Preview

The Picture of Dorian Gray: as Lord Henry Says

Satisfactory Essays
Open Document
Open Document
712 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
The Picture of Dorian Gray: as Lord Henry Says
As Lord Henry says…
Mazlyn Ortiz Pd.5

In the book The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, “Prince Paradox” according to Dorian or simply Lord Henry mentors and encourages Dorian to live a life devoted to nothing but pleasure. The impact Lord Henry haves on Dorian gave him a whole new perspective on life when it comes to women, money, and everyday life decisions. Overall the purpose of Lord Henry and his aphorism somewhat shifted Dorian’s opinions on life and led him to a tragic life in the end. However the aphorism also shows a purpose of forcing readers to step out of their views and think about what these saying actually meant, making the reader think and wanting to know more. “…There is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about,” Lord Henry states to Basil who no longer seeks the hype of having a reputation as an artist. In this aphorism, Lord Henry tries to explain to Basil that throwing away his reputation isn’t worth it. As a human being, Lord Henry recognizes that the fame and such can all be overwhelming, especially when you start to hear whispers about you in the air. However when it comes down to it regardless of if the rumors are good or bad, most people crave for attention even when they claim they don’t. People for the most part feel like they have somewhat accomplished something by being highly recognize within the community. It is almost like a natural feeling that runs through every person. No one wants to be a deadbeat and to be spoken nothing of because no one wants to feel alone and invisible. “Beauty is the wonder of all wonders. It is only shallow people who do not judge by appearance,” Lord Henry quotes at his first meeting with Dorian Gray. Most people, especially people who live in our day and age would first skim across this aphorism shaking their head in disagreement. However, something readers can receive from this saying is that the human race is so

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Intro: The short story “The Birthmark” and the movie episode “Eye of the Beholder” both compare the idea of beauty and perfection. The two stories use different literary devices to persuade a similar message about beauty. In “The Birthmark” by Nathaniel Hawthorne he uses gender criticism in order to get his message to his readers that people can have flaws and imperfections and still be beautiful. In the movie episode “Eye of the Beholder’ the author tells how if you aren’t the “normal” then you are dissociated by society. However, both stories suggest that society's views on beauty influences the desires of humanity.…

    • 355 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As Lady Narborough notes to Dorian, there is little (if any) distinction between ethics and appearance: “you are made to be good—you look so good.”…

    • 619 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Cited: Barry, Dave. "The Ugly Truth About Beauty." The Longman Reader. 7th ed. Ed. Judith Nadell, John Langan, and Eliza A. Comodromos. New York. Pearson, 2005. 368-70…

    • 859 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Dorian Gray, a handsome young man, is slowly tortured by a sliver of his conscience and fear of fate in the novel The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde. When Dorian believes, thanks to the devilish Henry Wotton, that physical beauty and pleasures are the key to true happiness, he begins on his horrid journey. The flawed logic keeps Henry content and happy and seems to do the same for Dorian. Although, as Dorian does evil with credit to his newfound logic, his evil deeds paired with everlasting youth and a morphing self-portrait keep his conscience alive and his morals in turmoil.…

    • 439 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    At first, it may seem shallow to care a whole lot about one’s appearance, but according to Daniel Akst’s essay “What Meets the Eye”, we learn that in many ways, appearances actually serve as a source of inequality. In his expository piece, Akst probes into the importance of appearances in our society today; he explores the role that beauty plays in everyday life and and how it influences society. Akst makes numerous interesting discoveries on the role of appearances in society, but several of his arguments don’t seem to be well-argued.…

    • 715 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Lord Henry is a particularly clear of example of Wilde’s satirical streak. As we are first introduced to him, it is simple to figure out that he is one of the fabled upper class. His title and way of speaking, as well as glittering rhetoric give this away. Even though he presents himself in an apparently agreeable way, from the off the reader is warned of his influence. Essentially Lord Henry’s whole ideology concerning life is based on pithy epigrams, which in actual fact are devoid of any substance, such as ‘the only thing worse than being talked about is not being talked about’. Wilde portrays Henry in such a way that although he is so disagreeable, Dorian is left hanging on his every word, and eventually falls victim to his questionable version of aestheticism.…

    • 712 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Having planted this seed, Sir Henry (more than a little enamored of Dorian’s beauty) imagines Dorian might embody a new hedonism, though I imagine it is a Dionysian hedonism that revels in youth and heightened senses. In describing his own regrets in losing his youth, Sir Henry effectively creates in Dorian a desire to remain…

