The Perversion of Dorian's Soul in Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray

3947 Words8 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The effect of lord henry's involvement in dorian gray's life

The Perversion of Dorian's Soul in Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray

The soul is thought to be an immaterial entity coexisting with our bodies which is credited with the faculties of thought, action, and emotion. It is the part of our body which is believed to live on after the body dies. In Oscar Wilde's, The Picture of Dorian Gray, the main character, Dorian Gray, destroys the innocence of his soul and becomes corrupt. He becomes corrupt by failing to live a life of virtue. The main reason for his transformation can be attributed to a portrait painted of him that captured the true essence of his innocence. This portrait is the personification of his soul.

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.

Another contributing factor to the perversion of Dorian's soul comes from his supposed friend, Lord Henry Wotton. Lord Henry fills Dorian's head with his outrageous philosophies such as, "....youth is the one thing worth having. .... You have only a few years in which to live really, perfectly, and fully. When your youth goes, your beauty will go with it..." (34) and "The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. Resist it, and your soul grows sick with longing for the things it has forbidden to itself, with desire for what its monstrous laws have made monstrous ...

... middle of paper ...

... that Dorian has become a dissolute and perverse man who cannot understand that vanity and the thrill of "new sensations" are not what run the world.

Works Cited

Cohen, Ed. Talk on the Wilde Side. Great Britain: Routledge, 1993.

Freidman, Jonathan (edited). Oscar Wilde: A Collection of Critical Essays. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1996.

Pearson, Hesketh (edited). Essays By Oscar Wilde. New York: Books For Libraries Press, 1972.

Ransome, Arthur. Oscar Wilde: A Critical Study. London: Mr. Martin Secker, 1913.

Weintraub, Stanley (edited). Literary Criticism of Oscar Wilde. Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press, 1968.

Woodcock, George. The Paradox of Oscar Wilde. London-New York: T.V. Boardman and Co., Ltd., 1950.

Wilde, Oscar. The Picture of Dorian Gray. Denmark: Wordsworth Editions Limited, Reprinted V

Show More
Related

  • Empty Canvas: An Outward Perspective on The Picture of Dorian Gray

    1991 Words  | 4 Pages

    The classic novel by Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray inspires beauty, and romance. The main focus of the novel is aesthetics, a philosophical view detailing the nature of creation and appreciation of art and beauty. The tragedy of the young Dorian Gray after becoming misled by his companion, Lord Henry Wotton, is one that causes many to reform ideas on life and purpose. Lord Henry believes in hedonism, a thought stating that pleasure is the only true good; he declares, “The only things worth pursuing in life are beauty and fulfilment of the senses” (Wilde). This outlook is tempting for many persons, including that of the title character, Dorian Gray. In contrast to Lord Henry is an artist named Basil Hallward, whom perceives Dorian to be his muse; serving as inspiration, and purpose. Basil has many moral traits including trust, compassion, and kindness. His infatuation with Dorian causes him to change his art and style, composing an exquisite painting of the young boy. Basil states, “the work I have done, since I met Dorian Gray, is good work, is the best work of my life…his personality has suggested to me an entirely new manner in art, an entirely new mode of style. I see things differently.” (Wilde). Dorian becomes so mesmerized by the beauty of the picture and the words of Lord Henry that he wishes for the picture to depict his sins and age, rather than his physical being. To the surprise of the young Dorian, his wish becomes fulfilled. This theme shares similarity to the Faust story, as the title character exchanges his soul for pleasures

    Read More

  • The Reader's Sympathy for Dorian from Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray

    2031 Words  | 5 Pages

    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...

    Read More

  • William Farrell’s Men as Success Objects

    816 Words  | 2 Pages

    Farrell, William. “Men as Success Objects.” Constructing Others Constructing Ourselves. Ed. Gruber, Sibylle et al. Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt Publishing. 2002. 185-88.

    Read More

  • The Truth about Cannibalism

    707 Words  | 2 Pages

    The spectrum of logic behind cannibalism is wide in scope and varies in each tribe. In Africa there are a number of cannibalistic tribes, the two most notable being the Fang and Azande tribes. The Fang tribe occupied the Gabun district north of the Ogowh River in the French Congo. According to Mary Kingsley, “The Fang is not a cannibal for sacrificial motives” and is considered by many to be “morally superior to the Negro”. (encyclopedia.org) However, despite displaying higher moral standards, the Fang tribe has been purported to be “utterly indifferent to human life.” (encyclopedia.org) Yet, it was not indifference that served as the basis of practicing the acts of cannibalism but rather they simply found nothing wrong in doing so. In the Fang “a woman who bore ...

