Year 11
11 Literature 201
2011
Unit 2 Outcome 1:
A Text From A Past Era
Weeks 4 - 10
The Picture of Dorian Gray
by Oscar Wilde
Assessment:
Reading Journal (20%)
20%) – Ongoing
Analytical Essay (20
(20%)
20%) – Week 10
Unit Overview
Week
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Session
Tue 7/8
Fri 10/8
Mon 13/8
Tue 14/8
Fri 17/8
Mon 20/8
Tue 21/8
Fri 24/8
Mon 27/8
Tue 28/8
Fri 31/8
Mon 3/9
Tue 4/9
Fri 7/9
Mon 10/9
Tue 11/9
Fri 14/9
Mon 17/9
Tue 18/9
Fri 21/9
Activity
Homework
Analysis and Questions
Chapters 1-3
Analysis and Questions
Chapters 4 – 7
Reading Journal
Catch Up
Analysis and Questions
Chapters 8 – 10
Analysis and Questions
Chapters 11 – 15
Analysis and Questions
Chapters 16 – 20
Reading Journal
Catch Up
Context
Prologue
Reading Groups Chapters 1-3
Chapters 1-3 Follow Up
Reading Groups Chapters 4-7
Chapters 4-7 Follow Up
Film
Reading Groups Chapters 8-10
Chapters 8-10 Follow Up
Reading Groups Chapter 11-15
Chapters 11-15 Follow Up
Reading Groups Chapter 16-20
Chapters 16-20 Follow Up
SAC Tutorial and Sample Essay
Practice SAC
Practice SAC Feedback and Review
SAC Planning
SAC Writing (Reading Journal Due)
SAC Preparation
PAC DAY
The assessment for this unit is divided as follows:
The Reading Journal is worth 20 percent of your semester result. It will include:
- Holiday Preparation Notes
- Context Notes and Prologue Analysis
- Reading Groups (including questions and commentary analysis) [Double Marks]
- Practice Essay
Each task is worth four points:
1 = completed simply
2 = completed
3 = completed with effort
4 = completed in detail.
The point of assessing this work is to instil in you the value of doing it. This is the sort of work you will be
given to do in Year 12 and builds towards the assessment task by having your practice the skills and build a
set of ideas on the text. It will be a struggle to stay on-top of the workload so use the planner above to be
aware of the timing of tasks and homework requirements. Above all, if you find yourself falling behind you
need to speak to me immediately. I will help you prioritise and manage the load as best I can.
The SAC is worth 20 percent of your semester result. It is a standard views and values essay. You will have
a session of planning and a session of writing. In the planning session you will have the novel and may
make as many notes as you wish. In the writing session you will only have these notes. This SAC is the
basis of most Lit essays next year. You will have the opportunity to complete a practice essay and should
take it.
Context
The purpose of this unit of work is to understand what a piece of Literature can tell us about the period in
which it was written and how we need to understand this context to fully appreciate the text itself. As
such it is useful to look at the life of Oscar Wilde. This will give us an understanding of his motivations for
writing The Picture of Dorain Gray as well as the times in which he lived which influenced and shaped his
work.
You can find the biography that we will watch together in class on Youtube should you need to review
parts of it. The link to Part 1, which will lead you on to the other parts, is:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqRwZz7n8o8
Part 1
1. “Oscar Wilde’s writing made him famous but his
life was his true work of art.” As a statement
what does this suggest about the man Oscar
Wilde was and the degree to which he fit into the
society of the time?
2. Did his family conform to the standards of
Victorian England? What role did both William
and Lady Jane have on forming the character of
Oscar Wilde?
3. Oscar Wilde’s physicality made him stand out.
What was it about the way he looked that took
people by surprise?
4. Complete some research on the aesthetic
movement. What was it and what relevance
does it have to The Picture of Dorian Gray?
5. How important do you think the comments of
the church about Wilde’s interests were at this
time? Do you think Wilde’s ‘denouncement’ by
the church might have influenced his writing?
6. The ways in which the establishment of the day
viewed Oscar Wilde and his success in his studies
seemed to conflict. How might this have
suggested, to him, some of the inherent problems
with society at the time?
Part 2
1. How might the early friendships Wilde had connect with the story of Dorian Gray?
2. Consider Wilde’s connection to London society at this time. Does this suggest where his ideas for
The Picture of Dorian Gray might have come from? Does it suggest the purpose behind his writing?
3. The Prince of Wales said “Not to know Mr Wilde is not to be known.” Does this comment remind
you of one of Wilde’s characters?
4. Why is America’s attitude to hypocrisy and ambition important to Wilde? What does this suggest
about the way in which he sees London?
Part 3
1. Complete some research to discover who Emile Zola, Victor Hugo, Edgar Degas and Camille
Pissarro were. Why were they important to Wilde?
2. Do you agree that Wilde might not have realised that he was gay when he was married? What
might this imply?
3. Oscar Wilde’s role on ‘The Ladies World’ is fairly interesting. What do you think he believed about
gender?
4. What do Wilde’s comments about his pregnant wife suggest?
5. How might Oscar Wilde’s double life have impacted on him if it has been discovered at the time?
How was publishing The Picture of Dorain Gray therefore a risk?
6. Why might Dorian Gray have been considered ‘scandalous’? Why would Wilde have found this
‘marvellous’?
Part 4
1. How do you interpret the comments about Bosie’s fascination
with The Picture of Dorian Gray?
2. Was Wilde’s and Bosie’s relationship a case of life mirroring art?
Or is it’s similarity to aspects of the Picture of Dorian Gray just a
sign of prominent behaviours at the time?
3. Complete some research some of the critically acclaimed works
the Wilde did while having his affair with Bosie: Lady
Windamere’s Fan, The Importance of Being Ernest and The Ideal
Husband. How do they reflect and criticise Victorian society at
the time? Why do you think they were critically acclaimed
within the society?
4. How do you think the laws of the day might have influenced
Wilde’s life and, in turn, his art?
5. What does Wilde’s tendency not to hide his relationships suggest
about his attitudes in regards to the opinions of others or the
prominent values of society at the time?
Part 5 to 7
1. Having heard Wilde’s witty responses to questions in court what do you think they suggest about
his attitudes? What do you think they also expose about his understanding of the difference
between his artistic sensibilities and the moral values of the time?
2. How had Wilde exposed himself in the liable trial? How did this lead to him being brought to court
on criminal charges?
3. Was it noble of him to stay in England and face the charges?
4. Why was it that people in society, and particularly those in the court, could no longer ignore
Wilde’s sexual activities?
5. What do the judge’s comments about Wilde’s ‘crimes’ tell us about the moral standard and the
social values of the time? Complete some research on
6. Consider the front page of the magazine over the page. What do you think people thought of
Oscar Wilde once the trial was over and he had been found guilty? What is suggested about
society at the time by this illustration?
7. Was it fair that Oscar Wilde was ‘destroyed’ for his ‘crimes’? How does this relate to Dorian’s fate?
8. Considering all of this happened well after The Picture of Dorian Gray was published do you think
Wilde knew it was coming?
The Preface
Oscar Wilde's preface to The Picture of Dorian Gray consists of a list of Wilde's aphorisms (original
thoughts, subjective truths or observations) that deal directly with art, artists, critics, and audience but
only obliquely with the novel. They speak to the importance of beauty espoused by the Aesthetic
movement. I have seperated the aphorisms out into dot points to help you out.
•
•
For each comment decide how you feel about it and indicate this next to the statement. It may not
be as simple as agreeing or disagreeing, so be prepared to make a longer statement if needed.
Choose three aphorisms which you think expose the key ideas of the text and pull them apart to
show what they mean and how they set up the text.
o The artist is the creator of beautiful things.
o To reveal art and conceal the artist is art's aim.
o The critic is he who can translate into another manner or a new material his impression of
beautiful things. The highest as the lowest form of criticism is a mode of autobiography.
o Those who find ugly meanings in beautiful things are corrupt without being charming. This
is a fault. Those who find beautiful meanings in beautiful things are the cultivated. For
these there is hope. They are the elect to whom beautiful things mean only beauty. There
is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written.
That is all.
o The nineteenth century dislike of realism is the rage of Caliban seeing his own face in a
glass. The nineteenth century dislike of romanticism is the rage of Caliban not seeing his
own face in a glass. The moral life of man forms part of the subject-matter of the artist,
but the morality of art consists in the perfect use of an imperfect medium. No artist
desires to prove anything. Even things that are true can be proved. No artist has ethical
sympathies. An ethical sympathy in an artist is an unpardonable mannerism of style. No
artist is ever morbid. The artist can express everything. Thought and language are to the
artist instruments of an art. Vice and virtue are to the artist materials for an art.
o From the point of view of form, the type of all the arts is the art of the musician. From the
point of view of feeling, the actor's craft is the type. All art is at once surface and symbol.
Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril. Those who read the symbol do so at
their peril.
o It is the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors. Diversity of opinion about a work of
art shows that the work is new, complex, and vital. When critics disagree, the artist is in
accord with himself.
o We can forgive a man for making a useful thing as long as he does not admire it. The only
excuse for making a useless thing is that one admires it intensely. All art is quite useless.
Reading Groups
Over this part of the unit you will work on reading the text in a group of 4 people. In this group you will
take on certain roles. As you complete the reading and activities for each section of The Picture of Dorian
Gray you will take on a different role.
