Monday, February 27, 2012

Blog Question: The Picture of Dorian Gray Ch. 5-8

What role does art play in The Picture of Dorian Gray? What are each of the three main characters' attitudes towards art?

20 comments:

  1. I think it is all based on Oscar Wilde's view of art, which is that it should have no purpose. Basil uses art to understand himself. I would say he used it also to show himself to others, but he said that he doesn't want to sell his painting of Dorian because it revealed too much of himself. This leads me to believe Basil sees art as a way to express himself to himself. I think Henry, similar to Wilde, believes that art has little purpose. Dorian seems to be heavily influenced by art. Sibyl's acting skills are the primary reason he falls in love with her, and the deterioration of her acting skills the primary reason he falls out of love. He also seems to be more affected by guilt when it appears on a painting than when he actually feels it himself. I think the characters all have different views on art to show that art is meaningless until interpreted by each individual, and serves no other purpose.

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  2. Art plays a very important role in The Picture of Dorian Gray. The entire story is based off of a peice of art and the affect it has on the one it reflects. Dorian, a work of art himself, sees art as something meaningful. The way he fell in love with Sibyl because she portrayed art proves it. His opinion of art may change as he sees the the picture of him is changin who he is. Basil adores art because it is what he loves. He believes it is sacred which is why he doesn't want to display it anymore. Art is his life. Lord Henry enjoys art but he doesn't see very much meaning in it. Instead of seeing the beauty in art, he sees it in people and their potential.

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  3. The role of art plays a crucial role throughout The Picture Of Dorian Grey. The actual picture of Dorian is revealing more than I anticipated. That picture is showing the true sins that Dorian is committing in society. Dorian's view towards art is slowing changing. At first he adored it but now he is picking out little tidbits that is changing his opinion. Basil, is an artist so I feel like art is his love. Lord Henry doesn't seem that interested in art. Lord Henry is more concerned about self image and the way he acts over art.

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  4. Art is kind of like aestheticism; the way something looks. Up to this point in the story, Basil and Lord Henry have been obsessed with the piece of art called Dorian, at least that's what they think of him as. Basil's view of art is something that looks beautiful (aestheticism) and perfect. He sees that Dorian is beautiful and perfect and therefore he adores him. Lord Henry's view of art is a decoration in the world that serves no purpose on its own. He believes that the purpose of the art is to be decided by the spectator or the creator, whomever is viewing the piece of art. Therefore, Lord Henry sees that Dorian is a beautiful specimen and wants to influence him and make of him what he wants. Dorian loves art. He sees beauty and ugly in art, as well as love and hatred. All Dorian's emotions generate from some form of art, whether its acting, a portrait, or even Lord Henry.

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  5. Based on what is going on in the book I feel as though the characters have compleatly different views of art. To Lord Henry art is just something pretty and dectortive with no other meaning but to look good. While Basil views art not only as something beautiful but a refletion of the artest life in the painting or art form that the artest makes. He also thinks the art and its meaning change with the different viewers of the art. Dorian sees art as a beautiful and splended thing but he can find the uglieness in it as well therefor his views of an art peace change depending on what he is looking for that day.

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  6. Art has a big role in the story. The book starts off with art, as Basil is painting Dorian. I believe that the whole story revolves around the concept of are and how it is percieved. With the portrait of Dorian, it is seen as beautiful in the eyes of Basil, and he thinks it is his best work. I think that Basil uses art to express himself and what he wants to be. Basil is clearly jealous of Dorian and so his art shows what he himself wishes he could be. Dorian is kind of afraid of art because of what it displays to him. He see's that it is actually hard to look at and he has to ultimatly cover up the portrait of himself. Henry doesn't really have a deep feeling towards art. Like Ryan said, he just sees it as a decoration.

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  7. Art seems to be very important in this novel. Every character seems to interpret and think of art differently. In my opinion, Dorian seems to love art and enjoys reflecting about it. We see this when he talks about Sibyl and why he loves how she acts. Though it seems that he enjoys art, I think that his opinion changes as he sees the picture of himself change due to his sinning and aging. Basil really loves art and because it is his occupation. He sees something special and sacred about art, and he believes that he puts too much of himself into his best pieces of art. It seems that he has the much more positive view of art. Lord Henry seems to enjoy art, but I do not think that he interprets it as Basil or Dorian. Lord Henry does not seem to think there is anything important about art or its beauty and potential. Instead he sees the beauty and potential in people and judges them intensely.

