Eternal youth is a universal theme that is flourishing throughout life. Musician Lana Del Rey speaks in her lyrics of her song “Young and Beautiful” when she says, “will you still love me when I’m no longer young and beautiful; will you still love me when I got nothing but my aching soul”, as expressing her thoughts of growing old and being afraid of losing her youth and beauty to the young love that she has. For the love for eternal youth, in which is portrayed in Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, the theme is one that is highly faced with multiple encounters of internal conflict intimate with the characters, specifically Lord Henry, Mrs. Vane and the main protagonist himself, Dorian Gray. With a cause-and-effect action of the importance …show more content…
Vane, presents herself as one who feeds off her daughter’s youth to feel young. She pertains a strong desire of living her life through Sibyl’s young life as an actress who has a secret relationship with young, wealthy Dorian Gray, which disconnects her from protecting or paying any acknowledgment to her children. Oscar Wilde describes her obsessive response about the great things of youth during her discussion with James about Dorian Gray when she remarks, “…if this gentleman is wealthy, there is no reason why she should not contract an alliance with him. I trust that he has all of the aristocracy. He has all the appearance of it, I must say… his good looks are really quite remarkable; everybody notices them” (Wilde 47). With the remarks made by Mrs. Vane, Oscar Wilde’s attempt to express the thought of youth, with even those in the slumps, as a lifestyle worth looking forward too and how an appealing, physical appearance of youth is something that everyone wants as an expression for high …show more content…
Vane, his theme of the importance of youth stood out to be one of many universal stand points that is relatable to any point in time. Specifically during this Victorian period, the importance of youth took a turn into many things instead of life. Youth became a symbol for wealthy, happiness and aristocracy, according to some. Conversely, through the expression of some characters, such as Dorian Gray, the importance of youth causes an oppressing emotion towards the thought of aging as it gives him a fear and a portrait to keep in secret. Through Lord Henry, the importance of youth became something that he inspired within Dorian Gray, yet became a dangerous passion that led to absurd conversion and advice for Gray. To sum up, Mrs. Vane displays a sense to the importance of youth as for every encounter she had with Sibyl, she overlooked all of her daughter’s verbal grievances and only responded with remarks made of wanting to be in high society of aristocracy, being extremely fortune or, utmost outstandingly, keeping every external part of her as young as she used to be. To conclude, Oscar Wilde’s lifestyle was young, wealthy and reckless as he made his characters. Nonetheless, without youth, there wouldn’t be anything but “an aching
The French born author, Anais Nin once wrote, “We do not grow absolutely, chronologically. We grow sometimes in one dimension, and not in another; unevenly. We grow partially. We are relative” ("Think Exist Quotations"). Anais is expounding upon the inconsistency all people have in aspects of their personalities. Some days a person may be hailed as a saint for their actions, while other days they seem absolutely evil. In most literature, characters are defined as good or evil based on their revealed thoughts and actions. On occasion an anomaly may be found, where a character is more ambiguous. Dorian Gray’s Actions throughout The Picture of Dorian Gray paralyzes the readers’ ability to condemn Dorian as purely good or purely evil, causing them to be more sympathetic than usual.
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.
“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 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.
Women in the Victorian Era cast aside by their male counterparts result in consequences such as those illustrated by Oscar Wilde. Men who primarily only care for themselves and belittling the feelings of women turn into tremendously selfish beings. From the first act of evil towards Sibyl Vane, to the last major act of killing Basil Hallward, the immoral acts of Dorian in The Picture of Dorian Gray show the definite result of disregarding women and in turn, caused chaos amongst the male figures in the novel.
Sibyl falls head over heels in love with Dorian Gray, willing to commit her life to him after only two weeks. Lady Henry hardly knows her husband, to whom she has been married for some time. Because neither woman is in a stable and comfortable situation, both eventually take drastic measures to move on. Therefore, in The Picture of Dorian Gray, both Sibyl Vane and Lady Henry are weak, flighty, and naive.
In Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, Dorian Gray goes through the Hero’s Journey because of the challenges he had been through, the way he transformed, and his crisis.
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.
Wilde begins setting the mood of the text with excessive descriptions of nature, and natural beauty: “The studio was filled with the rich odour of roses, and when the light summer wind stirred amidst the trees of the garden, there came through the open door the heavy scent of the lilac, or the more delicate perfume of the pink-flowering thorn” (Wilde 5). While this description hardly sounds like the language of the gothic, the use of nature sets up a contrast to the darker tones which appear later in the text. The nature theme is also present in the descriptions of Dorian Gray, whom at this point in the text has not been corrupted by the influences of Lord Henry Wotton or his search for pleasure and experience. Not only is Gray described as someone who encompasses flower like beauty, he is a representation of a flower himself. As Lord Henry describes, Gray is “some brainless, beautiful creature, who should be always here in winter when [there are] no flowers to look at” (7). Wilde extends this flower allusion with the metaphor of the aging man, and the beauty which dies with age. Like a flower Dorian’s beauty will fade, wither, a...
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.
“‘Sibyl Vane is sacred!’” he exclaims when describing the actress to his friend Lord Henry (Wilde 51). Dorian worships her because she encompasses every aspect of the aesthetic ideal in her beauty, youth and mastery of her art.... ... middle of paper ... ...
In the novel The Picture of Dorian Gray written by Oscar Wilde readers are presented with a vast depiction of the art of immorality in the face of ignorant innocence portrayed by the character Dorian Gray. In the beginning it seems to be a quaint novel on artistry and the paradoxical relationship between two lifelong friends by the name of Basil Hallward and Lord Henry. The plot takes a surprising twist when introduced to the real center of attention, the character of the seemingly innocent Dorian Gray. Upon this introduction Wilde then begins to tell the tale of what a life of secrecy and deception will lead to without the consciousness of a moral threshold and the inescapable burden of Dorians horrid accumulation of sins. The deception begins with a simple shout out to the heavens for the impossible to be granted. This then flourishes into unspeakable acts caused by an Egyptian statue, bringing misfortune to Dorian Gray by giving him exactly what he so desperately desires, thus teaching the world a lesson. Not everything we so strongly desire the world to provide is good for the soul.
In Oscar Wilde's novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, beauty is depicted as the driving force in the lives of the three main characters, Dorian, Basil and Lord Henry. Dorian, the main character, believes in seizing the day. Basil, the artist, admires all that is beautiful in life. Lord Henry, accredited ones physical appearance to the ability of achieving accomplishments in life. Beauty ordains the fate of Dorian, Basil, and Lord Henry. The novel embodies the relationship of beauty and morality. Beauty is not based on how attractive an object is to everyone, but how attractive it is to one.
In the book, the Story of “The Picture of Dorian Gray” is about a gentleman who deals his soul for eternal youth, and lives a hedonist lifestyle that goes terribly wrong. Dorian Gray loses his fiancé to suicide, which resulted in his first sin revealing itself in the painting. After Sybil Vane dies, her brother, James seeks revenge on Dorian. Subsequent to that, Dorian goes on to kill his friend, Basil Hallward, the painter of his portrait. In the end, Dorian Gray finally accepts his guilt and tries to atone for his crimes by destroying the painting, which is a representation of his soul. A comparison of the film of Dorian Gray (2009) by Oliver Parker and “The Picture of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde shows that book and the movie portrayals differ in the details and purpose.
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