Summarizer:
This person is responsible for summing up the plot points and major events of the sections. You should be
able to use your holiday homework for this role which will give you time to catch your breath. But it is still
important to re-read the chapters in preparation. You may like to prepare notes on the following points:
• What was this section about?
• Did anything of particular importance or interest happen?
• Did characters change, grow, or have revelations?
• What concerns were focused on in these chapters?
This person always starts the group’s discussion and should take no more than 10 minutes.
Questioner:
The questioner is responsible for exploring at least five of the questions from this week’s reading with the
group. It is expected that the group has undertaken these questions already and that the discussion is an
opportunity to clarify thoughts and extend your interpretation and deconstruction skills. The questioner
should:
• Select questions that are challenging and complex.
• Provide an interpretation and invite others to discuss this.
• Encourage the group to support their thoughts with evidence.
The group will record their thoughts below the chapter questions and amend their chapter questions as
needed. This discussion should last for no more than 30 minutes.
Critical Companion
The critical companion’s role is to guide the group through the analysis material. It is expected that
everyone in the group has already read this material before the session but the critical companion’s role is
to help pick out the key assertions that illuminate the text and lead the group through discussing whether
or not these are supportable. The critical companion should:
• Highlight five suggestions being made in the analysis of each section.
• Discuss with the group the merits of this observation.
• Indicate where this could be supported or expanded upon in the text and how.
The group will record this information and their thoughts as annotations and highlighting of the analysis.
This discussion should last for no more than 30 minutes.
Deconstructor:
This person needs to identify five key quotes per section which hold an important meaning. The
deconstructor points out these quotes before helping the group explore them. The deconstructor need to:
• Remember that deconstructing imagery, metaphors and symbols is a matter of interpretation and
different people can see different things.
• Ideas should be outlined in reference to the discourse and not just the storyline.
• Quotes need to be pulled apart for language and subtext which can also be a matter of
interpretation.
I have provided a selection of moments which can be drawn upon for discussion. Notes can also be taken
in the margins besides these quotes. This task should take no more than 30 minutes.
Part 1: Chapters 1 – 3
Chapter Analysis and Questions
Chapter 1
Basil is an artist of apparently independent means. He is secretive, and Wilde even mentions that
Basil has disappeared without notice in the past. In addition, the distinctive toss of his head, the
one that "used to make his friends laugh at him at Oxford," characterizes Basil as someone who is
thought of as an odd, yet endearing, fellow.
Although Basil claims to be independent, he is instantly overpowered by Dorian upon meeting
him, becoming dependent on Dorian immediately as his muse, spirit, art, and life. Basil's
attraction to Dorian seems to be both professional and personal. Dorian inspires Basil to a new
vision of art, combining Greek perfection with Romantic passion. However, there is every
implication of something more personal in the attraction. Basil is also a jealous person, wanting
to keep Dorian from Lord Henry so that he can have Dorian all to himself.
Lord Henry Wotton is a very intelligent, confident, manipulative man. He decadently smokes
opium-tainted cigarettes and has a commanding presence no matter where he is or whom he
socializes with. He is very judgmental and enjoys sounding profound. Like Wilde himself, Lord
Henry often speaks in aphorisms. As he speaks with Basil, Lord Henry picks a daisy from the grass
to examine it, later pulling the daisy apart, an act that symbolizes his role throughout the novel as
a manipulator and destroyer of beauty for his own amusement.
Although it may seem strange to categorize a painting as a character, Basil's portrait of Dorian
plays such an important role in the book that the reader is actually introduced to the painting as
if it were a character before meeting Dorian himself. Perhaps Wilde is indicating that Dorian's
reputation for physical beauty precedes him and is more important to his character than any
other attribute. In any case, the presence of the portrait in Chapter 1 allows the reader to hear
something about Dorian before his character appears in the novel. Basil speaks at length about
Dorian, stating that he is charming, but also that "Now and then, however, he is horribly
thoughtless, and seems to take a real delight in giving me pain." This characterization links Dorian
with Lord Henry as a manipulator and foreshadows their close relationship later in the story.
Also introduced are the major themes of the novel: the importance and power of beauty in
relation to the intellect and the soul, and the fleeting nature of beauty. While discussing the
merits of beauty as opposed to intellect, Basil states that there is "a fatality about all physical and
intellectual distinction, the sort of fatality that seems to dog through history the faltering steps of
kings." Basil's statement indicates that physical and intellectual excellence are often the downfall
of those who possess them. The reader should note how Basil's statement rings true throughout
the novel.
Wilde claimed that Lord Henry represented his public image but that the author actually was
more like Basil and yearned to be more like Dorian. While the reader must always take care in
accepting Wilde's comments at face value, he was like Basil in that he was a creative artist and
privately perhaps less secure than his public image. He certainly did admire youth and beauty,
which Dorian possesses. Still, Lord Henry is the Wildean character in this novel: bright, witty, and
controlling.
1.
2.
3.
4.
Is Basil a comment on art or a reflection of Wilde?
When it says that Lord Henry ‘enjoys sounding profound’ does this suggest that he actually isn’t?
Explain how Dorian’s characterisation suggests he is a manipulator.
Provide some justification that ‘the importance and power of beauty in relation to the intellect
and the soul, and the fleeting nature of beauty’ are concepts introduced in the first chapter.
5. From what you know of Wilde do you think he is most like Lord Henry?
6. In what way does Lord Henry affect Dorian’s character? Why does Lord Henry choose Dorian as
his disciple? And what impels Dorian to follow his guidance? What is it that Dorian fears?
Chapter 2
Chapter 2 is one of the most important chapters in the novel. First, it introduces the title
character, Dorian. The reader is assured of his physical beauty, with his "finely curved scarlet lips,
his frank blue eyes, his crisp gold hair." Basil and Lord Henry are older, perhaps in their early
thirties, but Dorian is past twenty and no child. Still, he has retained remarkable innocence and
even "purity." He seems less mature than his years: He pouts; he is petulant; he acts spoiled. He
blushes, becomes unreasonably upset, and cries.
Lord Henry, who enjoys manipulating people, spots Dorian's vulnerability immediately and goes
to work. He soon has planted the seeds of terror in the young man, an unreasonable and
immature fear of growing old and losing his youthful beauty. When Basil complains about Lord
Henry's manipulating Dorian, Lord Henry responds that he is merely bringing out the true Dorian,
and maybe he is.
Dorian is easily swayed by Lord Henry's seductive ideas, revealing that Dorian's true morals are
vague, to say the least. At the beginning of the chapter, Dorian has no greater friend than Basil,
but by the end of the chapter, he has abandoned Basil for Lord Henry after a very short
afternoon. The reader might first attribute Dorian's weakness and fickle nature to youth, but the
change in his nature occurs only after he has realized the importance of his own beauty, a very
worldly attitude. In this short chapter, the reader not only meets the main character of the book;
the reader also witnesses a complete transition in his nature from innocence to self-involved
worldliness. Dorian's fall from grace takes place in just a few short pages.
Chapter 2 is also very important because it introduces the vehicle that propels the rest of the
story — Dorian's wish that the painting show those horrible signs of age that he fears, leaving
him forever young. Dorian's wish about the painting introduces the Faust theme, which Wilde
develops throughout the book. (The Faust legend was well known to Wilde through popular
culture.) Faust, legend has it, sold his soul to the devil in exchange for knowledge and power. The
Faust legend raises the question of eternal damnation due to the unpardonable sin of despair.
Certainly it is a sin for the Faustian character to make a pact with the devil. However, he can
escape, even at the end of his life, if he repents and asks for God's forgiveness. Usually, the
character feels he is beyond God's help, which is an insult to God, who is all-powerful, according
to Christian philosophy. Despair is the only unpardonable sin because it keeps the sinner from
asking for God's help.
As Dorian's character evolves throughout the novel, the reader should keep in mind the Faust
legend and how Oscar Wilde applies it to Dorian's character. In light of the Faust legend, the
reader might ask at this point what Lord Henry's role is. If he is not the devil literally, he certainly
seems to be playing the devil's part. More accurately, he plays the devil's advocate, leading
Dorian into an unholy pact by manipulating his innocence and insecurity. Lord Henry's role in
Dorian's downfall is implied rather than explicitly defined, and the reader need not conclude that
Lord Henry is aware of his demonic role. However, he does enjoy controlling people and playing
with their minds. In the context of the Faust theme, perhaps he is the devil's unwitting
representative.
1. What do you think is meant by the phrase self-involved worldliness?
2. Look at the passage where Dorian makes his wish. Deconstruct this passage. What are the most
important phrases? What is the subtext? What meaning is constructed through the discourse?
3. Do some research to ensure you understand the story of Faust.
4. Considering the religious beliefs and dominant ideologies of Victorian England how might Dorian
have been seen as a character?
5. Do you agree that if Lord Henry is not the devil ‘he certainly seems to be playing the devil’s part?
Justify your position.
Chapter 3
The chief contribution of this entertaining chapter is that the reader learns about Dorian's
background. Fermor's details about Dorian's troubled family establish the young man as a
romantic and tragic figure.
