“You will always be fond of me. I represent to you all the sins you never had the courage to commit.”
Picture of Dorian Gray is a novel that shows the raw and the hidden version of Oscar Wilde - it is his true soul! Being a victorian and living in the Victorian Age, there are a lot of rules that one must obey. Not long after its publication, Wilde was convicted with sodomite and was put into 2 years of labor. Afterwards, the book itself was labeled as suggestive and degrading the public morals. But, Wilde himself had made it clear on his preface that,
“There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral
book. Books are well written, or
badly written. That is all.”
So in this article, I will be discussing why this book is a well written book, seen from many aspects of it.
Aestheticism
Aestheticism is an European art movement in the late nineteenth century with its doctrine; beauty or art exist only for pleasure. Just like what Wilde has written on his preface all art is quite useless, it has strongly suggested that Wilde was influenced by this movement. In the book itself, the painter, Basil Hallward painted Dorian Gray for beauty purposes only.He wants to capture Dorian's beauty into canvas, because he has something different inside of him ( Dorian ). In this case the 'aesthetic' is the painting of Dorian.
Another form of aestheticism in this book is Sibyl Vane. When the first time Dorian saw her in a low-class theater, he instantly amazed by her performance. Then, he claimed that he is in love with her and soon to be married. But as we know, Dorian never loves her for who she is or her personality. He only loves her from the art that she creates, in this case acting. Once she performed badly, Dorian immediately abandoned her and said,
“Without your art, you are nothing”
The aestheticism of this book has crept into everyday life, such as love. Dorian sees Sibyl as an object of beauty rather than a human. That's why once she lost her 'art' she lost her meaning too, because she does not have anything left - based on Dorian's point-of-view,
Materialism
After he made a wish to never get old, Dorian starts to feel empty. He has become a shell. There's one chapter which explains Dorian's possession into things. He collected and tried everything on this earth that is counted as beauty. But, those things are only escapism from his harsh truth. He doesn't feel anything so he tries to 'feel' by collecting as many things as possible. However, we all know that feelings were gained from human's interaction, not things, but yet he valued things more than people.
Perhaps, the wish of never getting old is not that good after all. For me, the most fascinating things about life is the mortality itself.
New-Hedonism
Intead of craving for things the new-hedonism craves for beauty
" Live! Live the wonderful life that is in you! Let nothing be lost upon you. Be always searching for new sensations. Be afraid of nothing…. A new Hedonism- that is what our century wants. You might be its visible symbol. With your personality there is nothing you could not do. The world belongs to you for a season"
Henry points Dorian towards hedonism, he tells Dorian to seek and experience pleasure without thinking of its morality. And since he can't grow old, Dorian could explore every bodily pleasure without any consequences while Lord Henry's theory of New-Hedonism itself was totally wrong (immoral). He told Dorian that the only purpose in life is pleasure. Yes, we all crave for pleasure, in fact everything that we do is based on pleasure. But, when we try to consume art, beauty, and pleasure in its complete forms, we do not realise that slowly, they're the one who'll consume us.
Narcissism
It is clear that everyone around Dorian adored him for his beauty, and when Basil's painting was finished, Dorian said that he was jealous of the picture of himself.
“How sad it is!" murmured Dorian Gray, with his eyes still fixed upon his own portrait. "How sad it is! I shall grow old, and horrible, and dreadful. But this picture will remain always young.”
Dorian has become a narcissistic person. He obsessed with his own beauty and youth which lead him to his own death. Hedoesn't care about other people but himself. Because of his self obsession he becomes too self involved and slowly bother his own mental. Different from Narcissus' story, Dorian does not fell in love with himself but instead he is jealous of it. His jealousy was the root of his hatred toward himself, when he know that he's the one who stays young while the painting holds his horrible sides, he felt relieved and proud.
Homoeroticism
It has been a public secret that Oscar Wilde was a gay. He was in love with Lord Alfred Douglas or better known as Bosie. But before Bosie, Wilde was involved with another person who 'tempted' him into this same-sex relationship. It was Robbie Ross. Dorian, Basil, and Henry's friendship, or should I say relationship, is a substitute from Wilde's real life triangle-love. In the book, Basil was the first person who gets close with Dorian but later on Dorian and Henry are the one who get closer.
read this excerpt from the uncensored version of Dorian Gray
"Don’t speak. Wait till you hear what I have to say. It is quite true I have worshipped you with far more romance of feeling than a man should ever give to a friend. Somehow I have never loved a woman."
It was Basil's confession about his feelings towards Dorian. This is a proof that this book has a homoeroticism element in it - remember what was Wilde convicted of? -- Not only with Basil, Dorian also has another close friend called Alan Campbell, who later will help him to get rid of a body. If we take a closer look at the characters surrounding Dorian, most ofthem were men. Whether they are a friend or a very close 'friend'. Though Dorian had had a lover, Sibyl, it is obvious that he's gay.
Conclusion
Picture of Dorian Gray is a very complex novel. It has many aspects to breakdown and messages behind its lines. Even though this book is a classics, but Picture of Dorian Gray considered as an easy read and written beautifully with many hidden 'gems' in it. In the end, Dorian still could not escaped from the mortality of life. He couldn't keep his secret without corrupting his own soul, just like the victorians. Back in the Victorian Era with its glamorous lifestyle, the society hid the bitter truth of a war they had started in another part of the world. Clearly it is suffering for them. But as for the simpler meaning of this book is that, physical beauty would be nothing if one does not have an inner beauty.
I'd recommend this book to people who want to start read classics, and here's my rating for the book.
If you had read this book, let's discuss and share your thoughts below!
Read The Picture of Dorian Gray free online ( public domain ) : https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/search/?query=picture+of+dorian+gray&submit_search=Go%21
Buy Little Women online in Indonesia : https://www.gramedia.com/products/english-classics-the-picture-of-dorian-gray or contact your nearest Gramedia!
The Uncensored Version of Picture of Dorian Gray : https://lithub.com/a-close-reading-of-the-originally-censored-passages-of-the-picture-of-dorian-gray/
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