The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde - Book Report/Review Example

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde Worldwide, make use of symbols to share their views and ideas with the readers in general. Within this scenario, Oscar Wilde’s works are renowned for symbolism/symbolic representation because he supported Aesthetic style. To be specific, this style provided importance to sensuous satisfaction, not moral significance. So, one can see that Wilde did not try to deny the importance of satisfaction in human life. Still, this different attitude/approach towards creativity and writer’s duty attracted criticism from the mainstream society. On the other side, Wilde exploited the scope of symbolism in literature because the same helped the readers to perceive his characters from different angles of view. Thesis statement: Oscar Wilde, in his work named as The Picture of Dorian Gray makes use of symbolism to unmask the motive behind the protagonist’s impersonation, human sexuality, and the relationship between misdeeds and justice. Brief summary: The artist named as Basil Hallward makes use of the protagonist (Dorian Gray) as a model for his painting. On the other side, the model (protagonist) happens to meet the painter’s friend, named as Wotton. This meeting transforms the protagonist’s views because Wotton neglected morality and provided importance to sensual pleasure. So, the protagonist decides to sell his own soul. His physical beauty will not wither, but the painting will undergo change. The protagonist’s decision to indulge in sexual pleasure results in the suicide of an actress, named as Sibyl. Besides, the protagonist murders the painter. The actress’s brother attempts to kill the protagonist, but for vain. Later, the protagonist promises that he will try to lead a normal life like others. In the end, the protagonist destroys the painting. The next day, the public saw that the protagonist is dead and the painting became beautiful than ever. Review: symbolism This section is broadly divided as: the motive behind the protagonist’s impersonation, Human sexuality, and the relationship between misdeeds and justice. The motive behind the protagonist’s impersonation One can see that the protagonist’s decision to indulge in sensual pleasures is symbolic of his attitude towards life. To be specific, the protagonist was deeply influenced by Wotton’s attitude towards life. This character (Wotton) provides less importance to morality because he considers that youthfulness must be enjoyed without any failure. If one does not try to enjoy one’s youthfulness, he/she cannot blame others because life does provide second chance to anybody. The protagonist is aware that he is attractive. If not, the painter might not have asked the protagonist to be his model. Besides, Wotton’s philosophy deeply influences the protagonist’s future plans. In the work by Oscar Wilde (2012), the painter’s friend opines that, “The terror of society, which is the basis of morals, the terror of god, which is the secret of religion-these are the two things that govern us” (p.36). From a different angle of view, attraction towards worldly pleasures, violence, and criminal instinct is inherent in the protagonist’s character. Until his meeting with Wotton, the protagonist does not realize the possibility of an uncontrollable and immoral life. The protagonist’s decision to lead a double life is symbolic of his unending desire to enjoy life. His actions are symbolic of human aspiration to attain immortality. For instance, the protagonist decides to sell his spirit because he knows that one’s spirit/soul will hinder one from being immersed in worldly pleasures. This decision is symbolic of his negative approach towards moral aspects of human life. Still, he considers that his decision is based on reasoning because he was able to get immersed in sensual pleasures. In short, the protagonist’s decision to lead a dual life is symbolic of human aspiration to attain immortality. Still, this does not help the protagonist to keep himself away from ultimate doom. Human sexuality In the novel, the protagonist’s deeds prove that his sexuality is symbolic of cruelty and violence. To be specific, the protagonist considers women as mere puppets in his hands. He does not provide importance to permanent relationships because he knew that he can create temporary relationships aiming at physical pleasure. In the novel, the actress wishes to have a permanent relationship with the protagonist. Later, she realizes that the protagonist does not believe in permanent relationships. The protagonist exploits the actress and tries to avoid her. This incident is symbolic of the protagonist’s attitude towards human sexuality. On the other side, the painter develops a particular relationship with his model (the protagonist). One can evaluate this relationship as homosexual. Bloom (2010) states that, “Some scholars claim that much of Wilde’s writing contains the language and symbols of homosexuality or homoeroticism” (p.55). This assumption may be false; still the painter’s attitude towards his model contains homosexual elements. To be specific, the painter is totally enchanted by the model’s charm and he decides to introduce him to his friend. Besides, the painter does not try to leave his model, but tires to follow him. But this relationship comes to an end because the protagonist stabs the painter. So, one can see that the novelist makes use of the protagonist, painter, and the actress to unveil the symbolic importance of sexuality in human life. The relationship between misdeeds and justice The immoral aspects of the protagonist’s life forced him to face unexpected punishment in the end. One can see that the punishment faced by the protagonist in the end is symbolic of his misdeeds. The novelist inculcated punishment as a symbol of justice. The protagonist never knew that justice is applicable to all and he will be punished for his misdeeds. If the protagonist is not punished in the end, the readers will think that the novelist supports his misdeeds. So, the novelist made use of the protagonist as his mouthpiece to share his views on human debauchery and related punishment. From a different angle of view, the protagonist’s fate is symbolic of the punishment that can be expected by human beings who are immersed in misdeeds. Even the portrait is symbolic of the protagonist’s misdeeds and its end result. To be specific, the protagonist’s negative actions in his life ruin the painting. This is symbolic of his moral degradation. Baldwin (2001) states that, “Major symbols in the novel include the portrait, which dominates the story as it reflects Dorian’s increasing fall into debauchery” (p.10). The protagonist does not realize that the portrait is his own soul. Instead, he considers that the portrait’s degradation does not affect his physical attractiveness. Besides, he does not try to renovate the painting because he considered the same as an important medium to assess his control over his fate. The protagonist’s decision to destroy the painting is symbolic of justice. If the painting is destroyed, the protagonist will be forced to undergo judgment. So, this self-realization of the fact that worldly pleasure is temporary and the same cannot help human beings to be happy forever. So, one can see that this self-realization is symbolic of the relationship between misdeed and justice in the novel. Summing, the novelist makes use of symbolism to lead the readers towards the realm of aestheticism. The protagonist’s impersonation is symbolic of his motive, i.e. his desire to be free from being liable to his wrong deeds. The novelist makes use of the protagonist’s impersonation as a symbol to prove that impersonation cannot help one to save oneself from its after-effects. In the novel, the protagonist’s attitude towards female folk as mere medium of sexual pleasure is symbolic of masculine attitude on sexuality. The novelist depends upon symbolism to expose the relationship between misdeed and justice. To be specific, the protagonist does not realize that his decisions and actions will result in his doom. Instead, he considers that worldly pleasure is important in human life. Besides, he does not realize that his misdeeds will result in final judgment and related punishment. In short, the novelist makes use of symbolism to prove that impersonation cannot solve basic problems; pleasure in human life is a temporary phenomenon, and misdeeds result in punishment. References Baldwin, S.P. (2001). CliffsNotes on Wildes The Picture of Dorian Gray. Lincoln, NE: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Bloom, H. (2010). Blooms How to Write about Oscar Wilde. New York, NY: Infobase Publishing. Wilde, O. (2012). The Picture of Dorian Gray and Other Short Stories. New York, NY: Cosimo. Read More