Although Dorian has clearly been touched (figuratively) by Lord Henry, he immediately "falls in love" with the young actress he sees during a stage performance of a Shakespeare play. It seems to the reader that Wilde intentionally makes Dorian's feelings for Sibyl unrealistic and not true to Dorian's character by having Dorian come from nowhere with news that he is engaged to Sibyl, and then a few days later growing to detest her. While it is true that Dorian is capable of having strong and quickly picked up emotions towards people, it does not seem realistic that he would suddenly declare he wants to marry Sibyl unless perhaps he was trying to repress other feelings he was experiencing. In this way, critic Sedgwick's theory of "homophobic male panic" is also developed in the Picture of Dorian Gray.
Overall, the feelings of tragically repressed homosexuality in the Picture of Dorian Gray…...
mlaBibliography
Sedgwick, Eve Kosofsky. Between Men: English Literature and Male Homosocial Desire. New York: Columbia University Press, 1985. Print.
Sedwick, Eve Kosofsky. "The Beast in the Closet: James and the Writing of Homosexual Panic," Sex, Politics, and Science in the Nineteent-Century Novel: Selected Papers from the English Institute, 1983-84, ed. Ruth Bernard Yeazell. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1986. 148-86. Print.
Dellamora, Richard. "Representation and Homophobia in the Picture of Dorian Gray," the Victorian Newsletter, Vol. 73, Spring 1988. 28-31. Print.
Oscar ilde's novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, provides a series of profound social criticism of his time in the form of witty epigrams. These epigrams made pointed social observations about life at the time of ilde's novel. Nonetheless, they can sill be applied to societies' customs and attitudes today.
Perhaps one of the most famous epigrams in The Picture of Dorian Gray comes from Lord Henry otton, who notes "I choose my friends for their beauty and my enemies for their intelligence. A man cannot be too careful in choosing his enemies." Here, this is a reversal of common logic at the time that held that friends should be chosen for their intelligence and companionship, while it would seem logical that one would not want intelligence in enemies. Today, the epigram is equally valid, as we still consider intelligence and companionship important qualities in a friend.
Another Lord otton epigram is,…...
mlaWorks Cited
Wilde, Oscar. 1998. The Picture of Dorian Gray. Modern Library.
Is this 'good' or natural one might ask, if Basil is one of the moral characters of the book and defying nature and wishing for eternal youth is immoral? Henry's counsel to Dorian that Dorian yield to his every natural temptation and not bow down to societal morality could be seen as an endorsement of the natural, but Henry also celebrates youth to an unnatural, unchanging degree and he too falls in love with Dorian's image before Dorian. Also, Henry, like Basil, is clearly amoral and self-interested himself, as seen in his disapproval that Dorian's impulses do not conform to Henry's own when Dorian is attracted to a pretty young actress.
Henry is a tempting figure, like Mephistopheles, but Dorian easily outdoes him in 'evil' or transgressions and unnaturalness. Dorian's love of youth, spawned by Henry, takes on a life of its own, just like Faustus' taunting of nature and…...
mlaWorks Cited
Clausson, Nils. "Culture and Corruption": Paterian Self-Development vs. Gothic
Degeneration in Oscar Wilde's the Picture of Dorian Gray." Papers on Language and Literature. Fall 2003. 21 Apr 2007. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3708/is_200310/ai_n9329138
Marlowe, Christopher. "The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus." Project Gutenberg Etext.
1997. 21 Apr 2007. http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/etext97/drfst10a.txt
He has tried to live a life of pure pleasure with no concern for others, but he cannot escape his own fear, because he knows all the wrongs he has done. The ultimate sin was killing the only person who ever saw true beauty in him.
For its time, this book was extremely well done, and the writing cannot be faulted in the light of Victorian English literature. The story, in fact, is still a good tale, but the long passages of exposition, even in the guise of conversation, makes it difficult for today's audience to read. It is so full of discussions of philosophy and morality that I have to suspect that it was intentionally done to point out the excessive moralizing in much Victorian literature. Nearly every rule of political correctness is broken by one or more of the characters. Yet the story underlying the whole is compelling.…...
This literary parallel also underlined in the final description of the portrait of what Dorian Gray has become at the end of the book, Chapter 20: "The thing was still loathsome -- more loathsome, if possible, than before -- and the scarlet dew that spotted the hand seemed brighter, and more like blood newly spilled. Then he trembled. Had it been merely vanity that had made him do his one good deed? Or the desire for a new sensation, as Lord Henry had hinted, with his mocking laugh?"
