The Picture of Dorian Gray
"The soul is a terrible reality. It can be bought and sold. It can be poisoned or made perfect. There's a soul in each one of us. I know it." This is a statement made by Dorian Gray to his best friend, Lord Henry, a few hours after he realizes that his behavior of the last eighteen years has been absolutely terrible.
First I shall explain the way Dorian Gray lost his ability to be good and how he found it again eighteen years later.
After Sybil Vane's death, the young lad was first seized by terrible remorse. After abandoning her in the theatre with most cruel words, he reconsidered his action during the night and was ready to forgive her and marry her, as he had promised. So the news of her suicide was of course quite an unpleasant shock to him.
Unfortunately Lord Henry was there to influence him with his corrupt and selfish personality. He taught...
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...the soul exists. The soul is a "terrible reality", because it is stronger than any physical phenomenon of belief or disbelief. Whatever you do, it always remains in the depth of your heart and you will always depend on it, as you depend on your reality.
If you poison it by neglect or ignorance, you try to sell it for what seems a cheap and easy price, but you cannot sell and separate from a reality that you are a part of; the unavoidable price of "buying" it back is very, very, high.
He runs away to New York and buys very expensive clothes, and he rents a room at an extravagant hotel. Phillip Page’s essay brings up interesting ideas about the theatrical elements in Paul’s Case. This quote from Page helps further the complexity of Paul’s character “We see Paul offstage in the dressing room changing costume and character getting ready for his next role. This costume also does not fit” (1). At the beginning of the story Paul is trying to play the Character that his father wants him to; to hide that he is homosexual, but his rebellious nature gets in the way. Now at the end part of the story he has adapted a new character that he has desired to be for so long, but like the quote mentions he once again is not the person he is trying to portray. Even though he has the fancy clothes and a luxury hotel room for a week he isn’t this person because he doesn’t have the money to live a lavish life. The thought of having to go back to a life where he has to hide his true self devastates Paul so he takes the drastic route by stepping in front of a train. This is the final action that Paul commits in the novel and it shows the deep despair that most likely a lot of homosexual people felt at the time because of the negativity associated with
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.
Cather deals with the technological and aesthetic issue in her story, Paul’s Case. The story is set in Pittsburg, a town that is characterized by the glamorous lives of steel kings such as Carnegie (Edward and Leon 11). The wealthy steel kings, were a vital focal point for Paul’s aspirations. In the first part of the story, we meet Paul through his teacher’s perceptions. We are able to learn that at school, Paul is perceived as being Contemptuous and immensely irritating (Marilyn...
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.
Pedersen, Joyce S. "Love, Politics, and the Victorians: Liberal Feminism and the Politics of Social Integration" The European Legacy 4.6 (1999) 42-57.
The Picture of Dorian Gray is a rich story which can be viewed through many literary and cultural lenses. Oscar Wilde himself purposefully filled his novel with a great many direct and indirect allusions to the literary culture of his times, so it seems appropriate to look back at his story - both the novel and the 1945 film version - in this way.
---. The Picture of Dorian Gray. The Picture of Dorian Gray and Other Writings. Ed. Richard Ellman. New York: Bantam Dell, 1982.
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.
trading his soul for his youth, Dorian rids of the good inside of himself. The
Innocence may be easily corrupted by a malignant outside influence. The novel The Picture of Dorian Gray shows that corruption and bad influence may be easy to pursue. Author Oscar Wilde attempts to highlight that corruption may not come in the form of materials, but also in the forms of friends, society, etc. Dorian’s youth is easily corrupted by the influence of not only Lord Henry but also by the society and the substances which he chooses to use and abuse now and then. The corruption takes a toll on Dorian’s behavior significantly, and the readers notice that it ultimately leads to his demise. In this novel, we see the corruption of Dorian’s unscathed innocence and his beauty by various outside sources.
The first step is to get internet access, purchase a CD recorder and recordable CDs. Currently, most computers come with a modem and a CD-R installed .The modem will give you internet access therefore, enabling you to download music and the software needed. Microsoft Windows also comes with the p...
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...
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.
Three elements of literary work that truly sum up the theme of The Tell Tale Heart are setting, character, and language. Through these elements we can easily see how guilt, an emotion, can be more powerful than insanity. Even the most demented criminal has feelings of guilt, if not remorse, for what he has done. This is shown exquisitely in Poe's writing. All three elements were used to their extreme to convey the theme. The balance of the elements is such that some flow into others. It is sometimes hard to distinguish one from another. Poe's usage of these elements shows his mastery not only over the pen, but over the mind as well.