The Picture of Dorian Gray 5

Passage: (In response to Dorian's response when it was not Lord Henry, but his wife coming into the library.)

"'You thought it was my husband. It is only his wife. You must let me introduce myself. I know you quite well by your photographs. I think my husband has got seventeen of them.'

'Not seventeen, Lady Henry?'

'Well, eighteen, then. And I saw you with him the other night at the Opera.'"


The conversation between Lady Henry and Dorian embodies many of the ongoing motifs in the novel. When Lady Henry says "It is only his wife" it is said in a casual tone that portrays marriage as nothing serious or significant (using the word "only"). Then Lady Henry goes on to say "I know you quite well by your photographs". It is ironic because one cannot know someone "well" just based off looks (relevant to the beauty motif). She, syntactically, starts the sentence saying "I know you well", which sets the conversation toward a more personal level, however, Lady Henry then balks the personal relationship by saying she knows him through photographs. It is odd that Lady Henry brings up a specific amount of photographs that Lord Henry has of Dorian Gray, and even more odd when Dorian challenges her estimate. She then slows down the specificity of the photographs, with a flippant tone, "well, eighteen, then", when she says "then", the tone of the conversation comes off as lacking interest, and almost agitated. By going one number up from seventeen, it shows that Lady Henry is not really concerned with the specific number, which is ironic that she brought "seventeen" up at all, which emphasizes why the statement is so odd. Lady Henry then mentions that she saw Dorian "with him the other night at the Opera". The statement raises the question: why was she not at the Opera with her husband, and also, why wouldn't she say hello to her husband if she saw him? The statement echoes one made by Lady Henry later in the chapter when she says "I like Wagner's music better than anybody's. it is so loud that one can talk the whole time without other people hearing what one says." Both statements embody the hedonistic way of life; a husband and wife aren't at an Opera together (casual relationships (The Wasteland)), and when attending a classy Opera, they wish the music to be tuned so that "one can talk the whole time".


This passage, syntactically, is placed at the start of Dorian's development as a hedonist, or rather, exhibiting the influences Lord Henry has had on him (echoed later by Lady Henry, saying "Ah! that is one of Harry's views, isn't it, Mr. Gray?"). When he meets Lady Henry, she is similar, if not practically the same character as Lord Henry, which is to show that beauty leaves a person vacuous, rather than intelligence, which makes a person have personality (for example, Basil, a painter, and Lord Fermor, a well educated politician, who are all foils of Lord Henry in that they have a multitude of personality) (beauty vs. intelligence motif). When Lady Henry says "you thought it was my husband" it shows she was aware Dorian's expectations to see Lord Henry, and she took it upon herself to see Dorian (she didn't happen to stumble into Dorian). The conversation transitions into Lady Henry's invitation for Dorian to attend a party of hers. The abruptness of the introduction, and the expedience leading to an invitation exhibits the hedonistic, casual actions and views of Lady and Lord Henry.


*** Although the writing styles of Wilde differ greatly from Shelley, there are a lot of qualities in common between the two, since they are both during the Romance era. Throughout the Romance era, especially in England there was a desire to reinvent Greek values. In Frankenstein, other than the homoeroticism, the beauty of characters, the relationships, and how nature is portrayed are similar in The Picture of Dorian Gray. Lord Henry says, in Chapter 2, "return to the Hellenic ideal- to something finer, richer, than the Hellenic ideal." Lord Henry, the emblem of the hedonistic motif, is voicing, and contributing to the theme and Greek motif. The rampant flower references, are similar to the nature references made in Frankenstein. Also, like a flower (nature), beauty is "destined to fade" (as Lord Henry says), so as the plot progresses, Dorian will attempt to defy nature and keep his beauty forever, similar to Victor's defiance of nature- creating the creature.

The Picture of Dorian Gray 4

Passage: "One afternoon, a month later, Dorian Gray was reclining in a luxurious arm-chair. In the little library of Lord Henry's house in Mayfair. It was, in its way, a very charming room, with its high paneled wainscoting of olive-stained oak, its cream colored frieze and ceiling of raised plaster-work, and its brickdust felt carpet strewn with silk long-fringed Persian rugs."

