The Picture Of Dorian Gray Essay

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In The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde displays that the people of the Victorian era value menial things the same as things of higher importance, coupled with the encompassing dull mindset of the people of the time. Wilde expresses that society values menial things rather than having good morals throughout The Picture of Dorian Gray. Wilde states “ Society, civilized society at least, is never really ready to believe anything to the detriment of those who are rich and fascinating. It feels instinctively that manners are of more importance than morals, and in its opinion, the highest respectability is of much less value than the possession of good character” (Wilde 104) This shows how society looks upon the rich as the only people …show more content…
It states “ As Lord Henry prophesied, a new Hedonism that was to recreate life, and save it from the harsh, uncanny puritanism that is heavy, in our own days a revival.” (Wilde 95) This shows that Dorian is starting to branch out of the normal ‘Puritanistic” ways that the rest of the society lived by. Dorian is very disliked, for his looks and how he viewed life. Dorian started acting out and having a double secret life that no one knew about. With Dorian's double life he started sneaking out to opium dens to fuel his addiction. It states “There were opium-dens, where one could buy oblivion, dens of horror where the memory of old sins could be destroyed by the madness of sins that were new.”(Wilde 266) Dorian’s old sins started to haunt him, which in turn led to his destruction and use of opium. Opium was Dorians way to take his mind off his grim life. Although Dorian knew that going to these dens would ruin his reputation, because Victorian Society was focused on how you presented yourself, he went anyway. Victorian Society had many flaws, explicitly stated by Oscar Wilde in The Picture of Dorian Gray, this society's view on immorality, expression, and views on life show how Wilde exposes Victorian
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