Again, there is scarlet, but this is the scarlet of blood letting, not an innocent blush of the young Dorian's lips. Once again, at the words of Lord Henry, even the older and more jaded Dorian is moved to tremble. He blanches at the sight of the picture, but for a different reason, because he can see the monster he has become,…...
mlaWorks Cited
Wilde, Oscar. The Picture of Dorian Gray. Full e-text available 3 Nov 2007 at http://www.upword.com/wilde/dorgray.html#3
Queer Theory and Oscar Wilde
Analysis of "Queer Theory" by Annamarie Jagose in relation to Dorian Gray's character in "The picture of Dorian Gray" by Oscar Wilde
In her discussion of "Queer theory," author Annamarie Jagose provides a distinction between the concepts 'queer' and the dichotomous relationship between 'lesbian' and 'gay.' Jagose argued in her discussion of this theory that queer was a concept that had politically evolved through the years in relation to the proliferation of gay and lesbian studies.
What makes the queer concept vital to the study of gays and lesbians, as well as issues of homosexuality and heterosexuality is that it provides a 'gray area' in which no distinctions between male and female and gay and lesbian are found. Queer appeals to the 20th century philosophers and social scientists simply because it offers an avenue through which gender and sex can be discussed without the political inequality often found…...
mlaBibliography
Jagose, A. (1996). "Queer Theory." Australian Humanities Review web site. Available at: http://www.lib.latrobe.edu.au/AHR/archive/Issue-Dec-1996/jagose.html.
Wilde, O. (1994). The Picture of Dorian Gray. NY: Penguin Books.
role of religion in the history of European society is a tumultuous one. Christianity, from its obscure beginnings in the classical age, eventually took the reins as the centerpiece of philosophical, literary, and scientific thought. It is true that religion, often, tends to justify actions that might objectively be perceived as incongruous to the established faith. It has historically been the case that when traditional forms of worship become threatened, morally questionable methods are undertaken to strengthen the order. This is certainly the case with Christianity. Since the birth of the Catholic Church in the Roman Empire, Church officials have actively attempted to make their privileged positions in society impervious to assault -- this process has progressed for centuries and, indeed, tens of centuries. For many years this single faith dominated nearly every aspect of European society and was a strong force in maintaining the status quo. However, the…...
mlaWorks Cited:
1. Haney, David P. "Christianity and Literature." Malibu, Winter Vol. 54, Iss. 2, 2005.
2. Mill, John Stuart. "Utilitarianism." Reason and Responsibility. New York: Wadsworth Publishing, 1999. Pages 571-77.
3. Shelley, Mary. "Frankenstein." The Norton Anthology of English Literature: Seventh Edition, Volume 2. New York W.W. Norton and Company, 2000. Pages 905-1033.
4. Wilde, Oscar. Literary Criticism of Oscar Wilde. Lincoln: Bison Books, 1968. Page, 233.
homosexual practices might have begun in the early centuries, the word "sodomy" was first used by a Catholic missionary, now a saint, Father Peter Damien around 1050. y sodomy, he meant masturbation and anal intercourse between men, a sin he condemned as the most perverse of sexual sins in his long letter to the Pope, entitled "the ook of Gomorrah." He emphasized that God designed sex exclusively for procreation and that the enjoyment of the sexual act outside this divine purpose was unnatural and therefore summarily grievously and wickedly sinful.
The unnaturalness of sodomy remained more or less the same through the centuries, till the 1700s when the so-called modern homosexual subcultures made themselves visible in London, Paris and Amsterdam. The rest soon perceived them as "sodomites (who were merely) ... constitutionally different from other men" (Wikholm 1999) and effeminate woman-haters who refused to have sex with women. Things were…...
mlaBIBLIOGRAPHY
1. Alic, Margaret. Alfred Charles Kinsey. Gale Encyclopedia of Psychology, second edition. Gale Group, 2001
2. Boeree, George. Personality Theory: Sigmund Freud. 1997
3. Cameron, Paul. The Psychology of Homosexuality. Family Research Report.
Family Research Institute, 1999
It was also during this time that he started keeping a diary. The entry for that day is very relevant as to our attempt to understand what drove Orton to join the theater in hopes of an acting career. During the time he spent with the amateur theater company, Orton decided that he wanted to pursue a career in acting, and that his first step towards achieving this goal was to go to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art: "Last night sitting in the empty theatre watching the electricians flashing lights on and off, the empty stage waiting for rehearsal to begin, I suddenly knew that my ambition is, and always has been, to act." (Diary entry, April 13th, 1949: Joe Orton Online)
He quit the amateur acting company after his first role because he was not offered any other substantial roles. Although he got accepted into the Royal Academy…...
mlaWoodcock, George. The Paradox of Oscar Wilde. New York: Macmillan, 1950.
