How Does Lord Henry Influence Dorian Gray

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In addition to Dorian’s youth, he hid behind the influence of Lord Henry. In the beginning of the story, Dorian is appalled by the state of his portrait and the state of Sibyl, but after talking to Lord Henry about what happened to Sibyl, he changes his view (Aubrey 2). Because of the influence Lord Henry has, Dorian uses it as an excuse. Instead of making his own decision about his life and his views, he adapts to Lord Henry’s perspective. It says that “the more he knew, the more he desired to know.” This shows the impact of Lord Henry over Dorian. He becomes consumed with his desires and pleasure, but at the hand of Lord Henry. During the Victorian Era, they valued power and influence greatly (Gordon 2). Wilde uses the relationship of Dorian and Lord Henry to show the desire of influence. At first Dorian is innocent and young, but he allows Lord Henry to …show more content…
This proves that Wilde was reflecting on his own experience with the Victorian culture. Although society always viewed Dorian as young and innocent, the influence of Lord Henry became a concealment and excuse for Dorian and the state of his soul. Lord Henry Wotton uses his charming speech as a social mask in order to conceal his true character and motives. In the very beginning of the story, Lord Henry hooks Dorian with his fancy speech and unorthodox views. For example, Dorian is portrayed as listening “open-eyed and wondering” (Wilde 29). This emphasizes Dorian’s fascination with Lord Henry’s wording. King says “Wotton, constantly associated with time pieces and repeatedly reminds Dorian of age and the impropriety of unpunctuality” (King 16). This shows how Lord Henry influenced Dorian without revealing his true character. Wilde uses Lord Henry’s flamboyant speech to
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