Why does Dorian decide to destroy the painting at the end of the novel?

The portrait reflects this hypocrisy and drives him to his final, desperate act. He decides it is better to destroy the last evidence of his sin—the painting of his soul—than face up to his own depravity. The depravity he seeks to destroy is, in essence, himself; therefore, by killing it, he kills himself.

What is the message behind Dorian Gray?

Wilde himself admits, in a letter to the St. James’s Gazette, that Dorian Gray “is a story with a moral. And the moral is this: All excess, as well as all renunciation, brings its own punishment” (Wilde 248).

What does The Picture of Dorian Gray symbolize?

The portrait is the main symbol at work here. It’s a kind of living allegory, a visible interpretation of Dorian’s soul. Basically, the picture represents Dorian’s inner self, which becomes uglier with each passing hour and with every crime he commits.

What did Dorian do to the painting?

Deciding that only full confession will absolve him of wrongdoing, Dorian decides to destroy the last vestige of his conscience and the only piece of evidence remaining of his crimes; the picture. In a rage, he takes the knife with which he murdered Basil Hallward and stabs the picture.

How does Dorian Gray sell his soul?

The legend tells of a learned doctor who sells his soul to the devil in return for knowledge and magical abilities. Although Dorian Gray never contracts with the devil, his sacrifice is similar: he trades his soul for the luxury of eternal youth.

How is hedonism portrayed in The Picture of Dorian Gray?

Wilde designated hedonism in The Picture of Dorian Gray, by injecting the idea of seeking pleasure into the protagonist’s mind and life. Dorian Gray follows hedonism and gives freedom to all his desires, and seeks any kind of pleasure.

How did Dorian Gray become immortal?

Immortality: After having his soul trapped within a painting, Dorian gained immortality. He does not age and seems to be immune to all conventional illnesses, diseases, viruses and infections.

What sins did Dorian Gray commit?

Dorian is a young and beautiful man who makes a Faustian pact that his self-portrait, drawn by painter Basil Hallward, would grow older as time past instead of Dorian. Throughout the story, Dorian commits many sins, for example, using his influence to ruin others’ lives and the murdering of Basil Hallward.

Who does Dorian end up with?

Manon Blackbeak (lover)

Is the story of Dorian Gray true?

Dorian Gray was clearly based on a living person, a member of Wilde’s literary homosexual circle in the early 1890s when the story was first published. If Wilde’s fiction is strange, the real life story of John Gray, Dorian’s original, is even more bizarre.

Who is Campbell in Dorian Gray?

Alan Campbell was an acquaintance of Dorian Gray’s while Dorian was first living in Mayfair and spending time with Lord Henry Wotton and Basil Hallward. After Dorian murders Basil in a fit of spiteful rage he blackmails Alan into destroying Basil’s body using his skills as a chemist.

How does Dorian Gray die in the end of the novel?

In the end of the novel Dorian Gray dies in a strange way. By stabbing his portrait in order to destroy it, Grey in the same time kills himself. The end is rather surprising than expected, because through the last chapter the main character tries to improve his personality,…

Why does Dorian try to destroy the portrait?

Dorian attempts to destroy the portrait, the image of his disgustingly corrupted soul, which haunts him like a conscience. He slashes at it with a knife (appropriately the very same knife with which he murdered his ex-friend, Basil Hallward), hoping to do away with the evidence of his crimes.

How does the meeting with Basil change Dorian Gray’s life?

This meeting changed the whole life of Dorian Gray as we see his immoral instincts devouring the moral scruples he apparently had once. Basil poured his heart and soul into the picture of Dorian Gray and decided not to sell it anyway.

Why did Toby Finley change the ending of Dorian Gray 2009?

There is some debate about why Toby Finley the writer of the 2009 deviated from the ending. One reason might be that he was a fan of the film American Psycho and commented in an interview that he wanted to look at Dorian Gray from that perspective.