More handpicked essays just for you.
The development of dorian gray in association with Lord henry
Structure of the picture of dorian gray
The development of dorian gray in association with Lord henry
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Dorian Gray seems to be two different people, at the exact same time. He is beautiful externally, but hideous internally. He is good-natured externally, and at the same time, ill-natured internally. Dorian appears to be perfect externally, but is extremely flawed internally. Dorian’s private ethics oppose the public morals of the traditional Victorian society in which he is a part of (Gillespie). He possesses a dual-nature through his struggle between his inner and outer selves. Dorian seems to exhibit a duality of innocence and sin at the same time. He is publically good and innocent. He maintains his good social standing for a time, by appearing to be the same, moral man he once was before he became friends with Lord Henry. However, at the same time, he …show more content…
They each feel similarities between themselves and Dorian, and strive to mold him into a reflection of themselves. Basil through his portrait, and Lord Henry through his words, both recreate Dorian in their own image and likeness (Manganiello). He publically reflects Basil through his exterior personality, and privately reflects Lord Henry, through his inner personality and behaviors. In a criticism essay written on The Picture of Dorian Gray, a writer states, “The need to immerse one’s self in unfamiliar sensations stands as the motivating force guiding Dorian’s behavior” (Gillespie). This thought is an interesting idea because it explains why Lord Henry seems so appealing to Dorian. As a young man, Dorian is still developing himself through new experiences, and the intriguing novelty of Lord Henry draws him in. This fulfills the need for Dorian to immerse himself in unfamiliar experiences that he is not accustomed to. He is not used to living that type of lifestyle and when he has the opportunity to do so, he becomes completely captivated by it and is unable to release himself from the hold it has on
“The Picture of Dorian Gray” is a novel written by Oscar Wilde. The story takes place in England, where the artist Basil Hallward paints a portrait of the young and beautiful Dorian Gray. During his stay at the artist’s studio, he gets introduced to Lord Henry who later becomes one of the most influential people in his life. Dorian Gray becomes aware of his amazing beauty and youthfulness due to the portrait and wishes that the portrait ages instead of him. His wish comes true, Dorian remains beautiful and youthful while the portrait changes. Lord Henry becomes his best friend and motivates him to live in abundance, to sin and always strive for beauty. After a while, Dorian discovers that his portrait doesn’t only age, but also changes face expression as a result of all his sins and evil deeds. Dorian gets anxious by the fact that the portrait shows his evil soul and is scared that somebody will see it, therefore he hides it. The portrait haunts Dorian although it’s hidden. As Dorian’s sins gets worse, he feels that he can’t handle the pressure anymore and decides to destroy the portrait that shows his true self.
In "The Picture of Dorian Gray" by Oscar Wilde, we see a beautiful young man who makes tremendous efforts to transform the actual world into the idealistic world of art, dreams and sensations. Dorian's quest, however, culminates in his ultimate tragic destruction. Given that Dorian lives a corrupt life, one is likely to focus on the negative aspects of his character. In spite of his significant character flaws, Dorian Gray may still be considered a hero. This essay will examine Dorian's degradation from the innocent world to the vicious, sensation-oriented world. The elements contributing to Dorian’s status of tragic hero will then be discussed.
It is blatant from the beginning of the novel that homoerotic energies permeate the story. Basil has always been intrigued, obsessed, and fascinated by the beautiful, perfect Dorian Gray. Nonetheless, Basil dies in Chapter XIII of The Picture of Dorian Gray – that is, he dies near the middle of the story. This death is premature, because the romantic relationship between Basil and Dorian is not explored even though it is apparent that just before he dies, Basil still feels love and tenderness towards his protégé Dorian. Although Dorian does not seem to have any romantic interest in Basil, he does need Basil as a guardian angel until the end of the story. Dorian is akin to Faustus in Marlowe’s “Doctor Faustus,” for he naïvely lusts after knowledge and sells his soul to Mephistopheles – Lord Henry in The Picture of Dorian Gray – to obtain this knowledge. In “Doctor Faustus,” the good angel is a recurring figure that stays with Faustus until near Faustus’ death, forever urging the Doctor to repent. Basil, however, is a shadowy figure and is not able to give Dorian good advice until the end of the story.