The only other important information that the reader gets in this chapter is about the
relationship between Dorian and Lord Henry, which appears to be solidifying quickly. Early
in the chapter, Lord Henry recalls that talking with Dorian the night before had been like
"playing upon an exquisite violin." He likens his influence on Dorian to a sculptor's shaping
of a statue out of beautiful marble. Lord Henry is not subtle about his motives toward
Dorian: "He would seek to dominate him — had already, indeed, half done so."
Readers should note the ironic contrast of Lord Henry's speeches and his actions. In Chapter
2, he advises Dorian that all influence is bad because it corrupts a person's true spirit; in
this chapter, he willfully states that he intends to influence Dorian's development. At the
end of the chapter, Dorian has fallen fully under the spell of Lord Henry's influence. For
example, Dorian backs out of his afternoon appointment with Basil, saying, "I would sooner
come with you [Lord Henry]; yes, I feel I must come with you."
The luncheon, which spans the bulk of the chapter and does little to progress the plot or
enlighten the reader, seems to have been devised to entertain the reader and show off Lord
Henry's clever table talk. Lord Henry is witty, but it is no accident that friends of Wilde
recognized several of the author's favorite lines as they came out of Lord Henry's mouth.
1. How does the image of Lord Henry playing upon Dorian like an exquisite violin or shaping a
statue out of beautiful marble suggest his manipulation?
2. How is the ironic contrast between Lord Henry’s speeches and his actions a comment on
London society?
3. Why would Wilde give Lord Henry his words if he is the devil?
Suggested Quotes
Chapter 1
“Conscience and cowardice are really the same things … Conscience is the tradename of the firm. That is all.”
"You don't understand what friendship is, Harry," he murmured--"or what enmity
is, for that matter. You like every one; that is to say, you are indifferent to
everyone.”
Chapter 2
“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.”
"The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. Resist it, and your soul
grows sick with longing for the things it has forbidden to itself, with desire for
what its monstrous laws have made monstrous and unlawful."
“I am jealous of everything whose beauty does not die. I am jealous of the
portrait you have painted of me. Why should it keep what I must lose? Every
moment that passes takes something from me and gives something to it. Oh, if it
were only the other way! If the picture could change, and I could be always what I
am now! Why did you paint it? It will mock me some day--mock me horribly!”
"How sad it is! I shall grow old, and horrible, and dreadful. But this picture will
remain always young. It will never be older than this particular day of June... If it
were only the other way! If it were I who was to be always young, and the picture
that was to grow old! For that-for that-I would give everything! Yes, there is
nothing in the whole world I would not give! I would give my soul for that!"
Chapter 3
[Lord Henry] thought for a moment. “Can you remember any great error that you
committed in your early days, Duchess?” he asked, looking at her across the
table.
“A great many, I fear,” she cried.
“Then commit them over again,” he said gravely. To get back one’s youth, one
has merely to repeat one’s follies.”
"I can sympathize with everything except suffering," said Lord Henry, shrugging
his shoulders. "I cannot sympathize with that. It is too ugly, too horrible, too
distressing. There is something terribly morbid in the modern sympathy with
pain. One should sympathize with the colour, the beauty, the joy of life. The less
said about life's sores, the better".
"Yes; he would try to be to Dorian Gray what, without knowing it, the lad was to
the painter who had fashioned the wonderful portrait. He would seek to
dominate him-had already, indeed, half done so. He would make that wonderful
spirit his own. There was something fascinating in this son of Love and Death."
Part 2: Chapters 4 – 7
Chapter Analysis and Questions
Chapter 4
Of primary interest in this chapter is the development of Dorian's character. Throughout the first
three chapters, Lord Henry was the center of attention; Dorian was little more than a pretty face
who envied his own portrait and was devoted to his mentor. In Chapter 4, however, Dorian
begins to take over the novel. He comes into his own as a character, beginning to drive the plot
of the story by acting independently of Lord Henry. His pronouncements, however, echo Lord
Henry's, an indication that he is still very much under Lord Henry's influence. At least twice, the
reader hears that an adage spoken by the protégé — Dorian — was originally spoken by the
mentor — Lord Henry. However, Dorian's relationship with Sibyl Vane, superficial and immature
as it may be, illustrates a burgeoning independence. It will soon lead to crisis and force more
changes on the title character.
Dorian has not just fallen in love with an actress; he has fallen in love with her performances. He
does not know the girl at all; yet, by the end of the chapter, they are engaged to be married. His
ambition is not to build a relationship but to develop a star. If Dorian has learned nothing else
from Lord Henry, he has learned the joy of manipulation. He wants to become Sibyl Vane's agent,
not her husband. That Dorian's first love is so flawed with selfishness and manipulation is a bright
indicator of the emerging dark side of his nature.
As for Lord Henry, he may not be jealous of Dorian's love interest, but he is somewhat
skeptical. He feels that Dorian is "premature," noting early on that an actress is a "rather
commonplace début" for a young man entering the world of romance, but he quickly drops
that approach when he sees how intensely in love Dorian is. Lord Henry is wise enough to
avoid confrontation. However, he must be stunned by the telegram announcing the
engagement.
A modern audience might find one disturbing factor in the chapter. Mr. Isaacs, who runs
the theatre and holds Sibyl Vane under contract, is described in such flagrantly racist terms
that the reader cannot ignore them. Someone might argue, in Wilde's defense, that he
describes one specific Jew, not necessarily a stereotype. A better defense is that Dorian is
speaking, not Wilde, and the crude, racist observations may be early indications of Dorian's
character. Certainly, the young man can be superficial. It may be unfair to conclude that the
narrator's views are Wilde's views. However, either way, anti-Semitism was thriving in
nineteenth-century England as well as in much of the rest of Europe, as witnessed in
Charles Dickens' portrayal of Fagin in Oliver Twist or in the real-life Dreyfus affair in France.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Provide evidence that Dorian is ‘still very much under Lord Henry's influence’.
How does Dorian falling in love with Sybil make comment on Art and the Aesthetic movement?
Do you agree that Dorian ‘wants to become Sibyl Vane's agent, not her husband’?
Why do you think Lord Henry doesn’t confront Dorian over Sybil?
Wilde is a student of Shakespeare. Use your knowledge of Merchant of Venice to comment on
the racial depiction of the theatre owner and how it might have been read in 1885 as opposed to
how it is likely read today.
Chapter 5
The absence of Dorian or Lord Henry from this chapter may make it seem like filler, a chance for
the reader to catch a breath after the whirlwind engagement announcement that ended the
previous chapter. However, this short chapter serves an important function in the novel; it
introduces and describes characters and sets up events that will be developed later in the story.
Sibyl is the ingénue, an innocent girl, and the reader would be hard pressed to find another
character in the book as sweet or innocent or wholesome. She is no match for the jaded,
sophisticated world of Lord Henry and Dorian. Her pure joy at being in love provides poignant
contrast to the manipulative intentions that Dorian calls "love."
It is little wonder that James is enraged at the thought of any harm coming to his sister. He is the
adventurer, off to see the world, but the reader has to suspect that all the anger about class
distinction and all those threats about killing people might eventually come to something.
Mrs. Vane is the fallen woman with a crusty exterior but a good heart. She was ill-treated by the
wealthy, privileged, married man who fathered her children. Because Sibyl has fallen in love with
a gentleman just as her mother did, the reader can't help but wonder if her romance will end as
tragically as her mother's.
Mr. Isaacs, whom Wilde introduced in an earlier chapter, is the creditor to whom the Vane family
is indebted. When Sibyl says that Isaacs is not a gentleman and that she hates the way that he
talks to her, the reader needs no further explanation of his character. Sibyl and her mother live in
desperate circumstances, and Sibyl could easily fall hopelessly, blindly in love with a young man
as charming as her Prince.
The only thing missing from this list of characters is the suitor — Dorian. Will he be the hero, a
true gentleman who saves the family and carries off Sibyl to live happily ever after? Or will he be
a cad?
1. Define the phrase ingénue. What do you think is mean by this in relation to Sybil?
2. ‘Her pure joy at being in love provides poignant contrast to the manipulative intentions that
Dorian calls "love."’ Why is this contrast necessary? Cite examples of her virtue and purity as
evidence.
3. Choose a line in relation to James that you feel effectively foreshadows later events.
4. Do you think there is any ambiguity in the text at this time about whether Dorian will be the hero
or the cad? What purpose would ambiguity serve?
Chapter 7
In Chapter 7, Dorian's narrative supersedes all others in the novel. From now on, it will be his
story, not Lord Henry's. The novel becomes more dynamic because Dorian's character grows —
changes — while Lord Henry's remains unchanged.
The change in Dorian's character in this chapter is dramatic. Dorian begins the chapter as a
dedicated lover. Then, in a few short pages, he becomes a disgusted critic, a heartless deserter,
briefly a contrite sinner, and then finally a lover rededicated to Sibyl — not because he loves the
woman, but because he fears hurting himself and the portrait. Even though the chapter ends
with Dorian intending to do "his duty" by being honorable and marrying Sibyl, his honor is false
because it is based on selfishness. His "honorable intentions" are simply a continuation of his
soul's degradation. The number and degree of changes that Dorian goes through in this chapter,
most of them negative changes, hint at the turn his nature will take in the rest of the book.
