Loss Of Innocence In The Picture Of Dorian Gray

The first chapter of Oscar Wilde’s novel The Picture of Dorian Gray is set on a picturesque summer day at the residence of Basil Hallward, an established Victorian painter. Basil is accompanied by his friend, Lord Henry Wotton, and together they discuss all things from the nature of beauty and intellect to the exquisite portrait that Basil had just produced moments before. This scene appears to be trivial in terms of plot, as it does not even contain the presence of the titular character, Dorian Gray. Nonetheless, Oscar Wilde makes this scene essential by introducing the readers to many of the key themes and images that will later permeate throughout his novel. This common literary strategy that he employed is often used by authors to reveal

In the novel, Wilde uses the motif of whiteness to refer to Dorian’s innocence and purity (or lack thereof). Wilde invokes the usage of this motif for the first time in this first scene, where he has Lord Henry describe Dorian as, “... this young Adonis, who looks as if he was made of ivory and rose-leaves.” The use of “ivory” signifies how Dorian is untarnished at the beginning of the novel by the temptations of sin. Also in the first chapter, Wilde uses foreshadowing to signify Dorian’s future fall from grace and the thematic destruction of his soul. He introduces Basil Hallward in his story as, “Basil Hallward, whose sudden disappearance some years ago caused, at the time, such public excitement, and gave rise to so many strange conjectures.” This foreshadowing of the nature surrounding Basil’s death also foreshadows Dorian’s ultimate loss of innocence, a transgression he can never forget: murder. By using both the motif of white and the foreshadowing of Basil’s death, Wilde provides a complete picture to the reader of the thematic downfall of Dorian Gray’s soul and his unfortunate loss of innocence throughout the

By using diction and blunt statements from Sir Henry Wotton, Wilde introduces for the first time the theme of the importance of beauty. He implies, through these means, that beauty in all forms will be an obsession of his characters and in addition foreshadows the downfall of the protagonist, Dorian. Utilizing Sir Henry and Basil’s reaction to the latter’s portrait, the author also discloses the theme of the dual purpose of art: to be beautiful and to capture the soul. Through this method Wilde hints that Dorian’s soul will be captured within art, but not in the conventional way one might think. Wilde’s first implementation of the motif of white symbolizes the innocence of the character of Dorian at the beginning of the story. He then adds as an aside the mysterious disappearance of Basil Hallward, subtly acknowledging the loss of innocence that Dorian would endure in his subsequent fall from humanity to sin. Though the first chapter scene between Sir Henry Wotton and Basil Hallward may be viewed by some as a prerequisite to the actual plot, in all truth the scene divulged many themes and figurative elements for the first time within the