Graham's Magazine

In The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde it is apparent that Lord Henry’s influence drastically changes Dorian’s view of himself and the world around him. Dorian’s character began as a blank slate, but deep within Dorian’s character there was the temptation for the forbidden. Lord Henry saw this as an opportunity to introduce his philosophy and indulge his desire to manipulate him for his own pleasure. Lord Henry’s philosophy of Aestheticism is not inherently bad, it simply allows an…

An entertaining and moralistic novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray combines multiple literary elements into a well-written novel with underlying ideas about the inherency of evil and its roots. Many prominent literary themes stand out throughout the novel, but the most common and prominent ones remain: “man vs. self” and “man vs.society”. Throughout the story, the questions of moral values such as the creation of evil and the importance of beauty standards in society appear frequently and are…

In "The Picture of Dorian Gray," Oscar Wilde conveys a compelling theme centered on the detrimental use of influence personal in our relationships. Although the philosophical novel has multiple themes, the theme involving the detrimental use of influence in personal relationships manifests itself through the destruction of various characters including: Dorian Gray and Basil Hallward. One of the broader notions presented in the novel reveals itself as the stark disapproval of sacrificing one's…

In the novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, sin and redemption is an occuring theme. The main character, Dorian Gray, commits plenty of sins and has the opportunities for redemption, however, when Dorian tries to atone for his wrongdoings he is unsuccessful. Dorians’ underlying intentions keeps him from redemption, due to his hedonistic views. In the beginning of the novel, Dorian is portrayed as a young and innocent boy that is easily influenced by Lord Henry, a character with a…

The novel The Picture of Dorian Gray written by Oscar Wilde is about the life of the character Dorian Gray. Dorian is a young and beautiful man who makes a Faustian pact that his self-portrait, drawn by painter Basil Hallward, would grow older as time past instead of Dorian. Throughout the story, Dorian commits many sins, for example, using his influence to ruin others’ lives and the murdering of Basil Hallward. However, Dorian’s appearance is still young and beautiful because the portrait…

INTRODUCTION The aim of this essay is to give an explicit overview of the gothic elements in the short story “The Fall of the House of Usher”. The main point of interest concerns the haunted house which is a typical feature of gothic literature. At the beginning the readers is introduced to the story through a summary. This will be followed by a general explanation of the gothic genre and its typical features. Furthermore the outer appearance of the mansion and the thereby upcoming unpleasant…

The Picture of Dorian Gray As Albert Camus once stated, “At the heart of all beauty lies something inhuman.” In this novel, beauty is a key component. Multiple characters, such as Lord Henry and Dorian Gray, obsess over it and how it affects one’s life and how long it will last. The obsession with beauty and mortality within the story uncover how superficial and selfish the characters are. They feign as though they are compassionate and caring, but deep down, all they care about is their…

Furthermore, Oscar Wilde projects himself in addition to the Id, Ego, and Superego through Dorian Gray, based on how Wilde lived a “Double Life”(Schmidt 3). Dorian was thought to be pure and innocent when really his inner self reflected the complete opposite. Dorian “desperately wanted to find his true identity”(Schmidt 4) and longed to be known for more than just his appearance. Dorian’s desperation resulted in an unhealthy intrigue with Henry Wotton. Henry’s fascination with Dorian resulted…

The yard was filled with the sickeningly sweet scent of blooming flowers, from the hard-petaled magnolias to the soft brittle trilliums, all competing and vying for the attention of the beholder, Dorian Gray. In a place not accustomed to the cruelty of the outside world he lived peacefully with his only true friend and companion, Basil Hallward. They ate, drank, and talked together in the luscious garden of flowers, day by day. This peaceful and monotonous life was home to them: that is, until…

The Picture of Dorian Gray written by Oscar Wilde contains many characters with flaws. Dorian Gray, who is the main character, shows his character flaws throughout the book. At the beginning of the book, Dorian was innocent and kind young man. However, the reader soon figures out that he is a person that actually like bad things and gives up easily. Because of these two character flaws, Dorian sadly dies at the end of the book. First of all, throughout the book, Dorian seems to look like a kind…