    • 742 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Beauty in all of its intricate aspects, can be misinterpreted, judged, and crushed to its very core for the same reasons it was once praised. Society diminishes the prominence of beauty, while simultaneously inflicting pressure on the eradication of its imperfections. Women, nowadays, rely on more than just water, soap, and self-confidence to fabricate the mask society deems as pragmatic, and truly necessary. Although the misconception of the physical qualities possessing the upper level in the hierarchical scale of beauty has blindsided millions, there is time remaining to instill the concepts of authentic beauty, according to the article by Nicole James. Knowledge does not necessarily amplify wisdom, and therefore despite the exponentially…

    • 434 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In the article entitled The Ugly truth about Beauty written by Dave Barry, Barry illustrates how women view differently about their appearance than men. Women have very unrealistic perspectives on beauty. Society and the media, encourages low self-esteem. Making beauty unattainable for women and causing adversely affects upon relationships. Women focus so much on their appearance to say “not good enough”, purchasing products from the beauty industry. In contrast, Men on the other hand do not spend as much time and effort on their appearance like women; they do not spend countless hours in the mirror trying to figure out why he doesn’t look like Brad Pitt. Instead men would find some way to bolster their self-esteem that doesn’t require the looks of Brad Pitt. However to keep in mind that Dave Barry”; A man has written the article, “The ugly Truth about Beauty”. Barry implies that women have low self-esteem, yet no matter how much you tell women how great she looks, in her perspective she will stand face to face in the mirror still conclude that something is missing about her appearance. But “just because WE’RE idiots, that does not mean YOU have to be”.…

    • 467 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    As Oscar Wilde once said, “it is better to be beautiful than to be good, but it is better to be good than to be ugly.” Beauty has always been perceived to be a key part of society, which can manifest itself as insecurities. This idea is explored in Katherine Mansfield’s short story, Miss Brill. People are always watching and judging, unintentionally or otherwise. Mansfield demonstrates how insecurities may present itself under the perceived watchful eye of others.…

    • 606 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dorian Gray Ignorance

    • 2180 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Innocence is ignorant, until it gets tainted with the sweet bitter taste of reality. An extraordinary young, handsome gentleman that goes by the name of Dorian Gray will soon taste reality under a new perspective. Oscar Wilde, who is the author of “The Portrait of Dorian Gray” shows us how certain people can influence us to think and ct differently. After a brief summary of the novel will reveal that the theme mainly used is two faced. Dorian has to balance between good and bad and can’t seem to get the hang of it. You’ll see that characters are there to represent good and evil in Dorian’s life. While we analyze the author's intent of the book we will dive deeper into this spiral of uncertainty.…

    • 2180 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    This quote is told by Lord Henry to Basil and Dorian after Basil refuses to display his finest art. It is completely accurate because people don't enjoy other s talking about them, but they also don't enjoy others not talking about them at all.…

    • 2957 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Dorian Gray Essay Example

    • 603 Words
    • 3 Pages

    “People say sometimes that beauty is only superficial. That may be so, but at least it is not so superficial as thought is. To me, beauty is the wonder of wonders. It is only shallow people who do not judge by appearances. The true mystery of the world is the visible, not the invisible.” (Wilde 17).…

    • 603 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    In “The Picture of Dorian Grey” by Oscar Wilde, Dorian has a profound reaction each time he views the change in the painting, and he reacts with a self-pitying, vain attitude. Vanity haunts Dorian, and he cares only about how this change in the painting will affect himself and his outer beauty only. At first, Dorian worries about how his treatment of Sibyl Vane will affect the painting. He cares not about the cruel acts he committed, but rather dwells on how it will taint or tarnish the beauty of his portrait. (“A sense of infinite pity, not for himself, but for the painted image of himself, came over him. It had altered already, and would alter more. Its gold would wither into grey. Its red and white roses would die. For every sin that he…

    • 1666 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    A defining characteristic of Lord Henry, a pompous aristocrat, is his extensive use of epigrams when discussing topics of moral importance. These witty statements are not only terribly confusing to the reader, but also shed light on Henry's controversial and, at times, hedonistic views concerning conventional notions of truth. When Lord Henry first meets Dorian Grey, he instantly notices the candour of youth and all of youth's passionate purity within him (Wilde 12). Finding these qualities incredibly enticing, Henry quickly subjects Dorian to his philosophical opinions concerning appearance and pleasure. Upon finding Dorian burying his face in lilac blossoms and drinking in their perfume as if it had been wine, he informs…

    • 300 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays