Dorian Gray Research Paper

English Essay
Oscar Wilde’s novel is an extended metaphor that reinforces his idea that ‘There is no such thing as a moral or immoral book’. In The Picture Of Dorian Gray his view is very contradictory. His theory is reinforced through the changes in Dorian’s personality, the ‘yellow book’ A Rebours (‘against nature’) which was one of the most important novels during the decadence period, which was given to Dorian Gray by Lord Henry. Consequently, leading us to the corruption of Dorian Gray and his inevitable death.
Dorian’s change in personality reinforces Oscar Wilde’s idea. This is because Dorian is living a double life, and in regards to the novel elements of his good and bad side is shown. This is shown with hints in the novel and shows the cautionary tale of the novel. As his friends, such as Lord Henry attempted to “spoil” his “beautiful nature” one of his closest friend Basil was cautious this was going to turn young Dorian from good to evil. Wilde does this to show how Dorian’s lifestyle can be corrupted morally and immorally, as things such as the painting make him accomplish the things he always wanted accepting pleasures moral or immorally. In spite of this, Lord Henry threatens Dorian’s fear of the
painting losing beauty. Wilde uses this scenario that challenges his idea, because as Dorian is in constant fear of his loss of beauty this links in with Wilde himself as he wants “to be like Dorian” Wilde is always cautious of presenting his homosexuality within the book because the society didn’t practice it. Nevertheless he clearly states his desires for men in the book which doesn’t reinforce his idea as they are immoral feelings that are represented.
The influence of the ‘yellow book’ is fundamental to Oscar Wilde’s idea. This is because Lord Henry gives the book to Dorian Gray and once Dorian has read this book he starts to get thoughts in his head which corrupts his mind. Thus shown in the novel as the yellow book as Dorian is now starting to become influenced by it showing the book has a moral, but the feelings in the novel that are present are immoral. Wilde uses this ‘poisonous’ yellow book to represent his aesthetic sensations without the concern of what the society will think, as the yellow book reveals aesthetic sensations that links to decadence because the end of novel ends in gothic fashion due to the influence of the yellow book. By doing this, this doesn’t reinforce his idea because it shows that if you believe in something it’s bound to have a moral like the moral book so his idea is yet again contradicted.
The corruption of Dorian Gray is consequent to the things I have identified and challenges Oscar Wilde’s idea.
This is because as Oscar Wilde starts to show the reader Dorian’s corrupt soul more and more throughout the book as he commits crimes and makes the one he ‘loved’ commit suicide. By showing us Dorian’s corrupt soul more through the book it gives the reader a sense that there is a moral to it because no one can be once an almost ‘perfect’ human being to a criminal almost who neglects his close friends without a meaning behind it. Thus going against Oscar Wilde’s idea because his book was based on getting homo erotic views across so he must be presenting something that has meaning for example Dorian’s beauty and how it lead to his
corruption.
All of these elements contradict Oscar Wilde’s approach towards this book. His constant use of Dorian and his changed personality and the yellow book doesn’t reinforce his idea very well at all. In spite of this perhaps Oscar Wilde could be presenting these ideas on purpose to give his analytical side to his idea. A good example is the “yellow book” once Dorian read the book his mind state changed because he believed the words and the moral behind the book. Therefore this could lead to Oscar Wilde’s intention that books are influencing to people if they believe it from the start. He wants to tell us that if you think books are moral you’ll be influence by them. This is a result to why Oscar Wilde’s novel is so contradictory today he uses all the elements in the book which makes people believe in the book thereby creating a moral and some others who don’t agree with his view and his explicit behaviour won’t believe in the book meaning the novel has no meaning making it have no moral which is why he presents Dorian, the “yellow book” and his corruption in such a way.