homo eroticism

The Role Of Homo-eroticism In The Picture Of Dorian Gray
The treatment of homo-eroticism as a theme in The Picture of Dorian Gray is a part of the aesthetic backdrop that structures and also helps to color the novel. It is also used as a way to challenge the hypocritically-prudish surface of the Victorian society. However, there is much more artistic and historical value to the use of this theme, such as the motif of aestheticism.
The idea of homo-eroticism being a part of the Greek culture, and therefore part of the aesthetic mentality, is a product of Wilde's society of the mid 1800's. The writings of Aristophanes, Aristotle and Plato (who later recanted his thoughts) among others, brought out the rationale that male love was, in conclusion, a higher form of classical emotion. Regardless of his personal life, Wilde's inclusion of homo-erotica, or its undertones, would be indicative of his true aesthetic style. The name "Dorian" has connotations of the Dorians, an ancient Greek tribe. Robert Mighall suggests this could be Wilde hinting at a connection to "greek", a euphemism for the homoeroticism accepted as everyday in ancient Greece.
First, the friendship between Dorian, Basil, and Lord Henry serves as the backbone of the plot: here we see the Greek aspect of homo-eroticism in that both men, Basil and Henry, admire a much younger Dorian for his physical beauty. Basil going as far to say that "As long as I live, the personality of Dorian Gray will dominate me." However, while Basil is shunned, Dorian wishes to emulate Lord Henry, which in turn, rouses Lord Henry from his "characteristic languor to a desire to influence Dorian, a process that is itself a sublimated expression of homosexuality." Homo-eroticism works with this scenario because both Basil and Henry unofficially "appoint" themselves as Dorian's mentors in life. This is a replica of the idea of "the love that dares not speak its name," as Wilde would say: the Greek dynamics between an older man and a younger man, where the older man serves as the "teacher" of the younger. Lord Henry would be Dorian's "teacher" in the indoctrination to his so-called "new Hedonism."
The later corruption of Dorian seems to make what was once a boyish charm a destructive influence. Basil asks why Dorian's "friendship is so fatal to young men", commenting upon the "shame and sorrow" that the father of one of the disgraced boys displays. Alan Campbell is blackmailed by Dorian with the threat that the 'secret' held between them will be revealed.Dorian only destroys these men when he becomes "intimate" with them, suggesting that the friendships between Dorian and the men in question become more than simply platonic. Since the only person Dorian claims to have loved is a woman, Sibyl Vane, it is also possible Wilde intended his character to display Greek pansexuality.
Homo-eroticism also helps to color the otherwise dark aspect of the novel's Gothic nature. This is because Lord Henry's admiration for Dorian brings out the best of his repartee of epigrams and axioms. This brings the atmosphere of the novel to a refreshing lighter side at some points. The novel is also considered groundbreaking in the context that, in literature, "Dorian Gray was one of the first in a long list of hedonistic fellows whose homosexual tendencies secured a terrible fate."(Drew Banks)
Wilde's use of homo-erotica would have been a required element to complete the features of an aesthetic work of art. Although the topic raised eyebrows, Wilde would not use it alone to shock. That would be too simple. Instead he caused shock by treating the topic with as much art, class, and neutrality as any other topic in Victorian literature.