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Mr. Dorian Gray began the story as one of the most compassionate, humble, virtuous men. ALl those qualities evolved once he traded his soul for his youth (with the painting). As life went on it became easier and easier for Dorian to sin since he did not have a soul. In my opinion, his greediness and selfishness was a poor excuse before he abandoned his soul. Dorian’s first act of greediness, I believe, was when he craved to be youthful for eternity. Dorian wanted to be different to be superior to others, to have something that the whole world would be envious of. He believed that to live a simple life was merely to live at all.
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...
Obsession in its nature is toxic; it turns people into gods, and leaves no room for their actual selves. Celebrities are the idols of the modern world, where ever they go, a fan follows them dying to get their attention. Dorian Gray, who was loved by nearly all of London for his charm and beauty, who’s biggest fan, Basil, worship of him lead to bitterness. The theme of obsession in The Picture of Dorian Gray is seen through both those who worship Dorian Gray, and the portrait, which is the object of Dorian's obsession. Although Wilde displays obsession through Basil's worship of Dorian, and even Dorian's obsession with himself and his youth, the modern day celebrity is a parallel to Dorian, who is worshipped by many at first for their beauty, wealth or fame, but the nature of the worship eventually leads to chaos.
In society, there has constantly been the question as to whether people can change or not. Author Oscar Wilde proves in his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, that one can. The question he poses to his readers is “What kind of transformation is shown by the protagonist Dorian Gray: good or bad?” It is possible to think that Dorian Gray has become a better person, not for others, but for himself since he lives in the pursuit of pleasure and always achieves it. However, as it is demonstrated by the portrait, the damnation of the lives of others can provoke damage to one’s conscience and soul. Dorian’s soul is ruined gradually by his hedonistic adventures, eventually failing to redeem his actions, but not before he leaves a devastating path of destruction and experiences self-inflicted destruction.
At the beginning of the book Dorian makes a wish that inevitably changes his life forever. His wish is that, "If it were I who was to be always young, and the picture that was to grow old! For that - for that - I would give everything! Yes, there is nothing in the whole world I would not give! I would give my soul for that!" (Wilde, 40) As Dorian's wish of staying young and beautiful forever come true so does the fact that he has given his soul away to the devil.
The first one is because of Sibyl Vain’s death because instead of being devasted, he found pleasure in her death because about what Lord Henry told him that it is a beautiful work of art. Another one is the anxiety of leaving his portrait alone. He is not really guilty but rather he is scared that people might discover his secret. She also said that the decaying portrait represents a limited life, filled with fear and self-loathing that one would not which upon anyone. Dorian’s thirst for pleasure is therefore blamed upon the immoral guidance from Lord Henry. Because from the beginning he was exceptionally susceptible for Lord Henry’s influence, who fashioned him to believe that his most esteemed attribute was his beauty. This taught Dorian Gray to be vain – all the while not realizing that his true value steamed from his innocence and purity, which lent his physical beauty a magical
For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? (King James Version, Mark 8:36) This well-known scripture from the Bible has been recited an innumerable amount of times throughout human history. Through this passage God reveals to man the significance of one’s soul. If a man should “gain the whole world” this would mean that he would be willing to do and sacrifice anything in order to satisfy his own hedonistic tendencies, and in doing so he faces the loss of something even greater than himself; his soul. Being that the soul is a completely separate entity from one’s carnal being the appearance of one’s body does not always correlate with one’s soul. An aesthetically pleasing individual may have a dark and monstrous soul, whereas a differently visaged individual may have one that is light and appealing. In the case of Dorian Gray he fits the bill of the former perfectly. In Oscar Wilde’s gothic novel The Picture of Dorian Gray the protagonist Dorian Gray trades his soul for eternal beauty. His soul then becomes encompassed in a painting of him, but as Dorian loses his morality the painting likens itself to the decay of Dorian’s inner self; the once gorgeous picture slowly transforms into a ghastly shadow of its former beauty. Wilde’s use of an ominous tone helps to better convey the idea that youth and beauty allude to an innocent soul that bears no corruption; this misconception is of great significance in The Picture of Dorian Gray because it was the semblance of youthful beauty that allowed Dorian to continue with his hedonistic lifestyle and ultimately the devastation of his soul.
can be excused because people live for the sake of living. A conscience becomes a separate set of rules determined by each individual to please them. The murderer thinks murder is okay and the normal person doesn’t. Living with a conscience relative to personal desires and not living without a conscience (when it is defined as a set of predefined and commonly accepted values) is the same thing.
