The Picture of Dorian Gray - PODG #7 - The Orchids of Dorian Gray

In The Picture of Dorian Gray, flowers are used frequently as symbolism. One flower that is most commonly used is the orchid. Lord Henry describes an orchid as "a marvelous spotted thing, as effective as the seven deadly sins" (142). This associates orchids with sin, causing the purity and perfection that they represent to become tainted. Orchids also represent luxury and rare, delicate beauty. They are associated with ancient Greek culture, which also plays a part in Dorian Gray. The spots on an orchid are said to represent the blood of Christ in Christian theology, which ties in with the religious diction about the "seven deadly sins". Saying that orchids are "as effective as the seven deadly sins" insinuates that perfection and beauty lead to sinful nature, which has been Dorain's case. Orchids, like all flowers, must eventually whither and die when cut from the ground. Orchids symbolize how beauty dissolves overtime and how perfection can become skewed. This will happen to Dorian eventually, for it is just a matter of time before he is somehow cut off from the portrait's power and changed to be his true self again.

The Picture of Dorian Gray - PODG #6 - Distancing from the Murder

In Chapter 13 of The Picture of Dorian Gray, Dorian Gray murders Basil Hallward, the painter who painted the portrait of Dorian that collects Dorian's sins. The murder takes place in the room upstairs where Dorian keeps the cursed portrait. It is explained that "an uncontrollable feeling of hatred for Basil Hallward" took over Dorian "as though it had been suggested to him by the image on the canvas" (115). The painting influences Dorian to do bad things, since Dorian himself understands that he will never take on any of the repercussions in his own looks. Dorian feels loathing for Basil, an intense dislike of him, described as "the mad passions of a hunted animal" (115). Calling Dorian "a hunted animal" beings to light his fears of being sought out for doing the horrible things that he has done.

While committing the murder, Dorian tries to distance himself from what he is doing. During the struggle there is "the horrible sound of someone choking with blood" (116). Using the pronoun "someone" distances Dorian from the fact that it is Basil making this sound, and that he is killing his friend. The painter's "outstretched arms" and "grotesque stiff-fingered hands" are focused on during the murder, bringing to light how Dorian is not viewing the person being killed as an entire being, let alone a friend (116).

After the murder, Dorian admits that he is distancing himself from the murder when he states that "he felt that the secret of the whole thing was not to realize the situation" (116). The corpse of Basil Hallward is never referred to as being his, but is instead labeled as "the thing", "the murdered man", and "it" (116-117). Dorian views the body as peaceful, stating that if not for the wound and the blood, "one would have said that the man was simply asleep" (116). The idea that the body looks like it is sleeping conveys how Dorian is still trying to process that he killed Basil and yet is avoiding associating death with the body. He remarks to himself that Basil has simply "gone out of his life," also referring to a sense of leaving that is not death (116). Both sleep and leaving are not permanent and can therefore be reversed, while death cannot be. The body of Basil Hallward is also described as looking "like a dreadful wax image," which reduces the reality of the body being flesh and blood (117). Wax, like a dead body, is a substance that is first warm, but then cools and holds it's shape until heated again.

The Picture of Dorian Gray - PODG #5 - Reality vs. The Portrait

"If one doesn't talk about a thing, it has never happened. It is simply expression, as Harry says, that gives reality to things" (79).

Dorian Gray uses this line as a response to Basil Hallward as he brings up Sibyl Vane's death. Dorian claims that the idea is told "as Harry says" it, which expresses how Lord Henry still has influence over the naive Dorian's ideas. Dorian's statement that "if one doesn't talk about a thing, it has never happened" goes against the fact that, in the book, whatever Dorian does is marked on the portrait. While unseen by all but Dorian, the reality of Dorian's sins is as plain as day on the portrait, revealing that they did happen, that they were all real.  The idea that "it is simply expression [...] that gives reality to things" is a viewpoint that is flawed, for events always leave some sort of a mark on the lives of those around them. Even while some events can be swept under the rug of life's conversations, the events of Dorian's life cannot be concealed forever, for even Sibyl Vane's death caused the first change in the painting.

The Picture of Dorian Gray - PODG #3 - Mrs. Vane's Acting

Mrs. Vane treats the world around her as if she is an actress in a play about her own life. This is expressed through the usage of theatrical diction. Mrs. Vane is quite distant from her children. She puts on facades of love and kindness but does not actually remember how to feel them: "Mrs. Vane glanced at her, and with one of those false theatrical gestures that so often become a mode of second nature to a stage-player, clasped her in her arms" (45). The action of hugging her child is described as a "false theatrical gesture", revealing that Mrs. Vane is simply acting out the part of a loving mother and feigning the actions that she feels are needed. She has to "mentally [elevate] her son to the dignity of the audience", meaning that she views the audience of one of her plays with more respect than her own son (45). She even views her life as an ever-changing tableau, passing by like scenes in a play (45). While Sibyl does not seem to have figured out her mother's distorted views on life, her brother James is able to see through his mother's act and "[hates] his mother's affectations" (47). "Affectations" means false actions that are supposed to impress others, which is exactly what his mother does. "Affectations" also sounds like affections, only having a one syllable difference, and is most likely used as a play on the two words.

