**This essay was written on November 26, 2018 for Ms. Seuk's British literature class
The preface of The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde is one of the most iconic prefaces of all time, ending with the famous line “All art is quite useless” (4). It acts as an excellent introduction of the novel thatrevolves around a piece of art, the picture of the titular protagonist Dorian Gray. The views on art and beauty introduced in the preface are explored throughout the story.
Dorian’s corruption is warned in the preface. “Those who find ugly meanings in beautiful things are corrupt without being charming. This is a fault” (3). The start of Dorian’s corruption can be seen as when he talks to Lord Henry and says “[he] would give [his] soul for [beauty]” (25). This occurs after he sees the painting of himself created by Basil and does not focus on the beauty of the painting but rather becomes devastated, repeating “How sad it is” (25) and saying “I am jealous of the portrait you have painted of me” (26). Thus, he found “ugly meaning in beautiful things” (3) leading to his corruption.
In later parts of the story, Dorian indulges in more pleasures and shows immoral actions. As this continues, he is horrified to see that the painting appears to become more evil and ugly. As shown in the preface, “It is the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors” (3). As Dorian becomes more corrupted the artwork reflects on him so that when he is viewing the painting he is able to see his dirty, corrupt self that his exterior fails to show. Although “All art is at once surface and symbol”, Dorian chooses to “go beneath the surface” and “read the symbol” (3) at his own peril. By reading into his own ugliness and immorality reflected by the painting, he is left in an unstable state, living with the painting acting as a constant weight in his heart. This leads to more inhumane actions, like killing Basil and eventually his demise, becoming so obsessed with the painting that he stabs himself. Interestingly, although Lord Henry also indulged in pleasures and immoral actions, he didn’t put as much meaning into art and kept an uncaring, amoral attitude towards life. He believed “Art has no influence upon action” (183) and even though he was immoral, he didn’t have an unhappy ending like Dorian.
The preface not only introduced the relationship between the painting and Dorian Gray portrayed in the novel but also the relationship between the novel itself and Oscar Wilde. The Picture of Dorian Grayacted as a reflection of Oscar Wilde and his lifestyle. As Oscar Wilde said to his friend, “I am glad you like that strange coloured book of mine: it contains much of me in it. Basil Hallward is what I think I am: Lord Henry what the world thinks of me: Dorian what I would like to be-in other ages perhaps.”
Like Basil Hallward, Oscar Wilde is an artist. Parallel to how Basil Hallward created the picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde created The Picture of Dorian Gray. They are both “creator of beautiful things” (3). Oscar Wilde expresses his view on creating art and art itself through the preface, but also through the voice of Basil. Like Basil says, Oscar Wilde believed “An artist should create beautiful things, but should put nothing of his own life into them” (13). Basil created the picture of Dorian Gray for aesthetic beauty, not intending it to have any greater meaning. This is similar with Oscar Wilde’s relationship with the novel. The whole story of Dorian Gray adheres greatly to the is a morality tale, with the characters that were warned of corruption and peril by the preface having bad endings. However, “vice and virtue are to the artist materials for an art” (3). To Oscar Wilde, the morality tale of Dorian Gray is simply a form of art, not a reflection of his views on morals. As said in the preface, “No artist desires to prove anything” and “No artist has ethical sympathies” (3). Oscar Wilde wrote the novel not to teach an ethical lesson but created it for art’s sake.
However, like Basil, Oscar Wilde still “put too much of [himself] into it” (6). Similar to Lord Henry, Oscar Wilde is known for his scandalous lifestyle. In the novel, Lord Henry was portrayed as a man who “never [says] a moral thing” and “never [does] a wrong thing” (8). Lord Henry is not evil but amoral. He lives his life indulging in pleasures and chasing joy. He even regards Dorian as an “interesting study” (50), using Dorian as a means of entertainment. To Lord Henry, people have no more meaning than instruments of pleasure. Oscar Wilde is also a famous hedonist, believing in self-realization through pleasure. Lord Henry is an exaggerated version of Oscar Wilde, the version society thinks he is.
In all of his aspects, he strives for beauty. He views himself as Basil, loving and creating beauty. The world views him as Lord Henry, already living a life for beauty. However, he desires to become Dorian Gray, the embodiment of beauty itself. Oscar Wilde clearly does not adhere to the lessons of his own book as he desires to become the character that is punished in the morality tale. As said in the preface “The morality of art consists in the perfect use of an imperfect medium” (3). He used himself, an imperfect person as a medium of the novel creating a beautiful piece of art. He is both the artist and subject of art in The Picture of Dorian Gray.
Comments
Post a Comment