Terpening, William. "The Picture of Oscar Wilde: A brief life." Oscar Wilde Biographical Materials. 1998. http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/wilde/wildebio.html
Joe Orton Life and Work" Joe Orton Online. http://www.joeorton.org/Pages/Joe_Orton_Timeline1.html
" (4) it is unclear how to understand "things are because we see them." Traditionally perception is conceived as a passive process: we open our eyes and receive input from the world. Kant suggests that perhaps it is not so passive: we "organize" the world into temporal and spatial dimensions, attribute cause and effect, etc. But what Wilde suggests here is even more radical. The "things are because" suggests a causal relationship, such that what we see exists as an effect of seeing. It would be as if looking "paints" the world. But this is completely absurd. Onto what would seeing "paint" the world? and, even weirder, notice that it wouldn't be that seeing paints the world so that we could then look at what was painted. Rather, it would be that seeing is painting, so that we always see and paint simultaneously, always just "creating" whatever we see, under…...
mla1. Wilde, Oscar. Intentions. New York: Prometheus Books, 2004. 1-55. Print.
2. Wilde, Oscar. The Picture of Dorian Gray and Other Writings. New York: Pocket Books, 2005. 241-365. Print.
The Decay of Lying was first published in 1889; the Golden Stair is from 1880.
Visual Imagery and Qualitative Dimensions of Life & Consciousness in Visual Art
Throughout history all cultures have produced works of art. The impulse to create as a means of personal expression and to stimulate the imagination of viewers is universal and perpetual. In their various manifestations, the arts play an important role in defining culture by presenting intelligent viewpoints of our present state of being, and by serving as a record of our past. The visual arts are a repository of those qualitative dimensions of life, which enhance our consciousness through the use of visual imagery.
The most exquisite expression of the self is through art, be it literature, history theatre, painting, sculptor and so on. From the wondrous Egyptian pyramids to the majestic statue of liberty, from eloquent Greek writer Homer - who produced masterpieces like the Odyssey - to 20th century literati like Palestinian journalist Edward Said - who so…...
mlaWorks Cited
1) A short history of English literature: Pages124 & 125. Sylvan Barnet
2) History of English literature: Pages123 & 127. Legouis & Cazamain
3) An Introduction to Fiction, Drama and Poetry: Pages 355 to 361. Kennedy Gioia
Art and the Humanities -
Law Enforcement Opinion
This report will cover a topic that has always been controversial. However, there have been some events as of late, most of them racially and otherwise socially charged, that have forced the argument the subject firmly back into the forefront. Of course, that topic would be law enforcement. While gun violence, politics and so forth are all the rage in the modern blogosphere and social media realms, the topic of law enforcement is high on the minds of many regular people and activists due to, among other things, the events and details surrounding what happened to people like Eric Garner, Freddie Gray, Michael Brown and so forth. There are plenty of talking heads that would paint the police as abusive and authoritarians. However, that is far from being the true picture that should be painted and this report shall aim to fill in the rest of the context.…...
mlaReferences
Baker, A. (2015). In Eric Garner Case, Judge Rules Against Releasing Grand Jury Evidence. Nytimes.com. Retrieved 16 June 2015, from http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/20/nyregion/in-eric-garner-case-judge-rules-against-releasing-grand-jury-evidence.html
Barrabi, T. (2014). Michael Brown Robbed Convenience Store, Stole Cigarillos Before Darren Wilson Shooting, Dorian Johnson Says. International Business Times. Retrieved 16 June 2015, from http://www.ibtimes.com/michael-brown-robbed-convenience-store-stole-cigarillos-darren-wilson-shooting-dorian-1729359
CBS,. (2015). Family defends Trayvon Martin amid claims he was aggressor in deadly confrontation. Cbsnews.com. Retrieved 16 June 2015, from http://www.cbsnews.com/news/family-defends-trayvon-martin-amid-claims-he-was-aggressor-in-deadly-confrontation/
FindLaw,. (2015). Are DUI Checkpoints Legal? - FindLaw. Findlaw. Retrieved 16 June 2015, from http://traffic.findlaw.com/traffic-stops/are-dui-checkpoints-legal-.html
Ultimately, Mrs. Dalloway's opinion of herself is highest when she is giving parties. Woolf writes, "Every time she gave a party she had this feeling of being something not herself, and that every one was unreal in one way; much more real in another" (Woolf 171). She knows she has a gift for bringing people together, and it is this gift that makes her life worthwhile. It is odd, because the entire reason for her being (at least to her) is superficial and another jab at English society by Woolf. The parties are the grounds for the wealthy to socialize and show off, while they are attended by the low-paid servants, the poor who form the backbone of English society. Ultimately, the novel condemns this society, and Clarissa Dalloway's simple character is at the forefront of this condemnation. Her simplicity and reliance on pleasing others represents all that is wrong…...
mlaReferences
Woolf, Virginia. Mrs. Dalloway. New York: Harvest Books, 1990.
