The View Of The Picture Of Dorian Gray - 1271 Words

The novel’s contrasting settings portray a gulf between social classes in Victorian society. How far and in what ways do you agree with this view of The Picture of Dorian Gray? A tempting misconception frequently made in the 19th century is that one’s background setting determines their morality, this mistaken belief leads to the ideas that the upper class are above the law, superior and indestructible. Wilde seeks to destroy this misconception but offers a clear warning to all readers in the preface that ‘those who go beneath the surface do so at their own peril’ this threat shows Wilde’s awareness of the controversial and critical nature of the upper class through his exploration of artifice, morality and society, ultimately shows demonstrates to the reader that things are always what they seem. People were conditioned in Victorian times that if one was wealthy you could afford to look the other way when faced with crime. The belief was that ‘crime belongs exclusively to the lower orders†¦ I should fancy that crime to theme is what art is to us’ This explicit and ludicrous statement, recurrent manner of Wotton’s witticisms epitomises hierarchical system that existed within society and their vividly hypocritical spirit. The comments of the ‘absurd little theatre’ the adjectives used here further highlight the perceived difference in standards with rich people belittling the poor. Whilst Dorian explores ‘labyrinth of grimy streets’ this rather clichà ©d trope forShow MoreRelatedOscar Wilde s The Picture Of Dorian Gray1656 Words   |  7 Pagesaddition, the Era caused the social, political, and religious movements to flourish. The Victorian Era, although being known as the beginning of modern times, still embraced some radic al views that today we would associate as prudishness and repression. In 1890, author Oscar Wilde wrote The Picture of Dorian Gray and submitted it to Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine. The magazine’s editor, J.M. Stoddert, immediately declined the novel and determined that it would offend the sensibilities of his readershipRead MoreThe Writing style of Oscar Wilde in His Story: The Picture of Dorian Gray596 Words   |  3 Pages The writing style in The Picture of Dorian Gray Oscar Wilde was a writer that appreciated writing style more than the actual substance in literary pieces. In his only finished piece, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Wilde accomplished perfection. He shows his skillful ability to poignantly use figures of speech, we can also infer that he has astonishing mastery in his wording and use of vocabulary when he describes different characters, places, and settings. Something that is also noticeable in thisRead More Essay on Picture of Dorian Gray: The Character of Lord Henry Wotten1670 Words   |  7 PagesWotten of The Picture of Dorian Gray  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The purpose of this essay is to explore the character of Lord Henry Wotten, from The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. Oscar Wilde once said: I only know that Dorian Gray is a classic and deservedly. With this in mind, this essay is aimed at looking at how Lord Henry Wotton manipulates various conversations and how he effects the story with his challenging speeches, which is the reason The Picture of Dorian Gray is a classic.Read MoreThe Picture Of Dorian Gray971 Words   |  4 PagesIn Oscar Wilde’s Popular nineteenth century novel, the Picture of Dorian Gray demonstrates the importance of the aesthetic movement in Victorian England. This suggests youth and physical attractiveness is emphasized and are valuable additions to society. Therefore, what matters to Dorian, is not the internal goodness an individual possesses but the appearance they present. Consequently, Dorian is able to forget the violent acts he commits as long as he appears beautiful on the outside. Since externalRead MoreThe Picture of Dorian Grey by Oscar Wilde768 Words   |  3 Pagesdrives which are necessary to satisfy. In Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, we see the main characters re presenting the Superego, Ego, and Id. The Superego is representative of our conscience and is opposite of the id. â€Å"Superego† comes from Latin and really means â€Å"above the ego†. It is the greatest power of our mind. The superego is what most people would call the conscience or where a god would be. The Superego is a basis for how we view the world, social norms, and morals. Also, as the SuperegoRead MoreThe Picture Of Dorian Gray By Chinua Achebe1006 Words   |  5 PagesJack Mouchawar September 18, 2014 F Block Mr. Clark Sacrifice Leads to Death Final Draft In The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wide and Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe, the characters: Okonkwo, Obierika, Dorian, and Sibyl Vane make sacrifices in two different ways: internally and externally. Consequently, all the emotions of the characters in the novel that led up to the sacrifice were anger, insanity, depression, and loyalty, which all result in death. Okonkwo and Obierika’s sacrifices areRead More Essay on The Picture of Dorian Gray as a Moral Book996 Words   |  4 Pages The Picture of Dorian Gray as a Moral Book nbsp; The Picture of Dorian Gray was a remarkably well-written book due to the reaction of its themes by society.nbsp; In the preface of the novel, Wilde introduces the opinion that ...there is no moral or immoral book.nbsp; Books are well written or badly written.nbsp; That is all.nbsp; Numerous views can be taken upon this fastidious comment.nbsp; Many would agree that Wilde is justifiably correct because the preface was written with theRead MoreThe Picture Of Dorian Gray Analysis1257 Words   |  6 PagesIn the Victorian prose, The Portrait of Dorian Gray explores the idea of duality. The divided self within the character of Dorian Gray begins with his misunderstanding of his self-image, because of the influence of a portrait. Dorian’s fate and transformation connect to the painting, which leads to his downfall. The painting contains Dorians moral decline as changes to the picture affects his life. Through the portrait, he gains an image of himself as an independent individual c ompared to his previousRead MoreProposal for A Narcissistic study of The Picture of Dorian Grey919 Words   |  4 Pagesï » ¿ A Narcissistic study of The Picture of Dorian Grey General Overview Oscar Wilde’s The picture of Dorian Grey’s novel is about a young man named Dorian Gray, the subject of a painting by artist Basil Hallward. Basil is impressed by Dorians beauty and believes his beauty should not be wasted and it is responsible for a new mode in his art. Dorian meets Lord Henry Wotton, a friend of Basils, and becomes enslaved by Lord Henrys world view. He shows him a new hedonism, and suggests the only thingsRead More Inner and outer beauty in Dorian Gray Essay1495 Words   |  6 Pagesvery misleading. In order to get to know the person we need to look to the inside – into the soul. This is the place where the real beauty and ugliness are hidden. The notion of inner and outer beauty is perfectly presented in the novel ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’ by Oscar Wilde. The story described in this book shows how the external attractiveness influences people’s behavior and corrupts the inner beauty. The plot situated in the XIX England perfectly describes the higher class of this period. Shallow