Hedonism And Aestheticism In The Victorian Age

In The Picture of Dorian Gray, masculinity is defined by character, nobility, reputation and appearance. It is notable that Dorian, the icon of corruption and decadence in the novel, is able to retain his respectability as long as his good name is not tarnished, his reputation being sheltered by the unchanging face of adolescent innocence and purity. This unchanging beauty and the belief that sin writes itself in the face, keep Dorian safe from suspicion. Manhood is also defined by heterosexuality, since an evidence of homosexuality would tarnish the respectability and the good name of an individual.

Oscar Wilde once wrote that, “[b]ehind every exquisite thing that existed, there was something tragic” (Wilde LOC 88). In the novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, the main character, Dorian Gray, is a subject of wonder. His presence alone shape the lives of those around him for better or for worse.The development of Dorian Gray as a character throughout the novel impacts the theme that appearances can be deceptive.

Living in a world to full of the appearance and stereotype of being beautiful can completely destroy one’s self-esteem, and even their own life. In Oscar Wilde’s novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, he uncovers how curiosity, hypocrisy, and vanity lead someone into their own demise. By looking at Dorian Gray’s actions that revolve around beauty, it is evident that vanity is the largest contributing factor in Dorian’s corruption and subsequent downfall, thus demonstrating how focusing on only one aspect of life can lead to immorality and decay of character.

The Picture of Dorian Gray, a novel laced with sin, treachery, and raging battles of inner conflict, is Oscar Wilde’s sole novel. Considered immoral and scandalous upon publication, the book centers around a young man named Dorian Gray, who does not age or reflect the darkness of his heart outwardly, and instead a portrait of him bears the damage his destructive life wreaks on his soul. However, the meaning of the story extends past the simple fact that Dorian lives a life of immorality—he walks the path that takes him there with his two friends, Basil Hallward and Lord Henry Wotten. The two attempt to guide and influence Dorian throughout the novel in their own ways, and are a vital piece of Dorian’s tale. Basil and Henry act as character foils as well as a symbolic angel and devil for Dorian Gray’s character, and also contribute themes of choosing one’s own fate.

Like the many of us today that are obsessed with reputation and appearance, the Victorians were just as bad, most of their life was centred around what other people think of them. What is the right way to dress and talk? Victorians showed how important reputation and appearance is to them in their everyday life from the way they dress to the literature they wrote and read. This is shown very clearly in two texts that I shall be analysing and comparing. They are; Jane Eyre written by Charlotte Bronte and the A Doll’s House written by Henrik Ibsen.

Art has been a recurring part of history from the very beginning. As society changes so does the style of art. Each new style is known as a movement and one of the most prominent, long-lasting movements in recent centuries is known as Modernism. Modernism is characterized by its deviation from tradition. People who are a part of this movement found enjoyment in finding new mediums to use, creating art that revolves around feelings and emotions rather than reality. Abstract idealisms of modernism cause its viewers to need to think more critically about the art before them. In past movements, the meaning of the work was obvious as it was created to mimic reality.

The many technological advances made during the Victorian Era in England drastically altered the way scientists, artists, and the public viewed art and aesthetics. Aesthetics came to be a branch of philosophy that contained a set of principles concerning nature and appreciation of beauty and art. Due to this change, a European art movement, known as the Aesthetic Movement, occurred in the late nineteenth century. This movement was based on the doctrine that art exists for the sake of its beauty and appreciation alone. Therefore, art did not need to serve any political, educational, or other purpose. It emphasized the importance of aesthetic values over moral and social themes in literature and the arts. The movement started as a reaction to the dominance of scientific thinking and the hostility of the middle class society to judge whether or not art was useful or teaching morals. One of the most prevalent values of the movement was suggestion as opposed to statement because no one could judge or try to reason the creation of any

In the novel, "The Picture of Dorian Gray", Oscar Wilde conveys a tragic story of a young protagonist, Dorian Gray and his transition from innocence to immoral. Dorian's character changed drastically after all the influence around him. Dorian's life was perfect with good-looking appearance, which was influence by other characters especially Lord Henry. The novel conveys the drastic change of Dorian's character as it comes to an end. The surroundings of Dorian Gray changed him for the worst and it led to his downfall.

