Analysis Of “The Picture Of Dorian Grey”

The story starts on a beautiful day with Lord Henry Wotton observing the
artist Basil Hallward painting the portrait of a handsome young man named Dorian
Gray. Dorian arrives later and meets Wotton. After talked with the libertine lord,
Dorian begins to believe that beauty is the only thing that deserves to pursue in all
his life. Distraught that his beauty will fade, he wishes that the beautiful and ever-
lasting portrait can grow old instead of him, which finally comes true in some way.
Later in his life, the portrait keep records of whatever he does and the portrait gets
older and uglier once he does something criminal or corrupt. In the end, he thinks
the only way to absolve him is to destroy the painting with a knife, which ends his
horrible life instead. What is ironic is that his painting becomes what it used to be
but Dorian himself dies with an aged and withered face.

Acknowledged as the spokesman of the philosophy of aestheticism, Wilde’s

doctrine was “Art for art’s sake”. For Wilde, the purpose of art would guide life if
beauty alone were its object. The picture of Dorian Gray reveals the belief that
beauty on the surface can only exist in tragedies. As Henry said in the story -in the
presence of off behind every beautiful thing there is some tragic things are (The
picture of Dorian Gray Oscar Wilde 1891), tragedy if the nature of beauty. Wilde,
a pursuer of extreme art and beauty, combined the character of both Dorian’s and
Basil’s. He once said that: “Basil Hallward is what I think I am; Lord Henry is
what the world thinks me; Dorian gray is what I would like to be-in other ages
perhaps”. These three main characters in the story are the spirit of the story.

Another character in this story named Basil Hollward is also a reflection of Wilde
himself. Wilde says that Basil Hollward is what he thinks he is. I think that is
because Basil Hollward is a complete artist. Attracted by Dorian’s gorgeous face,
he paints the portrait of Dorian which proves to be his finest work. Art is the only
pursuit of basil and he does not want to believe that Dorian is evil although he was
murdered by him at last. He still thinks that he is beautiful yet incomplete. What he
commits is just a flaw in an apparently perfect thing. In my opinion, he knows
what happened as the painting changes but he just does not want to believe. Once
Basil acknowledges all the evil sides of Dorian, his dream of art was destroyed.
Dorian is a work of art to Basil as well as a lover deep in his heart. Who’d like to
admit his or her lover is evil and corrupted? Wilde once said “my life as an artist
depends on him.” This is because basil, as an artist, possesses all the doctrines of
what Wilde think an artist should have. He is a perfect reflection of Wilde’s
witticism: “all that I desire to point out is the general principle that life imitates art
far more than art imitate life.

Disappointed to the society, Wilde gives all the social characteristics to this Lord.
He tricks Dorian to become a half-human half-evil spirit with his corrupted
lifestyle. What he does in the story is to lead Dorian to be destroyed in his
ideology. As he says that “the purpose of life is self development and the full
realization of the nature of their requirements”. His position in the story is best
described by basil, as “never says anything good but never does anything
bad.”(Aestheticism in the picture of Dorian grey, 2006)

Besides the theme of aestheticism, this masterpiece also reveals the social situation
and people’s sense of irresponsible at that time. When Dorian visit to the opium
dens of London, according to what Lord Henry asserts “crime belongs exclusively
to the lower orders…I should fancy that crime was to them what art is to us”. In
Henry’s eyes, different social status has different world view and a tainted value
must belong to the lower class. What ironic is that Dorian conflates criminal and
aesthete.

Back in the last stage of the Victoria era, people were crazy about indulgence and
corruption but did not want to be responsible for their behavior. This theme is also
reflected in the picture of Dorian Grey. In my opinion, Dorian uses his portrait to
avoid his responsibility. He also justifies his actions according to the philosophy of
the new hedonism. At the end of the novel, he chooses to destroy the painting as a
way to confess. All these behavior depicts a spirit which aims to avoid all the
commitments and condemnation.

Professor John Sutherland once said in his lecture that “this writing would have
secured Wilde only a minor place in literature, but his status is elevated by his
notoriety.” I am not totally on board with this statement. Wilde may not be a very
successful novelist but he is a successful living human being pursuing what he
really wants for all his life. He thinks that it was the artist’s duty to rebel against
precisely sacred orthodoxies. He and his novel are of total success in this sense as a
perfect reflection of art and beauty.