The Picture of Dorian Gray

The Picture of Dorian Gray tells the story of the movie’s namesake, Dorian Gray, a young and handsome man who is the subject of a portrait painted by artist Basil Hallward. While at Basil’s house, Dorian meets Lord Henry Wotton and is caught up by his radical ideas. Lord Henry lives life for pleasure’s sake and points out to Dorian the horrendous fact that youth and beauty are temporary. As Dorian studies his handsome likeness he wishes that he would stay young forever and that instead his portrait would show the signs of age. He decides that he would give his soul in order to never grow old. Dorian’s wish comes true and he begins to see the signs of his actions and age in Basil’s painting. With the jilting and eventual suicide of his fiancée and innumerable other wicked and aberrant acts, the portrait takes on a demonic quality. It shows not only the signs of age, but also the evidence of his many sins. At the end of the film, Dorian performs one good deed by walking away from Gladys, the girl he loved, so as to save her from himself. With the idea of destroying that which had ruined his life, Dorian stabs the painting in the heart. The painting and Dorian himself switch appearances and he falls to the ground with a last prayer for forgiveness.

One of the scenes that stood out to me the most took place at the very beginning of the film, when Lord Henry first meets Dorian Gray. The scene takes place at Basil’s studio and really sets up the entire rest of the story. At this point in time, Dorian is uncorrupt but caught up in his own youth and handsomeness. In addition to introducing his idea that the most precious thing in life is youth, Lord Henry also makes the prophetic remark, “the aim of life is self-development, to realize one’s nature perfectly.” As the film progresses, Dorian is indeed forced to realize his nature when the hard evidence is presented to him in the deformed painting. In that introductory scene, Lord Henry also states that, “there is nothing that can cure the soul but the senses, just as there is nothing that can cure the senses but the soul.” In this scene, Dorian for the first time becomes conscious of himself and of his fleeting youth. He in essence sells his soul for eternal youth.

An image that warrants note in this scene is the statue of the cat that is painted along with Dorian in his portrait. The image of the cat persists throughout the entire film. It is implied that it is an Egyptian god that was responsible for granting Dorian’s damning wish. The cat’s almost spectral presence in this scene initiates the motif that continues throughout the film. Fittingly, cats are often a symbol of mystery and evil.

This opening scene introduces many of the present themes and foreshadows some of the future events in the film. The cat motif, the portrait itself, the fascination of youth, and the relationships between Dorian Gray, Basil Hallward, Lord Henry Wotton, and Gladys are established. It is the set up for the moral dilemma that is the heart of this film’s message. The portrait is a manifestation of the evil inside of those who choose to live without conscience for the sake of greed or vanity. It is a representation of the impact that sin has upon the soul.