The reader is able to see Dorian Gray’s first take on beauty when he says, “Oh, I am tired of sitting, and I don’t want a life-sized portrait of myself.” (16). By Dorian saying that he doesn’t want a portrait of himself the reader can infer that he doesn’t notice the beauty in himself or rather doesn’t care to recognize it. However, when Lord Henry first meets Dorian he describes Dorian by saying, “Yes, he was certainly wonderfully handsome, with his finely
In the beginning of the book, Dorian seems to be an innocent, charming, beautiful young man, and even referred to as “a wonderful creation” (ch 2). Dorian is described as this amazing person, with looks comparable to a God, charm that could swoon any woman, and a mesmerizing persona about him with the ability to draw anyone near, yet he seems to be so imperceptive to himself. His attitude of simplicity causes readers to be fond of him, passing their first judgments that he could not possibly be evil. As the story moves along readers see the first inkling that Dorian may not be so perfect. Dorian comments on “how sad it is…[that he] shall grow old, and horrible, and dreadful. But the picture will remain always young” (ch 2). This statement lets readers inside Dorian’s thoughts, showing how shallow and frivolous Dorian views life to be. He places so much value and esteem on looks alone, forgetting that being painted should be an honor, or at the very least...
A product of Lord Henry's contradicting hedonistic philosophies, Dorian Grey forms a double personality comprised of a truthful painting representing his soul and an the antithesis that is himself, much like Henry's epigrams that often contain an inverse to their initial message. Seduced by Henry's poisonous whisperings, Dorian becomes obsessed with his own beauty and maintaining the illusion of youth. In order to do this he must separate his external appearance and internal soul. His duality can be explained through a thought that crossed Lord Henry's mind after visiting Dorian's aunt and learning about his difficult childhood: "behind every exquisite thing that existed, there was something tragic." Lord Henry is referring how although Dorian
In The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, Dorian Gray slowly becomes more influenced by things and people around him. Eventually, Lord Henry gifts him with a book describing a wealthy man’s pursuit of aesthetically and sensually pleasing items. “The yellow book” has a much stronger effect on Dorian Gray’s perception of beauty than Lord Henry Wotton does. Although it can be argued that Lord Henry introduced Dorian to the idea of aestheticism, the “yellow book” drives Dorian to live a life full of it, and changes his focus. Dorian shows the fact that he is not strongly influenced by Lord Henry through his interactions with Sibyl. Contrary to this, Oscar Wilde illustrates the substantial influence the yellow book has on Dorian by one, the
The Picture of Dorian Gray was a remarkably well-written book due to the reaction of its themes by society. In the preface of the novel, Wilde introduces the opinion that "...there is no moral or immoral book. Books are well written or badly written. That is all." Numerous views can be taken upon this fastidious comment. Many would agree that Wilde is justifiably correct because the preface was written with the intention that his readers understand the deeper meaning of the themes than worrying about whether it is considered morally acceptable; or perhaps, the view that it could be considered moral or immoral by the impact it has on the readers' lives. Even though there are several positions held on what The Picture of Dorian Gray's most important meaning is about, the most prominent is the novel as a moral book. Lord Henry Wotton immediately begins to corrupt Dorian's mind after they first meet by forcing his immoral thoughts of "yielding to temptation" which allows Lord Henry to hold his attention. After listening for quite a while to Lord Henry's views, Dorian begins to change his own to match them, and therefore begins to live a life of immorality. The yellow book is a device that Lord Henry uses to further corrupt and drive Dorian deeper into the pits of sin. Through Lord Henry's influence, the changes in Dorian Gray, and the impact of the yellow book, Oscar Wilde efficiently reveals The Picture of Dorian Gray as a moral book.
Although Wilde halts short of stating that Basil and Lord Henry have sexual feelings for Dorian , the language he uses to describe their devotion for Dorian is unmistakably the language of deep, romantic intimacy. “Tell me more about Mr. Dorian Gray. How often do you see him?”. “Every day. I couldn’t be happy if I didn’t see him everyday. He is absolutely necessary to me”. This common motif of homoerotic bonds between men plays a large role in structuring the novel. Basils painting is born from his adoration of Dorians beauty , comparatively Lord Henry is overcome with desire to seduce Dorian. This sense of camaraderie between men fits into Wildes aesthetic values, for it returns him to his past where the philosophy of beauty was not only the basis of society but fundamental to culture. As a homosexual living in an intolerant society, Wilde asserted this philosophy in order to justify his own lifestyle.