Chapter 7 also introduces an element that will reoccur throughout the story: the changing of the
portrait. By the end of the chapter, the reader understands that the portrait will symbolize the
state of Dorian's soul and spirit. Wilde will use the portrait to help develop his characterization of
Dorian for the rest of the book.
Dorian's special relationship with his portrait continues the Faust theme. His wish about the
portrait suggests a pact with the devil. Dorian's desire to escape the "poisonous theories" of Lord
Henry indicates that he sees his mentor as an evil, devil-like influence, but, like Faust, Dorian
seems eager to benefit from the fruits of his pact, namely the eternal youth that the portrait
offers him.
1. Create a chart with two columns. One side has the positive changes Dorian goes through in this
chapter the other the negative. List them in sequence putting them on the correct side of the
table.
2. Look at the first description of the changes to the painting. Break down the passage to explore
the deeper meaning and comment being made.
Suggested Quotes
Chapter 4
"His sudden mad love for Sibyl Vane was a psychological phenomenon of no small
interest. There was no doubt that curiosity had much to do with it, curiosity and
the desire for new experiences; yet it was not a simple but rather a very complex
passion."
Nowadays people know the price of everything and the value of nothing.
You know how a voice can stir one. Your voice and the voice of Sibyl Vane are
two things that I shall never forget. When I close my eyes, I hear them, and each
of them says something different. I don’t know which to follow.
When one is in love, one always begins by deceiving one's self, and one always
ends by deceiving others.
Chapter 5
Her eyes caught the melody and echoed it in radiance, then closed for a moment,
as though to hide their secret. When they opened, the mist of a dream had
passed across them.
Chapter 6
“But, surely, if one lives merely for one’s self, Harry, one pays a terrible price for
doing so?” suggested the painter.
“Yes, we are overcharged for everything nowadays. I should fancy that the real
tragedy of the poor is that they can afford nothing but self-denial. Beautiful sins,
like beautiful things, are the privilege of the rich.”
A strange sense of loss came over him. He felt that dorian Gray would never
again be to him all that he has been in the past. Life had come between them...
His eyes darkened, and the crowded flaring streets became blurred to his eyes.
When the cab drew up at the theatre, it seemed to him that he had grown years
older.
Chapter 7
"If this girl can give a soul to those who have lived without one, if she can create
the sense of beauty in people whose lives have been sordid and ugly, if she can
strip them of their selfishness and lend them tears for sorrows that are not their
own, she is worthy of all your adoration, worthy of the adoration of the world.
This marriage is quite right. I did not think so at first, but I admit it now. The
gods made Sibyl Vane for you. Without her you are incomplete."
"You have killed my love. You used to stir my imagination. Now you don't even
stir my curiosity. You simply produce no effect. I loved you because you were
marvellous, because you had genius and intellect, because you realised the
dreams of great poets and gave shape and substance to the shadows of art. You
have thrown it all away. You are shallow and stupid."
"The quivering, ardent sunlight showed him the lines of cruelty round the mouth
as clearly as if he had been looking into a mirror after he had done some
dreadful thing."
Part 3: Chapters 8 – 10
Chapter Analysis and Questions
Chapter 8
In Chapter 8, Dorian struggles briefly with his conscience. Under Lord Henry's influence, it is no contest: By the end of the
chapter, Dorian has dedicated himself entirely to the pursuit of pleasure and sin. He throws away the last scraps of his
conscience and becomes a completely selfish being. By the time he goes to the opera with Lord Henry, he doesn't even feel
protective about the portrait, which up to this point was the one thing that he still cared about. Lord Henry's sole concern is to
protect Dorian's reputation and to urge him to get on with his life. He cares not a whit for the young Sybil and instead speaks
superficially about fashion, women, and the convenience of Sibyl's death. He views the whole affair as a splendid artistic
experience. His reaction is in line with the cynicism that the reader has observed in his character all along; Lord Henry's ability to
make Sibyl's death a trivial matter in Dorian's mind demonstrates that his cynicism and his power to influence Dorian have
reached new heights.
The flippant, carefree attitudes that Dorian and Lord Henry display in this chapter caused many people to accuse Oscar Wilde of
writing an immoral book when The Picture of Dorian Gray was first published. However, the reader needs to distinguish between
an author and his characters. Certainly Lord Henry and Dorian often behave like scoundrels, but continuing the Faust theme,
Lord Henry is demonic and Dorian blindly does his bidding. He knows exactly how to appeal to Dorian's weaknesses, of which
there are plenty. Still, these two are both despicable fellows. The reader might admire or envy parts of their lives, but at this
point it is very difficult to like them.
1.
2.
3.
4.
At the beginning of the chapter do you think that Dorian could have made the other choice?
Why doesn’t Dorian feel protective of the portrait by the end of the chapter?
How does Dorian’s dismissal of Sybil’s death affect the reader?
How does this moment construct Dorian for the rest of the text?
Chapter 9
Wilde uses this chapter to continue his character development of both Basil and Dorian. Basil shows himself to be a decent,
caring human being who is as concerned for Sibyl and her mother as he is for Dorian. Unlike Lord Henry, he does not encourage
Dorian to turn away from the girl's death or treat it like some entertaining fantasy. In a moment of heightened irony, Dorian
accuses Basil of being "too much afraid of life." In fact, Dorian is afraid that Basil will see the portrait and thus learn of his secret
pact.
As for Dorian, he shows himself to be fully immersed in his new life of selfishness and manipulation. For example, when Dorian
learns of Basil's strange admiration for him, an admiration that has obviously had a major impact on Basil, Dorian is simply
pleased to be adored by Basil. As he wonders if he will ever feel that way toward someone, it becomes evident that he already
does — while he respects Lord Henry, Dorian only adores himself. When he gets Basil to admit his secret without having to
reveal his own, he feels pleasure at having manipulated the situation so completely to his own advantage. His decision at the
end of the chapter to hide the painting reveals his commitment to a life of vanity and self-gratification.
Wilde also shows the reader the tension that Dorian feels about keeping his pact a secret. Dorian becomes gripped with raging
fear when he hears that Basil wants to see the painting and to show it to others — he is so afraid that he actually breaks into a
sweat. Dorian's fear points to an important theme in the book: A life devoted solely to the pursuit of selfish pleasure will always
be marred by self-conscious fear. Dorian has what he wants — eternal youth and a life filled with pleasure — but he can't fully
enjoy his life for fear that his secret will be discovered. Dorian's fear in this chapter is the first sign that Dorian's new life will be a
study in disappointment.
Readers should note that this chapter contains several ironic allusions that become important later in the story. For example,
Dorian makes a fleeting and flippant reference about Sibyl's brother; when Dorian mentions James, the reader is reminded of
the brother's promise to kill anyone who harms Sybil. The repeated references to the brother remind the reader of his presence
and foreshadow his later reemergence in the book. As the novel progresses, the reader also will see the irony in Dorian's
statement that he would turn to Basil in a time of trouble.
1. Basil is the artist and Dorian the subject. So how does the contrast between the natures of the
two characters comment on art itself.
2. What is significant in the statement ‘Dorian is simply pleased to be adored by Basil’?
3. ‘A life devoted solely to the pursuit of selfish pleasure will always be marred by self-conscious
fear.’ Cite 3 pieces of text from this chapter that support this idea.
4. Why has Wilde included the comment that Dorian will turn to Basil in a time of trouble?
Chapter 10
Throughout the first half of this chapter, Dorian is fraught with paranoia and fear that Victor will
discover the secret of the portrait. Continuing the theme that was established in the preceding
chapter, Dorian isn't enjoying the life he has chosen — even though he craves it more than
anything. Instead of a life of glorious exploration and passion, he spends his time scheming and
worrying.
Dorian seals his commitment to a life of vanity and debauchery when he hides and locks the
portrait in the attic schoolroom. He rationalizes that he might, in fact, become more virtuous and
reverse the moral decay reflected in the picture, but even he seems to know that will never
happen. He seems to be thoroughly infected with the cynicism that Lord Henry has shown
throughout the book; Dorian has been a good student of his mentor. It is enough for Dorian that
he would wither and age without the portrait. He cannot and will not destroy the picture or
attempt to negate the Faustian contract, if only because of his obsession with youthful beauty.
The first ten chapters of the novel cover a time span of about a month after Dorian and Lord
Henry meet. In that time, Lord Henry's influence increases, and Dorian changes significantly. As
Basil points out, Dorian is not the innocent, well-meaning young man who first posed for him.
With Lord Henry's encouragement, Dorian has become self-absorbed and cruel. At first, Dorian
may not have been aware of the seriousness of his wish to remain youthful while the portrait
aged. By the time that he hides the portrait in the attic, however, he has every reason to know
the consequences. He knows that the pact will "breed horrors and yet will never die."
In this chapter, Dorian seems resigned to his fate. As in the Faust legends, the central character
seems to feel beyond hope. According to the Faust legend, he could save himself if he would only
repent and seek absolution. Dorian does consider turning to Basil, confessing, and seeking a more
enlightened path. His ultimate decision, however, is not just based on despair. True to the Faust
legend, he truly craves the benefits of the bargain.
Having chosen, Dorian immediately falls under the power of the "yellow book" sent by Lord
Henry. It is well-worn, and the reader can assume that Lord Henry knows its contents and
anticipates its effect on Dorian. Dorian is enthralled by the story and immediately adopts it as a
blueprint for his life. Note that Wilde ironically chooses a book to provide the guidelines for
Dorian's life of debauchery.