“When one is in love, one always begins by deceiving one’s self, and one always ends by deceiving others,” (Wilde 46). Dorian Gray deceives himself by not knowing he is in love, and ends by showing everyone his most horrible traits. In his novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde talks about Dorian Gray, an innocent, beautiful young man who does not understand the power of his own beauty. Basil Hallward, an artist, discovers Dorian and paints a magnificent portrait of him. When one of Basil’s friends Lord Henry advises Dorian of his divine beauty and youth, Dorian wishes for the portrait to age instead of him. This idea creates a storyline for the novel, as Dorian spends more time with Lord Henry, who influences his views. These ideas lead Dorian into embarking on bad endeavors. Throughout the book, these deeds end up with Dorian killing many things. In the novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, the author Oscar Wilde shows how “each man kills the thing he loves”, only if the thing he loves brings out the worst in himself.

Dorian Gray is portrayed at the beginning of the novel, as innocent, young, and handsome. Dorian represents that the value of youth and beauty is more a curse than a blessing. His physical beauty attracted the wicked influences of Lord Henry causing Dorian to follow his dark path towards a hedonistic lifestyle, leading to Dorian’s narcissistic nature to be amplified.

In chapter 20 of The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, Dorian reflects on his past crimes and wonders whether he will ever change and retrieve his innocence again. Throughout the final chapter of the novel, the elements of Gothic novel that Wilde explores conveys the idea of the pursuit of individualism. Dorian’s wild, racing emotions clearly show how much he is driven by his readiness to fulfill his desires under any circumstance. Through this, the use of specific words and punctuation markings highlight Dorian’s personal yearning of removing himself from his past.

In Oscar Wilde's novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, beauty is depicted as the driving force in the lives of the three main characters, Dorian, Basil and Lord Henry. Dorian, the main character, believes in seizing the day. Basil, the artist, admires all that is beautiful in life. Lord Henry, accredited ones physical appearance to the ability of achieving accomplishments in life. Beauty ordains the fate of Dorian, Basil, and Lord Henry. The novel embodies the relationship of beauty and morality. Beauty is not based on how attractive an object is to everyone, but how attractive it is to one.

Artisans of the Aesthetic movement advocated ‘art for art’s sake’ and created works purely for beauty and never for function (Easby, 2017). James Abbot McNeil Whistler the artist who painted Whistlers Mother, was associated with this genre ("James Abbott McNeill Whistler 1834-1903 | Tate", 2017).

In the Victorian prose, The Portrait of Dorian Gray explores the idea of duality. The divided self within the character of Dorian Gray begins with his misunderstanding of his self-image, because of the influence of a portrait. Dorian’s fate and transformation connect to the painting, which leads to his downfall. The painting contains Dorian's moral decline as changes to the picture affects his life. Through the portrait, he gains an image of himself as an independent individual compared to his previous characteristics where he followed traditional Victorian standards. The sinful actions of Dorian Gray demonstrate duality, because of the self-image he gains from a portrait allowing him to live morally free until he redeems himself by

Wilde’s sexuality and effeminate nature shaped his relations to the natural beauty of the world, which in turn manifested itself in the moral implications of his now famous works. For example, his very own personal ordeals are envisaged through the passages of The Picture of Dorian Gray, and it has been passionately hypothesized that characters such as Basil, Dorian, and Lord Henry are personalities of Wilde’s own flamboyant character. In an interpretation written by Donald H Ericksen, Wilde had written the following: “Basil in how I see myself, Lord Henry how the world sees me and Dorian how I would like to be”. The discussions surrounding The Picture of Dorian Gray were linked to the egregious homoeroticism displayed through the synergy of Wilde’s characters and how they interacted with each other. In a time of irrational Victorian thinking, it comes as no surprise that Wilde’s writing had evoked such a backlash. For people during the Victorian period, Wilde’s male characters and the relationships in which they maintained were more than abundantly suggestive to enable thoughts of disgust in even the most tolerant of people. Wilde’s own sexual orientation laid out for the reader just how these relationships were assembled. In the opening of The Picture of Dorian Gray,