He becomes an echo of someone else’s music, an actor of a part that has not been written for him. The aim of life is self-development. ”(Wilde 13). The words of an honored role model can easily persuade even the purest of hearts into the darkness of crime and evil, such as Dorian Gray. At this moment, Gray falls victim to the flourishing words of Lord Henry, who manipulates Gray from a timid and shining boy to nothing but a shallow man who commits capital crimes to conceal his secret.
Dorian Gray's life is dictated by his physical appeal. His beauty lies within his youth. Dorian's perception of beauty allows him to love. He is convinced that his beauty allows him to accomplish anything he desires regardless of the consequences and still be loved by his friends. He uses his beauty to mitigate his evil actions. Dorian says, “I don't wish to know anything about them. I love scandals about other people, but scandals about myself don't interest me. They have not got the charm of novelty.” Youth and beauty are the most precious things to Dorian. In his life, beauty is of utmost importance. Then he sees the picture of himself, painted by Basil, absorb his sins and this changed his view. “I hope it is not about myself. I am tired of myself tonight. I should like to be somebody else,” Dorian said. He aspired to have had a good life rather than one filled with artificial meaning and beauty. The moral beauty of Doran lies within the portrait of himself. The portrait imitated his life. He finally realized that beauty cannot help him escape his evil actions. He deeply lamemted his wish that the portrait bore the burden of his age an...
Dorian Gray starts off as a young, beautiful man who is loved by many. Because of this, he is all that Basil Hallward, a painter, and Lord Henry Wotton, a nobleman, ever think about. However, they have different ideas on what they want Dorian to become. Their conflicting influences become one of the main conflicts of the book, and this is noticed by Basil. He says, “Don’t spoil him. Don’t try to influence him. Your influence would be bad.” Basil influences Dorian’s choices and actions the most at the beginning of the novel. This is evidenced when Basil says, “He is all my art to me now.” Basil wants Dorian to devote himself to love and selflessness in order to live a happy life. Dorian follows this advice and falls in love with Sibyl Vane, and she becomes another conflict for the novel. He is willing to sacrifice anything for Sibyl, which pleases
In analyzing Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, concepts such as influence and the origin of evil in Dorian Gray play an exceptionally valuable role in understanding the motives of the characters. Although some critics argue characters such as Lord Kelso significantly influence Dorian’s corruption, Lord Henry Wotton’s toxic personality undeniably impacts Dorian the most. Throughout the course of the novel, Lord Henry remains the ultimate source of evil and uses deception and persuasion to poison Dorian from a naïve boy to a destructive monster.
Basil Hallward, a painter, knows the corruptive influence that Lord Henry can impose upon his model, Dorian Gray. Basil does not want Lord Henry to even meet Dorian because he is afraid that Dorian will be influenced and ruined. Basil begs Henry by saying, "Don't spoil him. Don't try to influence him. Your influence would be bad. The world is wide, and has many marvelous people in it. Don't take away from me the one person who gives to my art whatever charm it possesses: my life as an artist depends on him" (Wilde 10). Right from the beginning Wilde begins to show what type of person Lord Henry is. Lord Henry's influences pose a threat to Dorian. Basil is well aware of this.
To avoid getting hurt, he pretended to be Lord Henry: decadent, cynical, eloquent, rebellious, and a bit evil in the eyes of bluenoses. Dorian Gray is what he would like to be: be loved, taste all the beauties and exquisite in life and die for what he wants to defend. In this novel, Wilde portrays his philosophy of "aesthetic idealism." He favored nature when it was explained as an internal individualistic impulse, just like Lord Henry who suggests that beauty is the greatest good and doing so diminishes the role of the soul. He does this out of a half-facetious, half-earnest pursuit of that which is more genuine, less socially constructed and therefore less hypocritical.