Practicality in Love of Dorian Gray vs. Sibyl Vane in Oscar Widle’s the Picture of Dorian Gray and Catherine vs. Edgar Linton in Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights
Love is always an infinite theme in almost stories, especially in classic series. There is no exception in The Picture of Dorian Gray of Oscar Widle and Wuthering Heights of Emily Bronte. The Picture of Dorian Gray and Wuthering Heights are two classic novels written respectively in Victorian era and Romanticism period. These novels are stories which revolve around the love story of the main characters Dorian versus Sibyl and Catherine versus Heathcliff and Edgar. In the aspect of love, it is feasible to see that there is practical mindset in these personages.
Practicality in love may be that people fall in love for several reasons including loving feelings, destiny or faith or even material reasons. It is the appearance of love but the nature of it is selfishness and taking advantages of each other. This essay will discuss two manners of this aspect of love.
First, in The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Widle, Dorian loves Sibyl but this so-called love is truthful selfishness. Indeed, Dorian loves Sibyl only on account of her acting, therefore, when Sybil acts badly, he is willing to shout at her “[she] [is] nothing to [him] now”, “without [her] art [she] [is] nothing” (Widle 75). Even when Sybil commits suicide as a consequence of his terrible behavior to her, the lad can still enjoy himself by going to the club of Harry’s sister. Even when Basil asks him, he calmly answers “there is nothing fearful about it. It is one of the great romantic tragedies of the age.” (93) He talks as if the death of Sybil is an obvious thing “she [dies], as Juliet [dies]. She [passes] again into the sphere of art.” (94) Dorian puts all his love on himself, his youth and his beauty “youth is the only thing worth having”, “[he] [is] jealous of everything whose beauty does not die.” (26) The love he gives to Sybil is temporary, short, egotistic and practical“[she] [spoils] the romance of [his] life.” Dorian is a calculating person. He would like to take use of her to upgrade his
Practicality in love may be that people fall in love for several reasons including loving feelings, destiny or faith or even material reasons. It is the appearance of love but the nature of it is selfishness and taking advantages of each other. This essay will discuss two manners of this aspect of love.
First, in The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Widle, Dorian loves Sibyl but this so-called love is truthful selfishness. Indeed, Dorian loves Sibyl only on account of her acting, therefore, when Sybil acts badly, he is willing to shout at her “[she] [is] nothing to [him] now”, “without [her] art [she] [is] nothing” (Widle 75). Even when Sybil commits suicide as a consequence of his terrible behavior to her, the lad can still enjoy himself by going to the club of Harry’s sister. Even when Basil asks him, he calmly answers “there is nothing fearful about it. It is one of the great romantic tragedies of the age.” (93) He talks as if the death of Sybil is an obvious thing “she [dies], as Juliet [dies]. She [passes] again into the sphere of art.” (94) Dorian puts all his love on himself, his youth and his beauty “youth is the only thing worth having”, “[he] [is] jealous of everything whose beauty does not die.” (26) The love he gives to Sybil is temporary, short, egotistic and practical“[she] [spoils] the romance of [his] life.” Dorian is a calculating person. He would like to take use of her to upgrade his