Dorian Gray Research Paper

English Essay
Oscar Wilde’s novel is an extended metaphor that reinforces his idea that ‘There is no such thing as a moral or immoral book’. In The Picture Of Dorian Gray his view is very contradictory. His theory is reinforced through the changes in Dorian’s personality, the ‘yellow book’ A Rebours (‘against nature’) which was one of the most important novels during the decadence period, which was given to Dorian Gray by Lord Henry. Consequently, leading us to the corruption of Dorian Gray and his inevitable death.
Dorian’s change in personality reinforces Oscar Wilde’s idea. This is because Dorian is living a double life, and in regards to the novel elements of his good and bad side is shown. This is shown with hints in the novel and shows the cautionary tale of the novel. As his friends, such as Lord Henry attempted to “spoil” his “beautiful nature” one of his closest friend Basil was cautious this was going to turn young Dorian from good to evil. Wilde does this to show how Dorian’s lifestyle can be corrupted morally and immorally, as things such as the painting make him accomplish the things he always wanted accepting pleasures moral or immorally. In spite of this, Lord Henry threatens Dorian’s fear of the
This is because as Oscar Wilde starts to show the reader Dorian’s corrupt soul more and more throughout the book as he commits crimes and makes the one he ‘loved’ commit suicide. By showing us Dorian’s corrupt soul more through the book it gives the reader a sense that there is a moral to it because no one can be once an almost ‘perfect’ human being to a criminal almost who neglects his close friends without a meaning behind it. Thus going against Oscar Wilde’s idea because his book was based on getting homo erotic views across so he must be presenting something that has meaning for example Dorian’s beauty and how it lead to his