Kim Thang
ENG 1012
3/7/16
The Picture of Dorian Gray: Depiction of Women
When one talks about women, there are a lot of perspectives, opinions, and perceptions toward them. A woman is centrally inborn with her strength, including her body, attitude and behavior. In The Picture of Dorian Gray, Lord Henry views women as "decorative sex. They never have anything to say, but they say it charmingly" (Wilde 47). They are depicted as inferior to men and influence men in negative ways. It dehumanizes them as they are compared to objects like paintings, which are wonderful to look at, but can also be damaged. Despite his belief, Sibyl Vane’s beauty and talent ultimately captivate Dorian Gray, leaving him lasting impression throughout the novel. …show more content…
Sybil lacks an understanding of reality, as evidenced by her sudden love with a man whose name she does not bother to learn. When she first meets Dorian, she simply tells him that he looks “like a prince. I must call you Prince Charming” (Wilde 59). The name Prince Charming refers to fairy tales, which are just fantasy. Therefore, she begins her relationship with Dorian based on illusion. She does not see him as a man with simple love, but rather as a prince that will save her from her life and live happily ever after. Sibyl falls in love with the illusion of Dorian, not the real him, and Dorian does the same with her. After Sibyl’s death, Dorian and Lord Henry mention her as though she existed only in their imagination. Dorian states, “She regarded me merely as a person in a play. She knows nothing of life” (Wilde 53). Dorian turns her death into a beautiful destruction, idealizing it as much as Sibyl did with their relationship. These comparisons made between reality and fantasy leave the readers with an image that when she is faced with reality, she is unable to handle it. Her existence seems short and incomplete, creating little insight for her
ENG 1012
3/7/16
The Picture of Dorian Gray: Depiction of Women
When one talks about women, there are a lot of perspectives, opinions, and perceptions toward them. A woman is centrally inborn with her strength, including her body, attitude and behavior. In The Picture of Dorian Gray, Lord Henry views women as "decorative sex. They never have anything to say, but they say it charmingly" (Wilde 47). They are depicted as inferior to men and influence men in negative ways. It dehumanizes them as they are compared to objects like paintings, which are wonderful to look at, but can also be damaged. Despite his belief, Sibyl Vane’s beauty and talent ultimately captivate Dorian Gray, leaving him lasting impression throughout the novel. …show more content…
Sybil lacks an understanding of reality, as evidenced by her sudden love with a man whose name she does not bother to learn. When she first meets Dorian, she simply tells him that he looks “like a prince. I must call you Prince Charming” (Wilde 59). The name Prince Charming refers to fairy tales, which are just fantasy. Therefore, she begins her relationship with Dorian based on illusion. She does not see him as a man with simple love, but rather as a prince that will save her from her life and live happily ever after. Sibyl falls in love with the illusion of Dorian, not the real him, and Dorian does the same with her. After Sibyl’s death, Dorian and Lord Henry mention her as though she existed only in their imagination. Dorian states, “She regarded me merely as a person in a play. She knows nothing of life” (Wilde 53). Dorian turns her death into a beautiful destruction, idealizing it as much as Sibyl did with their relationship. These comparisons made between reality and fantasy leave the readers with an image that when she is faced with reality, she is unable to handle it. Her existence seems short and incomplete, creating little insight for her