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At the dawn of the nineteenth century, the civilization of England mediated around a rebirth of a religious movement that was exclusive to the Puritan age. People lived their lives upon the foundations of moral behavior, where all art was a mere reflection of religion and morality. This notion persisted that art served as a reinforcement of ethics. As religion and morality pursued to restrict art to stand on its own, a group of artists revolted against Victorian beliefs; among them was Oscar…

Wilde uses extensive examples of art surpassing reality to show that life as it is depicted in art is morally superior to "real" life because art is a purified reflection of reality that exhibits only reality 's most beautiful characteristics. Once Dorian has fallen in love with beautiful young actress Sibyl Vane, he proclaims that “the only thing worth loving is an actress” (Wilde 51). He dislikes most other women because there is no art to them, but an actress lives her art when she performs…

values. The Sybil Vane encounter reflects how deeply the immoral teachings are planted in the mind of Dorian. After being enthralled by the latter’s beauty and social status, Sybil Vane, a poor but a talented stage actress falls in love with him. She also calls him “Prince Charming” due to his unstained beauty and goes against her family members who do approve her love for Dorian. However, Dorian wants to explore his sensuality and to know about all aspects of life and can’t fathom her love…

Ranking of Monstrosity in Frankenstein and The Picture of Dorian Gray Frankenstein written by Mary Shelley in 1818 is a Romantic novel recounting Victor Frankenstein’s creation of a grotesque monster and the unintended consequences that follow. While The Picture of Dorian Gray written by Oscar Wilde is a Victorian novel recounting the creation of Dorian Gray’s portrait. Although Shelley’s Frankenstein and Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray were were written during different literary eras, both…

The Garden of Gatsby Flower imagery is a popular trend in literature. The symbolism and imagery of flowers are greatly important to the themes and characters of The Great Gatsby. Elements of wealth, secrecy, and dying dreams are all represented by flower imagery in this novel. Symbolism of a rose majorly defines Nick Carraway. Daisy says, “I love to see you at my table, Nick. You remind me of a – of a rose, an absolute rose. Doesn't he?” She turned to Miss Baker for confirmation: “An absolute…

“Contrast Lens” Have you ever wondered how, exactly, you measure changes in yourself and the people around you. By comparison of course, for without darkness, how can one measure the light. It is a very common practice, in fictional literature, for authors to use static characters in order to expose change in the protagonist. For example, in The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde uses the characters of Lord Henry Wotton and Basil Hallward to measure Dorian’s descent into Henry’s hedonistic…

When observing any form of art, the spectator often attempts to look beneath the surface of the piece to find the artist’s deeper meaning. Throughout the novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde emphasizes his belief in aestheticism. He attempts to enforce the idea that art should be created for art’s sake, and that people can not conclude anything about the artist from their art. In the preface, Wilde warns readers that “all art is at once surface and symbol. Those who go beneath the…

As Oscar Wilde acknowledges statements and their alternatives, he allows the readers to interpret the significance of sin and morality on their own, leaving more of the story to the readers’ imagination instead of planting his views and ideas in their minds. Through using the contrasts of paradoxes and ambiguity, Wilde is able to express ideas that possess a deeper meaning than that of the superficial words. When Lord Henry speaks to Dorian about the immorality of influence, he essentially…

Symbolism in “Trifles” Susan Glaspell’s play “Trifles” is set in the early 1900’s. Throughout the course of the story, the main setting is in the kitchen. This would not sound so bad if we were not informed of other characteristics of the house. The kitchen and the house is described as gloomy and the overall sense of the house is just depressing. The first stage directions describe it as, “The kitchen in the now abandoned farmhouse of John Wright, a gloomy kitchen” (Glaspell, 772), and It is…

In all most of our lives, we take some type of influence from many other things whether it is positive or negative. In The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, the main character Dorian Gray is being influenced by these two completely different impactful characters his friends; Basil Hallward and Lord Henry. Basil paints a portrait of Dorian gray appreciating the epitome of beauty and Lord Henry and acquaintance of Basil convinces him to sell his soul to be forever young while the portrait…