses to Basil that he…
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Throughout Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, the sinful actions of Dorian cause Dorian himself as well as the portrait of Dorian to diminish. The portrait Basil paints of Dorian depicts an innocent, beautiful young boy who has yet to be corrupted by the influence of the world. However, as Dorian grows older he becomes debased by the thoughts of others and his own experiences. As the novel progresses, the reader loses sight of the innocent, pure Dorian and sees the cruel, corrupted Dorian. After Sibyl killed herself Dorian illustrates his corruption by claiming, “when she played so badly, and my heart almost broke. She explained it all to me. It was terribly pathetic. But I was not moved a bit. I thought her shallow” (96). Dorian no…
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Today, readers learn much about older cultures through the writers of a specific period. A common method is to illustrate the life of a citizen in a community who is alienated from the rest. An individual that is alienated from society is not always looked down upon or discriminated against. In The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, Dorian Gray is seen as immoral by the citizens of London and by himself.The personality Wilde gave Dorian Gray is a representation of who many citizens of 19th century England wished to be because Dorian possesses what mattered most, beauty and wealth.…
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