1. If Dorian isn’t enjoying the life that he has chosen why does he persist with it?
2. Why does Dorian’s hiding of the picture not have the effect he hopes it will? Why is he really
hiding it? What do you think is the comment being made by this?
3. Is the picture the cause of Dorian’s problems or is the source Dorian himself? What larger
meaning might your interpretation have?
4. Is it as easy as repenting and seeking absolution for Dorian? Is Wilde making a comment on this
concept in the Faust legend?
5. The yellow book is an extremely important image. Why? Just start with the idea of Dorian is
guided by a book and the impact it has on him. If you are interested it has been suggested that
the book in question is Joris-Karl Huysman’s decadent nineteenth-century novel À Rebours,
translated as “Against the Grain” or “Against Nature”.
Suggested Quotes
Chapter 8
"His unreal and selfish love would yield to some higher influence, would be
transformed into some nobler passion, and the portrait that Basil Hallward had
painted of him would be a guide to him through life, would be to him what
holiness is to some, and conscience to others, and the fear of God to us all. There
were opiates for remorse, drugs that could lull the moral sense to sleep. But here
was a visible symbol of the degradation of sin. Here was an ever-present sign of
the ruin men brought upon their souls.”
There is a luxury in self-reproach. When we blame ourselves, we feel that no one
else has a right to blame us. It is the confession, not the priest, that gives us
absolution.
For a moment, he thought of praying that the horrible sympathy that existed
between him and the picture might cease. It had changed in answer to a prayer;
perhaps in answer to a prayer it might remain unchanged. And yet, who, that
knew anything about life, would surrender the chance of remaining always
young, however fantastic that chance might be, or with what fateful
consequences it might be fraught? Besides, was it really under his control? Had it
indeed been prayer that had produced the substitution? Might there not be some
curious scientific reason for it all? If thought could exercise its influence upon a
living organism, might not thought exercise an influence upon dead and inorganic
things? Nay, without thought or conscious desire, might not things external to
ourselves vibrate in unison with our moods and passions, atom calling to atom in
secret love or strange affinity? But the reason was of no importance. He would
never again tempt by a prayer any terrible power. If the picture was to alter, it
was to alter. That was all. Why inquire too closely into it?
Chapter 9
It is only shallow people who require years to get rid of an emotion. A man who is
master of himself can end a sorrow as easily as he can invent a pleasure. I don't
want to be at the mercy of my emotions. I want to use them, to enjoy them, and
to dominate them.
"Dorian, this is horrible! Something has changed you completely. You look exactly
the same wonderful boy who, day after day, used to come down to my studio to
sit for his picture. But you were simple, natural, and affectionate then. You were
the most unspoiled creature in the whole world. Now, I don't know what has
come over you. You talk as if you had no heart, no pity in you. It is all Harry's
influence. I see that."
The lad flushed up and, going to the window, looked out for a few moments on
the green, flickering, sun-lashed garden. "I owe a great deal to Harry, Basil," he
said at last, "more than I owe to you. You only taught me to be vain."
"Well, I am punished for that, Dorian--or shall be some day."
Chapter 10
As the door closed, Dorian put the key in his pocket and looked round the room.
His eye fell on a large, purple satin coverlet heavily embroidered with gold, a
splendid piece of late seventeenth-century Venetian work that his grandfather
had found in a convent near Bologna. Yes, that would serve to wrap the dreadful
thing in. It had perhaps served often as a pall for the dead. Now it was to hide
something that had a corruption of its own, worse than the corruption of death
itself-- something that would breed horrors and yet would never die. What the
worm was to the corpse, his sins would be to the painted image on the canvas.
They would mar its beauty and eat away its grace. They would defile it and make
it shameful. And yet the thing would still live on. It would be always alive.
What the worm was to the corpse, his sins would be to the painted image on the
canvas. They would mar its beauty and eat away its grace. They would defile it
and make it shameful. And yet the thing would still live on. It would be always
alive.
He shuddered, and for a moment he regretted that he had not told Basil the true
reason why he had wished to hide the picture away. Basil would have helped him
to resist Lord Henry's influence, and the still more poisonous influences that came
from his own temperament. The love that he bore him--for it was really love-- had
nothing in it that was not noble and intellectual. It was not that mere physical
admiration of beauty that is born of the senses and that dies when the senses
tire. It was such love as Michelangelo had known, and Montaigne, and
Winckelmann, and Shakespeare himself. Yes, Basil could have saved him. But it
was too late now. The past could always be annihilated. Regret, denial, or
forgetfulness could do that. But the future was inevitable. There were passions in
him that would find their terrible outlet, dreams that would make the shadow of
their evil real.
Part 4: Chapters 11 – 15
Chapter Analysis and Questions
Chapter 11
The bulk of Chapter 11 lists, page after page, the various pursuits of Dorian's adult life. In these
lists, Wilde shows the result of Dorian's chosen path. The reader sees the peculiar kind of hell
that Dorian inhabits because of his pact; Wilde delivers a strong judgement against the dangers
of decadence.
The lengthy passages describing Dorian's study of perfumes, music, jewels, and embroideries
border on being tedious. Wilde was too good a writer to include these passages merely to show
off his knowledge of these subjects. These overly-detailed passages transport the reader into the
world that Dorian has created for himself, one in which the passionate pursuit of pleasure has
become a monotonous, vain, never-ending stream of meaningless and trivial debauchery. No
matter how much Dorian indulges his passions, he is never satisfied. By the end of the chapter,
the narrator states of Dorian, "There were moments when he looked on evil simply as a mode
through which he could realise his conception of the beautiful."
Dorian's life seems to be one of floating from one passion to the next, completely at his own
whim. And yet, he remains tethered to the portrait and his fear that his secret will be discovered.
He lives in a gilded cage, a prisoner of his passions and his fears.
1. Spell out Wilde’s ‘strong judgement’ by citing 3 pieces of evidence from the text which contain
authorial comment.
2. "There were moments when he looked on evil simply as a mode through which he could realise
his conception of the beautiful." This is a complex statement. Explain what you think it means
in your own words.
3. When we get so much detail in other areas of the text why do you think Wilde glosses over 18
years of Dorian’s life in this chapter?
Chapter 12 and 13
Ever the playwright, Wilde divides this climactic action into two chapters in order to create
a dramatic pause before the men ascend the staircase to view the portrait. Chapter 12
serves only to bring the two characters together and set up the critical events in Chapter
13.
The three key events in Chapter 13 build to a dramatic climax just as they might on the
stage. The first event is the shocking unveiling of the portrait. Unlike Lord Henry — and now
— Dorian, Basil is a relatively unassuming, decent man. He has come to see Dorian because
he is genuinely concerned about his young friend who has built quite a chilling reputation
for himself in the past eighteen years. Basil wants to be told that the rumors about Dorian
are wrong; his motivations for confronting Dorian are entirely selfless and honest. When he
sees the painting, the sin it reveals leaves Basil shaken.
The second key event in Chapter 13 — Basil's asking Dorian to absolve his sins — is an
essential ingredient in the Faust theme. Realizing what has taken place with the portrait
and Dorian's life, and feeling some guilt for his own involvement, Basil pleads with Dorian
to let go of his pride and pray for absolution. His concern for Dorian's corrupted soul can be
seen as the only truly good and pure act in the novel, and it provides a striking and tragic
contrast to Dorian's response: "It is too late, Basil," and "Those words mean nothing to me
now."
Typically, the central figure in the Faust legend indulges in despair, feeling that his sin is so great
that he no longer can be saved. He cannot be saved because the combination of pride and
despair keep him from seeking forgiveness. Dorian's problem is essentially this, his unwillingness
to ask for forgiveness. In addition, there is the question of whether Dorian even wants to change
his life. He states that he does not know whether he regrets the wish that evidently made the
contract.
At this point, the third important event of the chapter occurs. Dorian seems to receive some sort
of message from the image on the canvas and is driven to murder his old friend. Basil's death
conveniently removes the most immediate and serious threat to Dorian's way of life and his pact
with the forces of evil. After the murder, he feels oddly calm and goes about the business of
removing evidence and establishing an alibi.
In the coolness of Dorian's actions after he kills Basil, the reader sees that Dorian has spoken at
least a few truthful words during his corrupt life — his admission that it is too late to save his
soul. Dorian kills the only real friend he has, and with that, he kills the only chance he has to
redeem his soul.
1. How could a decent man create a piece of art that creates such evil?
2. Why would the sight of the painting have such an impact on Basil?
3. How is Basil’s request more powerful and important than Dorian’s own inner desire to repent
earlier in the text?
4. Do you think Dorian regrets his wish? Justify your opinion.
5. Look closely at the moments before and of Basil’s murder. Where is the suggestion that the
painting tells Dorian to kill Basil?
6. What is the effect of the contrast between the intensity of Dorian’s emotions prior to the murder
and his coolness after?
7. Is there any hope of redemption for Dorian after Basil’s death? Is there a comment about art in
this?
Chapter 14
Throughout the novel, Wilde only hints at the nature of Dorian's secret life, leaving the reader to
wonder what sins Dorian commits. Wilde surely could have been more specific about Dorian's
secretive passions, but he deliberately keeps the issue vague so that readers must define sin for
themselves. In this way, Wilde draws readers closer to the story.