The Picture of Dorian Gray - PODG #2 - Influence in The Picture of Dorian Gray

Influence is a common theme in The Picture of Dorian Gray. The main instance where influence is taking place is between Lord Henry and Dorian Gray. Lord Henry treats his influence on Dorian like a fun study in what kind of power he has over people. Lord Henry even goes as far as to say that "there [is] something terribly enthralling in the exercise of influence" which expresses how much he likes to try and influence people around him with his ideas (26). Lord Henry's influence does get through to some people, which can be understood by how his wife mentions that she "always [hears] Harry's views from his friends" (33). The fact that Lord Henry's friends speak of his views is an example of how his influence has manifested itself in others; yet the prime example of his influence rests in Dorian Gray. Dorian freely admits that Lord Henry has "curious influence over" him (38). Dorian sees this influence, but does not try to stop it, allowing Lord Henry to continue. Dorian also tells that he is putting into practice everything that Lord Henry says (34). Dorian does not see this as a bad thing at all and admits it freely, which can lead to the understanding that, while he can see the influence taking place, he does not fully see how he himself is changing. It is either that, or that Dorian doesn't care that he is changing, for he feels that Lord Henry is telling him things that he should already understand about the world.

The Picture of Dorian Gray - PODG #1 - The Real Dorian Gray

At the end of the second chapter of The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, there is proposed idea concerning who is the real Dorian Gray: the man or the painting. After Basil asks Lord Henry to not say something in front of Dorian, Lord Henry responds with the question: "Before which Dorian? The one who is pouring out tea for us, or the one in the picture?" (21). This inquiry implies that the living, breathing Dorian and the painted Dorian are now two separate entities and should be thought of as such. This duality may have been caused by Lord Henry's talk with Dorian about fading beauty, which changed how Dorian saw himself and the world around him. Basil, when asked whether he will join Lord Henry and Dorian for a night out, walks over to his painting of Dorian and replies "sadly" that "[he] shall stay with the real Dorian" (21). Basil sees that Dorian has changed already after knowing Lord Henry for only a small amount of time. This saddens Basil because he never wanted Dorian to be tarnished in any way. Basil feels that the painting captures the Dorian he knew before Lord Henry spoke to him and therefore feels that that Dorian is the most "real" to him.

The Picture of Dorian Gray - Preface - Aestheticism and Wilde's View on his Audience

The preface of A Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde deals with aestheticism and Wilde's attitude towards his audience. Aestheticism was a movement in British and American art that sought the acceptance of artistic beauty and taste as a fundamental standard. Oscar Wilde was a firm supporter of aestheticism and tries to explain it to his readers in the preface. He tells of the difference between being corrupt and cultivated,  the lacking of ethical sympathies in artists, and other ideas of aestheticism. Wilde uses two metaphors in the preface, the first being: "the nineteenth century dislike of Realism is the rage of Caliban seeing his own face in a glass" (vii). This metaphor utilizes the character Caliban from Shakespeare's The Tempest, a savage human, to symbolize society. This metaphor explains that society doesn't like Realism because it brings out the ugly truth in the world. The second metaphor is: "the nineteenth century dislike of Romanticism is the rage of Caliban not seeing his own face in a glass" (vii). This metaphor explains that society does not like Romanticism because it is too unlike society, too fanciful and unbelievable. In the end, many members of society may never be fully happy with art until they just try to appreciate it for what it is and not what they want it to be.

Wilde's attitude towards his audience is one of acceptance with minimal disagreement and disappointment. Wilde, having heard and read that there are diverse opinions about his book, explains that such varying opinions are normal. He says that these diverse opinions "[show] that the work is new, complex, and vital," turning a possible negative into a positive and accepting that there will be critics (viii). Wilde disagrees with what some of the opinions are claiming stating that "there is no such thing as a moral or immoral book" (vii). This statement relates to Wilde's views of aestheticism where morality does not play a role. He is telling his readers that he is writing the book with the ideas of aestheticism in mind and that he wants the readers to try and think this way as well. He is writing the book because he wants to send out a message and wishes for his readers to try to understand the message along with how the book is written.