...d not exist. Lord Henry Wotton’s meddling influenced Dorian’s morals, and his personality. Although Lord Henry was the reason for Dorian’s life going astray, Dorian made the ultimate choices. In the end allowing himself to succumb to all of Lord Henry’s awful philosophies and changing who he was as a person prompted his tragic downfall. He was a true tragic hero in the fact that in the end he did see that he was wrong. Dorian started as a kind, gentleman who saw very little value in looks or other material things. Soon after becoming close to Lord Henry Wotton his morals all begin to change and he values things he never used to. Then Dorian Gray attempts to make change, by destroying what he thinks is the issue; the painting. Unfortunately, He realized too late his self destruction had gone too far and he could no longer come back. Dorian gray was a true tragic hero.
When Dorian Gray first meets Lord Henry at the studio of artist Basil Hallward, he is fascinated with Lord Henry’s wit and the radical social doctrines that he advocates. Dorian is easily molded and falls for the argument he hears. According to Lord Henry the goal of new hedonism, “to realize one’s nature perfectly…to give form to every feeling, expression to every thought, reality to every dream” (198-199). As far as philosophies go this seems rather innocuous until Lord Henry goes on to clarify that, “every impulse that we strive to strangle broods in the mind, and poisons us…the only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. Resist it, and your soul grows sick with longing” (199). Lord Henry’s advice entices the malleable Dorian, who does not seem to realize that Lord Henry may advocate giving in to every impulse, even the destructive ones, but he does not follow this advice himself. As Basil Hallward informs Lord Henry, “you never say a moral thing, and you never do a wrong thing. Your cynicism is simply a pose” (188). Dorian, however, takes Lord Henry’s advice concerning new hedonism at face value and the results are disastrous.
Living in a generation where passion has nothing to do with your partner anymore and love is confused with lust creates the mindset that the community has been distorted in. Hypnotized to believe that intellect is stupidity and love is just decoration is the message and satire that Oscar Wilde is trying to convey. In Pictures of Dorian Gray, Dorian’s innocence is being influence by outsiders to create his own dystopia by disregarding reality which attacks the mind and leaves evil in Dorian when he realizes that life is more than art.
Ms. Crocker: What is going on in your mind Ominica, Dorian life was terrible because of the immoral thing that he did. Just because he was handsome does not mean he was happy. If you look at the book, you see him try to change himself, and even tell you he was going to change (Points to Lord Henry). Dorian understood why he was being punished, and the Mirror might have been his physical way of knowing he was doing wrong, but within every person there is something that tells us if there are wrong or right. By choosing not to like to that voice be to put ourselves at risk and in the case of Dorian it can lead to our death.
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...
After viewing the portrait Basil painted of himself, the seed of vanity that Lord Henry planted in young Dorian’s heart grew and he wished to stay as beautiful and young as the picture forever. Eventually, in some magical and indescribable form, Dorian’s desire comes true and as the years go by he remains youthful and attractive. In spite of this, through the course of his life, the evil deeds that Dorian commits and the wickedness of his soul is reflected through the picture. The portrait mocks him and it is a constant reminder of the evil hidden beneath his gorgeous looks. In terms of life and death, Dorian has this narcissism towards mortality. In a way he views casualties as irrelevant and unfortunate circumstances. In “Oscar Wilde 's Aesthetic Gothic: Walter Pater, Dark Enlightenment, and The Picture of Dorian Gray,” John Paul Riquelme compares this conduct to that of the Greek mythological character Narcissus’s behavior. The story of Narcissus speaks of a hunter whose pride and narcissist attitude blinded him. Riquelme makes his point by saying the following: “As an avatar of Narcissus, Dorian Gray embodies both tendencies in a poisonous, self-negating confluence signifying madness” (610). In the end, Narcissus’s fate and fall is similar to that of Dorian Gray’s
The following extract presents Dorian Gray’s chilling self-destruction through the use of language, structure and form. Filled with gothic suspense, Oscar Wilde presents the mental and physical effects of an opium addiction.
“There were passions in him that would find their terrible outlet, dreams that would make the shadow of the real evil” (Wilde,115). The author reveals pleasure as the driving force of many characters within Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, but this search for pleasure becomes fatal once taken into the hands of Dorian Gray. Throughout the novel Dorian Gray changes his opinion on pleasure based on what he requires in order to escape reality. With each death and misdeed he is responsible for; Dorian must search harder for a more drastic form of release. His path declines from his innocent beginnings with Sybil Vane, to the pleasure he finds in corrupt relations, and finally his need to escape the reality of killing a former friend. Dorian’s view on pleasure changes as his soul deteriorates and often what brings him pleasure at first is later destroyed and he must find another form of enjoyment. He uses obsession and forced ignorance to try and avoid the reality of his sins but eventually his only way to escape his own damnation is death. Dorian Gray’s quest for pleasure through sensations and detachment intensifies as the novel progresses and is the cause of death and destruction of many as Dorian seeks to find escape from himself and his deeds.