In a similar way, Wilde doesn't say what secret Dorian holds over Campbell. Most likely, it is
something that the scientist did years ago while under Dorian's influence. In any case, Dorian is
fully aware that blackmailing Campbell into helping him is dreadful, but he doesn't hesitate for a
moment to do so. In fact, he scolds Campbell for not wanting to help him at first, and he even
seems to take pleasure in forcing Campbell to comply eventually. Dorian has become dominated
by the evil of his secrets, and he in turn seeks to dominate and control those around him. At this
point in the story, Dorian shows that he has surpassed his mentor — Lord Henry — in his power
to manipulate.
The interlude concerning Gautier's poetry works within the context of this novel. The poem is
translated:
On a colorful scale,
Her breast dripping with pearls,
The Venus of the Adriatic
Draws her pink and white body out of the water.
The domes, on the azure of the waves
Following the pure contour of the phrase,
Swell like rounded breasts
Lifted by a sigh of love.
The skiff lands and drops me off,
Casting its rope to the pillar,
In front of a pink façade
On the marble of a staircase.
The beautiful poem about Venice contrasts with the horror of Dorian's situation and briefly
carries him away to a happier, more beautiful time and place. The recollection that Basil had
been with him, however, startles Dorian back to reality. The idle pleasures that Dorian uses to
amuse himself can't erase, or even distract him from, the evil that he has committed. Strangely,
the passions that drove him to the mad act of murder no longer hold any pleasure for him.
Note that Dorian defends Lord Henry but is quite willing to blame Basil for the loss of his soul.
While Basil created the portrait, he was never part of the pact and never tried to manipulate
Dorian toward a life of self-serving debauchery and vanity. Dorian, of course, is not about to put
the responsibility where it belongs — on himself. In fact, by the end of the chapter, Dorian has
emotionally and psychologically divorced himself from Basil entirely, referring to him as "the
thing that had been sitting at the table." It appears that Dorian has begun to lose touch with even
his self-centered version of reality.
1. Do you think that Wilde could have been more specific about Dorian’s actions? What might have
been the result of giving all the details?
2. In your opinion has Dorian surpassed Lord Henry as a manipulator? Justify your opinion using at
least 3 quotes as evidence.
3. Read the poem carefully. What is the deeper meaning? Why is Dorian carried away ‘to a
happier, more beautiful time and place’? Can words really have this power in such an extreme
situation?
4. Do you agree that Basil is to blame for the loss of Dorian’s soul? Is his absence from the pact
enough to result in his innocence?
Suggested Quotes
Chapter 11
"There were moments when he looked on evil simply as a mode through which he
could realise his conception of the beautiful."
The worship of the senses has often, and with much justice, been decried, men
feeling a natural instinct of terror about passions and sensations that seem
stronger than themselves, and that they are conscious of sharing with the less
highly organized forms of existence. But it appeared to Dorian Gray that the true
nature of the senses had never been understood, and that they had remained
savage and animal merely because the world had sought to starve them into
submission or to kill them by pain, instead of aiming at making them elements of
a new spirituality, of which a fine instinct for beauty was to be the dominant
characteristic.
There was a horrible fascination in them all. He saw them at night, and they
troubled his imagination in the day. The Renaissance knew of strange manners of
poisoning-- poisoning by a helmet and a lighted torch, by an embroidered glove
and a jewelled fan, by a gilded pomander and by an amber chain. Dorian Gray
had been poisoned by a book. There were moments when he looked on evil
simply as a mode through which he could realize his conception of the beautiful.
Chapter 12
Sin is a thing that writes itself across a man's face. It cannot be concealed. People
talk sometimes of secret vices. There are no such things. If a wretched man has a
vice, it shows itself in the lines of his mouth, the droop of his eyelids, the
moulding of his hands even.
Chapter 13
“Each of us has heaven and hell in him, Basil,” cried Dorian with a wild gesture of
despair.
"What is it that one was taught to say in one's boyhood? 'Lead us not into
temptation. Forgive us our sins. Wash away our iniquities.' Let us say that
together. The prayer of your pride has bee answered. The prayer of your
repentance will be answered also. I worshipped you too much. I am punished for
it. You worshipped yourself too much. We are both punished."
Chapter 14
The brain had its own food on which it battened, and the imagination, made
grotesque by terror, twisted and distorted as a living thing by pain, danced like
some foul puppet on a stand and grinned through moving masks. Then, suddenly,
time stopped for him. Yes: that blind, slow-breathing thing crawled no more, and
horrible thoughts, time being dead, raced nimbly on in front, and dragged a
hideous future from its grave, and showed it to him. He stared at it. Its very
horror made him stone.
Chapter 15
Certainly no one looking at Dorian Gray that night could have believed that he
had passed through a tragedy as horrible as any tragedy of our age. Those finely
shaped fingers could never have clutched a knife for sin, nor those smiling lips
have cried out on God and goodness. He himself could not help wondering at the
calm of his demeanour, and for a moment felt keenly the terrible pleasure of a
double life.
It is perfectly monstrous the way people go about nowadays saying things
against one behind one's back that are absolutely and entirely true.
Moderation is a fatal thing. Enough is as bad as a meal. More than enough is as
good as a feast.
Part 5: Chapters 16 – 20
Chapter Analysis and Questions
Chapter 16
In some of the finest descriptive writing in the novel, Wilde finally allows the reader to see
Dorian's secret world. The opening paragraphs of the chapter set the scene for taking the reader
into the hell that is Dorian's chosen life.
The opium den is a city of lost souls, a city that Dorian easily moves within. Appropriately, Dorian
muses on his own salvation as he rides toward the den. True to the Faust legend, he is certain
that he has no hope for atonement. He believes that forgiveness is not possible. The best he can
hope for is the numb of opium.
Most important in this chapter is that the reader sees Dorian suffering from a physical as well as
a mental addiction. His hands tremble as he rides to the opium den, and the reader can only
surmise that he is heading to the den to satisfy both a physical and a mental need. Although
Dorian may not age, he has not escaped the personal prison created by his own desires. Even in
the opium den, he can't escape the paranoid feeling that Basil's eyes are watching him. Dorian's
physical and mental addiction to opium is significant because it is the first sign the reader sees
that although Dorian cannot be destroyed by nature, he can destroy himself.
Wilde's descriptive style in this chapter is Gothic in its grotesque, macabre, and fantastic
imagery and chilling detail. He fashions a mood of desolation and despair. His similes, which
appear seldom in other chapters, are very effective in relating the grimness of the world
Dorian now occupies. He creates revealing similarities with the use of "like" and "as" — for
example, the "moon hung low in the sky like a yellow skull," and the streets are "like the
black web of some sprawling spider." Note that the moon resembles a "yellow skull," an
allusion to death that so pervades the novel in these late chapters.
In no small way, the dangers of excess even threaten Dorian's Aestheticism. Instead of
admiring beauty, he craves ugliness. He once detested ugliness because it made things too
real, but now he pursues it as his one reality: "The coarse brawl, the loathsome den, the
crude violence of disordered life, the very vileness of thief and outcast, were more vivid, in
their intense factuality of impression, than all the gracious shapes of art, the dreamy
shadows of song." Wilde reveals the dangers of Aestheticism gone so wrong that it is the
opposite of itself. At the same time, Wilde is not teaching or preaching. As he says in the
preface to the novel, there is no such thing as a "moral" or "immoral" book. Books are
simply written well or badly. In this chapter, Wilde writes very, very well.
1. The interpretation of the significance of the opium den above seems astute. Do you think this is
a plausible interpretation? Why?
2. Is the idea of opium being a form of prison for Dorian one that is relevant for our time?
3. Find at least 3 other similes Wilde uses to create atmosphere in this chapter.
4. Consider the last paragraph of this analysis. Break it down into the key points being made.
Expand on the discussion and draw out the evidence so that the point being made is very clear to
you.
Chapter 17 and 18
Wilde makes excellent use of contrast in the setting of these chapters. Life at Selby Royal could
not be more different from the secret world of Dorian Gray. Wilde writes about bright
conversations, bright lights, and bright days. Such idyllic life adds to Dorian's discomfort when
terror twice invades his country estate. Early on, he is seeking orchids but finds the face of James
Vane. Just as he is recovering from the shock, a man is ominously killed by accident. Dorian
decides to flee because, he realizes, "Death walked there in the sunlight." He expects evil in the
opium den, not in the fresh air of Selby Royal. Dorian's tragic fate haunts him wherever he goes.
Before, Dorian felt that his situation was hopeless; now, he is beginning to learn what
hopelessness really feels like.
Wilde exposes the egocentricity of class distinction through the death of what seems to be a
lowly beater. First, Sir Geoffrey is annoyed that the "ass" got out in front of the guns. It ruins his
shooting for the whole day. Then Lord Henry comments, "It is rather awkward for Geoffrey, of
course. It does not do to pepper beaters. It makes people think that one is a wild shot."
Incredibly, Lord Henry is more concerned with his shooting partner's reputation than with a
man's death.