40"Lie close," Laura said, 41 Pricking up her golden head:
42"We must not look at goblin men, 43We must not buy their fruits:
Who knows upon what soil they fed
Their hungry thirsty roots?"
46"Come buy," call the goblins
Hobbling down the glen.
48"Oh," cried Lizzie, "Laura, Laura, 49 You should not peep at goblin men."
Lizzie cover'd up her eyes, 51 Cover'd close lest they should look;
Laura rear'd her glossy head, 53 and whisper'd like the restless brook:
54"Look, Lizzie, look, Lizzie, 55 Down the glen tramp little men.
One hauls a basket, 57 One bears a plate, 58 One lugs a golden dish
Of many pounds weight.
How fair the vine must grow
Whose grapes are so luscious;
How warm the wind must blow
Through those fruit bushes."
64"No," said Lizzie, "No, no, no;
Their offers should not charm us, 66 Their evil gifts would harm us."
She thrust a dimpled finger
In each ear, shut eyes and ran:
Curious Laura chose to linger
Wondering at each merchant…...
mlaReferences
Goblin Market" Christina Georgina Rossetti. 2005. Ian Lancashire for the Department of English, University of Toronto. 28 May, 2007. http://rpo.library.utoronto.ca/poem/1753.html
Victorian Web. Christina Rossetti. 27 May 2007. http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/crossetti/rossettibio.html
Morning and evening
Maids heard the goblins cry:
All without distinction were branded as fanatics and phantasts; not only those, whose wild and exorbitant imaginations had actually engendered only extravagant and grotesque phantasms, and whose productions were, for the most part, poor copies and gross caricatures of genuine inspiration; but the truly inspired likewise, the originals themselves. And this for no other reason, but because they were the unlearned, men of humble and obscure occupations. (Coleridge iographia IX)
To a certain extent, Coleridge's polemical point here is consistent with his early radical politics, and his emergence from the lively intellectual community of London's "dissenting academies" at a time when religious non-conformists (like the Unitarian Coleridge) were not permitted to attend Oxford or Cambridge: he is correct that science and philosophy were more active among "humble and obscure" persons, like Joseph Priestley or Anna Letitia arbauld, who had emerged from the dissenting academies because barred (by religion or gender)…...
mlaBy mid-century, however, these forces in the use of grotesque in prose were fully integrated as a matter of style. We can contrast two convenient examples from mid-century England, in Dickens's 1850 novel David Copperfield, compared with Carlyle's notorious essay originally published in 1849 under the title "Occasional Discourse on the Negro Question." Dickens is, of course, the great master of the grotesque in the Victorian novel. Most of Dickens' villains -- the villainous dwarf Quilp in The Old Curiosity Shop, the hunchback Flintwinch in Little Dorrit, the junkshop-proprietor Krook who perishes of spontaneous combustion in Bleak House -- have names and physical characteristics that signpost them as near-perfect examples of the grotesque. The notion that this grotesquerie is, in some way, related to the streak of social criticism in Dickens' fiction is somewhat attractive, because even the social problems in these novels are configured in ways that recall the grotesque, like the Circumlocution Office in Little Dorrit, Boffin's mammoth dust-heap in Our Mutual Friend, or the philanthropist and negligent mother Mrs. Jellaby in Bleak House who proves Dickens' polemical point about charity beginning at home by being rather grotesquely eaten by the cannibals of Borrioboola-Gha. We can see Dickens' grotesque in a less outlandish form, but still recognizable as grotesque, in the introduction of the villainous Uriah Heep in Chapter 15 of David Copperfield:
When the pony-chaise stopped at the door, and my eyes were intent upon the house, I saw a cadaverous face appear at a small window on the ground floor (in a little round tower that formed one side of the house), and quickly disappear. The low arched door then opened, and the face came out. It was quite as cadaverous as it had looked in the window, though in the grain of it there was that tinge of red which is sometimes to be observed in the skins of red-haired people. It belonged to a red-haired person -- a youth of fifteen, as I take it now, but looking much older -- whose hair was cropped as close as the closest stubble; who had hardly any eyebrows, and no eyelashes, and eyes of a red-brown, so unsheltered and unshaded, that I remember wondering how he went to sleep. He was high-shouldered and bony; dressed in decent black, with a white wisp of a neckcloth; buttoned up to the throat; and had a long, lank, skeleton hand, which particularly attracted my attention, as he stood at the pony's head, rubbing his chin with it, and looking up at us in the chaise. (Dickens, Chapter 15)
We may note the classic elements of
Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.
Get Started Now