The Picture Of Dorian Gray Research Paper

Contrary to Oscar Wilde’s first claim, “art is quite useless,” in his novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, the story demonstrates how art can have an important role in teaching a moral lesson. This is shown through aspects of the psychoanalytic school of criticism and the Freudian theory of the id, ego, and superego. In the beginning, Dorian Gray is a man who is kindhearted and innocent. This changes when he is introduced into a lifestyle of hedonistic pleasures and he becomes selfish, corrupted, and driven only by his id. As a result, he changes into a man who has no interest in how others perceive him, whose mental state becomes unstable, and one that corrupts anyone around him. The story shows that the willingness of one to allow their id

Throughout the novel, it is apparent that those who are associated with Dorian end up with either a ruined reputation or dead. For an example, Dorian murders Basil out of his allegiance to the pleasure principle and his hedonistic lifestyle. In the interaction that reunited Basil and Dorian, Basil pleaded Dorian to recognize what he has done wrong and to change. This had been perceived as a threat by Dorian’s mind which was solely occupied by the id and in order to eliminate the threat, he kills Basil. At this moment in the story, Dorian will do anything to protect his way of life and in order to show his commitment, he eliminates any possible threats to it. Furthermore, Dorian is indirectly responsible for the deaths of Sybil Vane, Alan Campbell, and many more. Dorian’s cruel rejection towards Sybil Vane is what prompted her to take her own life. Alan also took his own life out of guilt because of what Dorian blackmailed him into doing. Although Dorian did not physically murder these individuals, his selfish actions are the reason behind why they took their lives. In the end, the only way Dorian could have stopped his destructive path caused by his id was to allow it to claim himself. He attempts to leave his life of selfish pleasures behind but he is unsuccessful. He does not know how to truly change his pleasure seeking ways without the presence of his superego. In his last attempt to “be good”, Dorian kills himself along with his id. These events reveal how Dorian’s devotion to the pleasure principle causes harm to others and turns Dorian into a murderer. Dorian’s loyalty to this lifestyle is what ruins his the life of himself and many others around