Even Dorian seems to have little more compassion for the man than he has for the hare. He
dislikes shooting and killing, but his chief concern, as usual, is himself. He sees the death as a bad
omen, a threat to himself. When Thornton comes to Dorian's room, the master immediately pulls
his chequebook out of a drawer. It may be kind of him to want to pay the family of the dead man,
but Dorian would not think of visiting them or the corpse until he suspects that it might be James
Vane.
Dorian's ultimate relief is ironic. Even as he feels joy at seeing James Vane dead, he is far from
safe.
1. Dorian’s scandalous behaviour shocks his peers, yet he remains welcome in social circles? Why?
What is Wilde suggesting about “polite” London society?
2. ‘The Beater’s’ death is a device but also a way of commenting on the attitudes and values of high
society. What is the comment?
3. What commonality is there between Sybil, Basil and James Vane and how is it heightened by the
late disclosure of who ‘The Beater’ really is? Do you find it strange that these three are the ones
to die?
4. Do you agree with the comments above that Dorian is not effected by ‘The Beater’ or Vane’s
death in any other way than concern for himself? Discuss and justify your answer.
Chapter 19 and 20
In the Faust legend, the main character ultimately confronts the loss of his soul but is incapable
of seeking redemption through confession and absolution. He despairs and feels that he is
beneath pardon or that there is no God or power strong enough to save him. In this sense, the
Faust protagonist still suffers the sin of pride in that he sees his own case as so special that it is
beyond God's help. Despair is the one unpardonable sin because the sinner is incapable of asking
to be pardoned. Traditionally, despair is symbolized by suicide.
In the closing chapters of The Picture of Dorian Gray, Dorian's behavior and attitude are
consistent with this Faust tradition. Dorian has matured from the naïve, vain youth in Basil's
studio. He has grown into a man who was at first despicable but in the end is almost likable.
Perhaps he is more pitiable than likable. However, he cannot find salvation because he is
incapable of setting aside his pride, confessing, and asking for absolution.
In Chapter 19, as the after-dinner scene opens at Lord Henry's, Dorian is bursting with pride
because of a recent act of decency. He has returned Hetty Merton to her country life after
winning her devotion. Unfortunately, instead of seeing this act as only one small step, Dorian
expects instant reward. When he checks the portrait for some sign of his newfound virtue, he
finds only a look of cunning about the eyes and a wrinkle of hypocrisy in the mouth. There seems
to be fresh blood on the hands. Instead of redeeming his soul, his act of supposed redemption
has tarnished his soul even more because the act was motivated by selfishness.
Dorian cannot redeem his soul because he is still primarily interested in himself. He dismisses the
deaths of Basil and Alan Campbell. The first, he decides, was inevitable; the second made his own
choice. In neither case does Dorian accept his own responsibility. Still, he is torn because he
realizes that the "soul is a terrible reality." He thinks that a person should pray for punishment,
but he fails to understand that the only way of absolving immoral responsibility is to pray for
forgiveness.
In the novel's powerful final paragraphs, Dorian, in effect, commits suicide. He despises the figure
in the portrait, but that is who he has become. When he slashes at the painting with the knife,
appropriately the same knife that killed Basil, Dorian kills himself. The horrible cry, which
awakens the servants and startles the men on the street, carries with it the agony of eighteen
years of horror.
1. Do you think that Dorian is likeable or pitiable by the end? Justify your response.
2. Does his ‘act of decency’ make any difference to the fate of his soul?
3. Why does the portrait betray him with ‘only a look of cunning about the eyes and a wrinkle of
hypocrisy in the mouth’?
4. What is the difference between himself and Alan Campbell?
5. Consider the passage of Dorian’s ‘suicide’ carefully. Is this in line with the preface? Is there an
absence of a message or moral tale here or has Wilde contradicted himself?
Suggested Quotes
Chapter 16
"To cure the soul by means of the senses, and the senses by means of the soul!"
How the words rang in his ears! His soul, certainly, was sick to death. Was it true
that the senses could cure it? Innocent blood had been spilled. What could atone
for that? Ah! for that there was no atonement; but though forgiveness was
impossible, forgetfulness was possible still, and he was determined to forget, to
stamp the thing out, to crush it as one would crush the adder that had stung one.
Indeed, what right had Basil to have spoken to him as he had done? Who had
made him a judge over others? He had said things that were dreadful, horrible,
not to be endured.
"Innocent blood had been split. What could atone for that? Ah! for that there was
no atonement; but though forgiveness was impossible, forgetfulness was possible
still, and he was determined to forget, to stamp the thing out, to crush it as one
would crush the adder that had stung one."
One's days were too brief to take the burden of another's errors on one's
shoulders. Each man lived his own life and paid his own price for living it. The only
pity was one had to pay so often for a single fault. One had to pay over and over
again, indeed. In her dealings with man, destiny never closed her accounts.
Dorian walked to the door with a look of pain in his face. As he drew the curtain
aside, a hideous laugh broke from the painted lips of the woman who had taken
his money. "There goes the devil's bargain!" she hiccoughed, in a hoarse voice.
"Curse you!" he answered, "don't call me that."
She snapped her fingers. "Prince Charming is what you like to be called, ain't it?"
she yelled after him.
For all sins, as theologians weary not of reminding us, are sins of disobedience.
When that high spirit, that morning-star of evil, fell from heaven, it was as a rebel
that he fell.
Chapter 17
I admit that I think that it is better to be beautiful than to be good. But on the
other hand, no one is more ready than I am to acknowledge that it is better to be
good than to be ugly.
I have never searched for happiness. Who wants happiness? I have searched for
pleasure.
Chapter 18
The next day he did not leave the house, and, indeed, spent most of the time in
his own room, sick with a wild terror of dying, and yet indifferent to life itself. The
consciousness of being hunted, snared, tracked down, had begun to dominate
him. If the tapestry did but tremble in the wind, he shook. The dead leaves that
were blown against the leaded panes seemed to him like his own wasted
resolutions and wild regrets. When he closed his eyes, he saw again the sailor's
face peering through the mist-stained glass, and horror seemed once more to lay
its hand upon his heart.
It was the imagination that set remorse to dog the feet of sin. It was the
imagination that made each crime bear its misshapen brood. In the common
world of fact the wicked were not punished, nor the good rewarded. Success was
given to the strong, failure thrust upon the weak. That was all.
The only horrible thing in the world is ennui, Dorian. That is the one sin for which
there is no forgiveness. But we are not likely to suffer from it, unless these fellows
keep chattering about this thing at dinner. I must tell them that the subject is to
be tabooed. As for omens, there is no such thing as an omen. Destiny does not
send us heralds. She is too wise or too cruel for that. Besides, what on earth could
happen to you, Dorian? You have everything in the world that a man can want.
There is no one who would not be delighted to change places with you.
Chapter 19
"The soul is a terrible reality. It can be bought, and sold, and bartered away. It
can be poisoned, or made perfect. There is a soul in each one of us. I know it."
"Do you feel quite sure of that, Dorian?"
"Quite sure."
"Ah! then it must be an illusion. The things one feels absolutely certain about are
never true. That is the fatality of faith, and the lesson of romance.
Life is not governed by will or intention. Life is a question of nerves, and fibres,
and slowly built-up cells in which thought hides itself and passion has its dreams.
You may fancy yourself safe and think yourself strong. But a chance tone of
colour in a room or a morning sky, a particular perfume that you had once loved
and that brings subtle memories with it, a line from a forgotten poem that you
had come across again, a cadence from a piece of music that you had ceased to
play--I tell you, Dorian, that it is on things like these that our lives depend.
Art has no influence upon action. It annihilates the desire to act. It is superbly
sterile. The books that the world calls immoral are books that show the world its
own shame. That is all.
Chapter 20
"There was purification in punishment. Not 'Forgive us our sins,' but 'Smite us for
our iniquities' should be the prayer of a man to a most just God."
It was his beauty that had ruined him, his beauty and the youth that he had
prayed for. But for those two things, his life might have been free from stain. His
beauty had been to him but a mask, his youth but a mockery. What was youth at
best? A green, an unripe time, a time of shallow moods, and sickly thoughts. Why
had he worn its livery? Youth had spoiled him.
How To Write A Views and Values Essay
This is the second and third SAC for Year 12 and in many respects the most straight forward of the Lit
essays in that it is closest to English essays based on theme. Essentially you are exploring and discussing
the ideas the text deals with.
What does this mean for you? Well first of all writing your essay is a pretty familiar process:
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Break down the prompt to find out what it is asking you to discuss and deal with.
Identify and articulate your contention remembering that you don’t have to agree with the prompt
and that you can clarify your position to ‘find the grey areas’.
Decide what four ideas you would like to deal with (or what four questions you think you need to
answer) to fully deal with all parts of the prompt and address all elements of the criteria.
Plan out these as your paragraphs, ordering them so that you build an argument and so that each
paragraph builds on the ideas presented in the last.
Think of at least two or three core examples that can be used to make each of these points and find
at least two language features in these that support your ideas so you are sure you are not just
discussing the storyline or plot.
Now for the writing. Like all essays there is no one approach but a simple checklist of what should be in
each paragraph can help. It doesn’t mean that you should just write a set of ideas in this order but as a
fall-back position it will ensure you get everything covered that you need to. This is an essay about how
the views and values of the author are presented in the text so it puts a slight tinge to each paragraph in
that way:
Element
Topic Sentence
Explanation
Context Of
Evidence
Main Evidence
Interpretation
Unpacking /
Deconstruction
and Discussion
of
Interpretation
Link Back To
Contention
Content
This sentence flags the idea you will be exploring in this paragraph. It is like
a mini contention and should share some of the wording of the contention
without being repetitive.