The first sentence of the passage starts with "one afternoon", which is ambiguous and anticipated from the ongoing listless diction; however, it also says "a month later", which is startlingly specific. The reference to time is brought up solely because of Dorian Gray, who, over that "month" has been greatly influenced by Lord Henry evident because the line "Dorian Gray was reclining in a luxurious arm-chair" is syntactically placed right after. The alliteration "little library" seems negligent, however, the alliteration brings focus to the setting which sets the foundation for the luxurious diction that comes after it. The sentences that follow are so descriptive, they are similar to descriptions of a picture. Syntactically Dorian Gray is put at the beginning of the passage, the alliteration of the setting (little library) brings the focus to the setting, or the picture, and the descriptive sentences that follow use imagery to paint the picture. The metaphorical transformation of Dorian Gray into a picture is echoed in a assertion made by Lord Henry in chapter 3, "the mere shapes and pattern of things becoming as it were, refined, and gaining a kind of symbolical value, as though they were themselves patterns." It then says, in reference to Dorian Gray, "He would make that wonderful spirit his own." I believe the passage is the first signs of Dorian Gray's transformation into a hedonist, like Lord Henry, and a picture, foreshadowed in Chapter 2 (when Dorian wishes to give his soul to look like his picture).

Syntactically, the hedonistic transformation of Dorian Gray is placed after the "month" of being with Lord Henry. The luxurious, languid diction of the the following sentences emphasize the dense, listless, beauty of the setting, and Dorian Gray. Words like "high paneled", "olive-stained oak", "cream colored", and "silk", contribute to the setting, and has an affect on the tone, making it as dense, and listless as the setting. The connotations associated with Persian rugs further accentuates the lavish lifestyle of Lord Henry.

The Picture of Dorian Gray 3

Passage: ...He was a marvelous type, too, this lad, whom by so curious a chance he had met in Basil's studio, or could be fashioned into a marvelous type, at any rate. Grace was his, and the white purity of boyhood, and beauty such as old Greek marbles kept for us. There was nothing that one could not do with him. He could be made a Titan or a toy. What a pity it was that such beauty was destined to fade!...

The motif of Hedonism begins to consume the plot when Lord Henry meets Dorian Gray, the real Dorian Gray. Lord Henry is characterized as a hedonist when he goes on a rant to Dorian Gray about why "there is no such thing as a good influence", continuing by saying "the aim of life is self-development". The above passage encompasses Lord Henry's hedonistic views and Dorian Gray. As the story progresses, Dorian Gray and Lord Henry are found in the garden together. Lord Henry comments on the value of youth to Dorian Gray, commenting that "youth is the one thing worth having". The statement about youth echoes the last line of the above passage, that it is a pity Dorian Gray will inevitably loose his beauty. By saying "he could be a Titan or a toy" Lord Henry both complements and demeans Dorian Gray. He complements Dorian Gray by using the profound image of a Titan, however, also says he could be made into a toy. The alliteration brings an immense focus to the juxtaposition of the two vastly different images. A Titan (defined as a pre-Olympian Greek god; often depicted as giants) is a powerful image of a valiant, sculptural looking man. A toy is a mere object, with little value other than an attractive appearance, which is the only similarity between the images: attractive appearance. In the passage above, "the white purity of boyhood, and beauty such as old Greek marbles kept for us", is in reference to the relevance of Dorian Gray to the novel. "White", syntactically placed before "purity", over accentuates "purity" because purity is very often affiliated with the color white. He then says "old Greek marbles kept for us", the statement is continuing the Greek "Hellenic" motif. The "Greek marbles", an understatement for the Greek sculptures of over accentuated muscles, etc., are furthering a point made by Lord Henry that beauty doesn't last, but is kept unchanged through art (the picture of Dorian Gray). Dorian Gray wants to give his soul to look like the painting Basil painted, similar to the beauty encapsulated in "Greek marbles", which are also white like the "white purity of boyhood".

Syntactically, the observation made by Lord Henry is framed by ellipses. By doing so, it separates the observation from the streaming thought, and brings focus to the observation. The tone is very slow moving, long flowing sentences similar to Lord Henry, until the last sentence; It is dramatic, the word choice "destined" makes the situation sound more story like. The exclamation point is placed syntactically at the end of the observation. The sentence is put at the end to tell the reader, despite all the languidly observed beautiful features of Dorian Gray, they are "destined to fade!".