    Read More

  • Evil in The Picture of Dorian Gray:

    924 Words  | 2 Pages

    trading his soul for his youth, Dorian rids of the good inside of himself.  The

    Read More

  • Jimi Hendrix

    755 Words  | 2 Pages

    Jimi Hendrix once said "When the power of love over comes the love of power, the world will finally find peace". Im here to day to tell you of his journey to try and make that clear to every 1 else. Yes, Jimi did more than just play guitar. This is the love and times of Mr. James Marshall Hendrix.

    Read More

  • Precis

    766 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...might be conducted by examining the various institutions and their pedagogical approaches to singing. A survey of these institutions around the world might reveal a Westernized institutional culture that neglects the specific cultural subtleties of vocal production throughout a particular nation or region (albeit this is purely speculation on my part).

    Read More

  • Juvenile Delinquency

    1002 Words  | 3 Pages

    Schools that experience crimes and drug abuse are mostly found in disorganized neighborhoods. Schools attempt to ensure safety between students in staff by using mechanical devices but as we see that don’t always help. Research shows that many of the perpetrators of school crime have been or are victims of delinquency themselves. The focus of delinquency entitled “Does school crime reflect neighborhood delinquency?”

    Read More

  • Dorian's Transformation in Oscar Wilde's in the Picture of Dorian Gray

    796 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Cannibalism

    730 Words  | 2 Pages

    There are so many bad things in the world but according to many, cannibalism is considered just about the worst. Depending on your point of view, it rises above even such criminal abominations as, rape and genocide. Then again, we live in a culture, in which people would run vomiting to the bathroom if they saw what went into making their McDonald's hamburgers.

    Read More

  • The Body, Mind, and Soul in The Picture of Dorian Gray

    1886 Words  | 4 Pages

    Dorian Gray is a grand Gothic experiment from the moment in Basil Hallward’s studio when he desperately swears that he “would give [his] soul” if only he “was to be always young, and the picture … was to grow old” in his stead (Wilde 28). Even before this moment, Dorian was a test subject of Lord Henry’s, who wanted to see how many of his own ideas he could inject into the boy. This influence rapidly planted in Dorian the ideas of eternal youth and beauty and led to the encasement of his soul in the portrait. After the switch, Dorian not only is under Lord Henry’s influence, but he is also Oscar Wilde’s subject. In his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, Wilde manipulates Dorian, his surroundings, and his circumstances to capture a realistic portrayal of the character’s downfall by depicting the nature of the body, mind, and soul, and the relationship they share.

    Read More

  • Picture of Dorian Gray: Influence, Corruption and Conscience

    3042 Words  | 7 Pages

    Through Basil Hallward, Wilde implies that Dorian can easily be corrupted. However, Dorian tries to assure Basil that he is not being influenced. He states that Lord Henry "has certainly not been paying me compliments. Perhaps that is the reason that I don't believe anything he has told me" (Wilde 15). The only reason Dorian does not believe Lord Henry is because Lord Henry does not complement him. Wilde infers that if this is the only reason for Dorian to doubt Henry, Dorian could therefore be influenced in some other way. Overall, Wilde shows how a person may deny the warning signs of being influenced.

    Read More

  • Beauty in The Picture of Dorian Gray

    797 Words  | 2 Pages

    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...

    Read More

  • The Sacred And The Profane: The Nature Of Religion By Mircea Eliade

    844 Words  | 2 Pages

    Therefore its threshold represents the dichotomy to the interior is such a shocking transition to the spirit. This supports the conjecture that the most powerful connection to the sacred reality is present in the rites of passage going from the profane to sacred worlds. The sacred view of water represents formlessness. The material used as the flooring of the Hagia Sophia is striated with wave like curves that look similar to ripples in water. Because it symbolizes formlessness the floor of the temple is representative of the chaos of the profane world and the large distance between the floor and dome further emphasizes the distance that separates the world form the glory of God. tmedia of the enormous hemispheric Dome of the

    Read More

  • Th Ethics of Assessment

    742 Words  | 2 Pages

    Revealing a student’s education record or even just one test without permission is a definite no. A student’s educational record is supposed to remain private between the student, parents and teacher. A teacher cannot release information without consent and if they do release the information without consent, the teacher could be fired. The Family Educational Right to Privacy Act restricts a teacher’s ability to share a student’s educational record without permission. It is unethical and potentially harmful to the student for a teacher to share a student’s grade with the class. Releasing educational records without permission is not the only unethical thing a teacher can do and I will go into further depth on this later in my writing.

    Read More

More about The Perversion of Dorian's Soul in Oscar Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray

Open Document