This gives some of the detail of your idea and expands upon your topic
sentence. It isn’t specific to evidence yet.
It is important that before you include evidence that you are going to discuss
that you indicate where this material comes from or at least set up the
evidence. This might be mixed in with the explanation.
This is a long quote (a full sentence of about 8-14 words). It might also be a
major image of significance or a major symbol or language feature. You
shouldn’t just shove it in as its own sentence but try and find a way to weave
it into your explanation or interpretation.
You need to discuss the reason for including this evidence, pointing out why
it is important and how it supports your explanation. This might mean
explaining the hidden meaning in the evidence. In this type of essay you
should be exploring how the evidence positions the reader to adopt the
views and values being suggested.
You need to break down the evidence, paying particular focus to specific
components of the quote or image and explaining and discussing how it
constructs meaning. This should involve you using metalanguage and
terminology. Again in this essay this means explaining how it may lead the
reader to endorse, challenge or critique the ideas being presented. This is a
great time to discuss things like characterisation or imagery.
Finish with additional explanation and discussion that links your detailed
unpacking of the evidence back to your overall contention.
Purpose
“This is what I
think”
“What I mean
by that is...”
“This is
evident
when...”
“I can prove
this because
this means...”
“This means
this
because...”
“This is
important
because...”
So You Want to Write A SEXY Essay...
If you are finding that this is something you have tried a couple of time now and struggled to pull it
together here is an alternative. You have to realise that it is a bit more simplistic and generic and not
tailored to this specific essay or these exact criteria but what you write in each section will bring it to this
point. Therefore you might use this structure as a starting point to get the bones of a Lit essay right but
try and move to the more detailed structure when you feel you are ready.
The Intro
Find a quote. The quote has to be one that sums up your whole idea. It has to communicate this without needing to
be deconstructed. The catch is that you can’t then use this quote again. It’s a scene setter not a useful piece of text
to pull apart to make your point. After opening with the quote you should state your contention as you normally
would. You can explain it in reference to the quote to make sure the essay starts off cohesively but try not to
deconstruct.
The Body
Each paragraph has a very simple structure. Make them SEXY!
S – Subject. State your subject. This is essentially your topic sentence. Make it a big loud statement though.
Imagine yourself yelling to get someone’s attention. Make it big, make it bold and try and say something that you
think is really important. One sentence. No more!
E – Evidence. Now follow up your big statement with a moment from the text where what you have just said is true.
If you have an image that is significant, a piece of dialogue which shows the way a character is being positioned, a
language feature that is being used effectively etc this is the time to put it in. Naturally, you don’t just whack the
quote in. You have to set it up and embed it in discussion of your statement. Remember your paragraphs have to
run coherently.
X – Explain and Explore. The E and the X need to run together and should be hard to split apart. As I just said as you
include your evidence you need to work in the explanation of what it shows and how it supports your statement.
You should make sure you deconstruct it to show how it constructs the meaning you are interpreting in it. Pull it
apart at the word level, explain the way the words could be read and what this means the overall interpretation or
message might be. Likewise explore the idea a little, take the time to discuss it and deal with it properly. Don’t just
write ‘This is shown when Barry says “I am a cantaloupe”. The cantaloupe symbolises a desire to be controlled
because it is a fruit and people eat it. This could mean that Barry doesn’t want to be the leader of the circus midgets
anymore.’ This isn’t useful or interesting or show your ability to make connections. Take the time to talk about the
ideas and how they connect and how they lead to each other.
Note: You can of course have several repetitions of the E and X components before moving onto the Y.
Y – Why is this important? You need to bring us back to the overall point of your essay. You also need to connect to
the human condition or society. In the end of your paragraph you need to make these connections. Having
explained and explored, this is a natural step as the natural conclusion of your exploration should be to make a
connection to the big ideas which should be about society or what it is to be human.
The Conclusion
This is the same as normal. If you have written a good essay your final point should be able to draw together your
ideas in the Y section. If not a final short restating of the contention is fine and you might try referring back to the
idea in the opening quote but avoid using the quote again or using another quote.
Now For The Criteria.
You should never ignore the criteria because it tells you what to aim for, what to ensure you do in the
essay and what is most important.
This is the’ Very High’ descriptor for this essay:
Thorough understanding of the context/s in which the text was set or created.
Comprehensive analysis of the ways in which views and values are suggested
by what the text endorses, challenges or leaves unquestioned. Sophisticated
understanding of the ways in which the text provides a critique of human
behaviour or aspects of society and/or of the ways in which readers in a
different cultural context may arrive at different interpretations. Highlydeveloped ability to justify an interpretation through close attention to,
selection and use of significant textual detail. Very expressive, coherent and
fluent development of ideas.
So looking at each sentence as a dot point it is saying:
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You must demonstrate, by regularly referring to it, the context of this text both when it was written
and when it is set. This might mean discussing the prominent social conventions, ideological
context, historical events of note, or political ideas.
You have to analyse the ways in which the values are suggested. This means doing more than just
explaining what they are. It means you must explore and discuss how they are presented and how
the reader may be positioned to accept them.
You must explore how the text is therefore commenting on human nature and society. This is
where you can take a big step back from the text and talk about how the text is relevant as a piece
of literature out of its original context too. It gives you scope and encourages you to make
connections to the really big ideas presented and comment on what the text says about these.
You must back up any assertions you make about what the text is saying by stating how the text is
saying this. This means that if you indicate that the text uses a character to position you to
challenge an idea you must show us how the text creates your response to the said character and
then how this positioning leads to you challenging a bigger idea and not just disliking the character.
Bottom line is you must join the dots, link the words on the page to your overall ideas.
You need to write well. This means structuring your essay in a logical and coherent way. It also
means being clear and concise – not waffling because you think it makes you sound smart. You
want to ensure that you communicate clearly that you are a genius not try to fool me into thinking
you are a genius by masking your lack of knowledge by using big words.
If you can manage these five things you should have written an awesome essay and I will only have to put
red ticks all over your work rather than increasing angry red scribbles and comments.
You best bet for good prep is to have this sheet and feedback sheet next to you while completing the
practice essay. So what are you waiting for – off you go. Get to it!
Practice Essay
Break down the prompt
Dorian may seem to have embraced evil to stay young and live free of consequences but in the
end he regrets his actions and repents, albeit too late. By recognising his errors while Lord
Henry takes pleasure in his life of vice, Dorian Gray, exposes the lack of values in Victorian
society.
Ideas
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Evidence
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Contention
The shooting of the beater exposes the problems of the Victorian gentry
but also suggests Dorian’s desire to admonish himself of his past sins.
Lord Geoffrey states ‘What an ass of the man to get in front of the guns’
this implies that it is the man that is at fault and not the shooter, implying
the status relationship between the two that is that it is the responsibility
of the lower class beater to watch for the actions of the higher status Lord
Geoffrey and act in accordance with the needs of the higher class man
rather than the responsibility of the man with the power, in this case
represented by the gun to act in the best interests of the lower status
individual. Lord Geoffrey also goes on to say that the accident has
‘spoiled [his] shooting for the day’ implying that the death of the lowly
individual is nothing other than an inconvenience to him and that once
again his needs, to have a pleasant day shooting, are far more important
than that of the life of this man.
Lord Henry reaffirms the relative unimportance of the man who has been
shot when he says that the days shooting must be stopped as ‘it would not
look well to go on’. His concern about the appearance of the party is
more important than that of the death of the beater. Rather than saying it
is not appropriate to go on his comment that it would not ‘look well’
implies that it would be preferable and suitable to continue but his
concern over how the other servants may take this is what causes the
shoot to be abandoned. His tone supports his lack of regard for the death
of a lower class person as he seems more concerned for his fellow gentry
than the man who has been shot when he says, ‘It is rather awkward for
Geoffrey of course’ which implies that the death of this person is nothing
other than an inconvenience. The use of the word awkward plunges the
death into insignificance in comparison to the relatively benign impact on
Geoffrey which is limited to looking slightly foolish in front of his
equals.
Dorian on the other hand has a much greater response to the shooting.
He wishes that ‘it were stopped for ever’. Implied by his strong response
to the violence of the accident is his great regret over the consequences of
the lack of regard for one’s fellow man. Compared to the minimal
remorse shown by his fellows Dorian’s response stands out as one of
extreme remorse. Potentially as a response to his own sins and desire to
repent for them Dorian goes much further in responding to the accident
when he enquires after the man’s responsibilities. ‘Was the poor fellow
married? Had he any people dependant on him?’ His concern for the
man is apparent in his use of the word poor and also in his desire to fulfil
the responsibilities not being undertaken by Lord Geoffrey. It is
important to note however that at this point he is unaware of the identity
of the man as James Vaine. This therefore implies that it is a pure act,
one of complete altruism. It could be assumed therein that this act is one
in which Dorian enters in an attempt to repent for his misdeeds. The
interesting comparison therefore is between him, someone who has
committed sin upon sin and Lord Geoffrey who has not even
acknowledged his action has any significant impact.