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  8. Art serves as the basis of the novel. The picture of Dorian Gray illustrates to Dorian how beautiful he is and it changes the way he acts (along with influences from Lord Henry). The art Sibyl portrays also changes Dorian. Dorian, I believe, is rather fond of art. I also think Lord Henry has some sort of fascination with art considering he commented on Sibyl's lack of knowledge of acting. He must have an interest in it and knowledge of it to make a proclamation about someone else's acting skills. It seems obvious to me that art is a big part of Basil's life and he has a rather warm attitude toward it.

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  9. I think that art is one of the main motifs mentioned in this novel. I think it represents that art is a powerful thing that though is created by an artist, it can be changed by the eye of the beholder. Basil expresses beauty through art. He shows inner and outer beauty through his pieces and at first want to keep the beauty to himself. He seems sincere. Lord Henry sees art as amusement and pleasing to the eye. Dorian on the other hand sees art as a canvas as himself. He sees the art as a mirror to his sins and is heavily impacted by it. He is impacted easily by plays (a form of art) for that is how he falls in love and out of love with Sybil Vane. Dorian so far is most impacted by art and i am sure we are just seeing the beginning of it.

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  10. The role of art in this book is a huge part of the book. You see Dorian fall in love with Sibyl because of how great her acting is and when she acts bad one night he doesn't love her anymore. You see Dorian is obsessed with how he looks and how the painting of him is will never age and how he will age and that drives him crazy. I think that Basil and Dorian love art, you see that Basil is an artist himself and loves what he does and you see Dorian and his obsession of art such as Sibyl and the painting. I think that Lord Henry looks down on art such as when they were going to the theater and he expected Sibyl to act poorly before they arrived.

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  11. Art represents a prominent role in The Picture of Dorian Gray. Art can be viewed from three main perspectives. Such as the characters in the story. Dorian is the picture, Basil is the creator, and Lord Henry represents the birds eye point of view because he has no personal knowledge of the portrtait like Dorian and Basil do but he does have the ability to analyze it with no emotional attachments.

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  12. Art can be looked at in many different ways from many different view points. Basil is the artist he puts forth lots of emotion and meaning in his art work. Dorian Gray enjoys the beauty of art, but doesn’t have much depth. Lord Henry doesn’t seem to have much understanding or appreciation for art; he looks at it from the most logical stand point that what you see is what you get.

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  13. Basil is the artist. He has the ideas and creativity to put the thoughts in his brain on a piece of canvas, or any kind of material. He takes his imagination and creates something that challenges everyone else's imagination. Dorian is simply the subject and the spectator. He sees the different aspects of any kind of art piece, but somehow doesn't see the true depth that the artist sees. He sees the beauty and the ugliness of the art piece. Dorian, therefore, is a two-dimensional character of art when Basil is in the third dimension, possibly close to the fourth dimension (if you feel like that is possible). Lord Henry is simply nothing more than a logic driven outsider. He has no appreciation for art, nor does he have a true creative opinion. Lord Henry is the spectator of the spectator. Art plays a big role in the story so far. It plays as the creative piece in all of the characters' lives.

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  14. In The Picture of Dorian Gray, art plays a much larger role than any other sort of entity. From my point of view, I see that Basil relies on art to be more of something that is beautiful, and he enjoys it for the sort of perfection that it contains. He looks at his artwork and sees the amazing person that is Dorian. While, Lord Henry looks to art as something that changed depending on who is viewing it, yet he does not put a large value on art, at least from what I have seen so far in the text. Dorian however has a distinct view on art, as he looks at it for reflection of himself as he does not like seeing it “change” when his life’s direction takes a turn. It affects him as he does not like to see bad things within himself. Therefore, while all of the different characters have different views on art, all of them seem to express their opinion and the reliance on art in this book, makes art a central topic within the text.

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  15. Wilde believed that while creating art is a wonderful talent, art itself means nothing. But once again I call into question the legitimacy of his claim. Just as when he stated that all three characters (Basil, Henry, and Dorian) each represented him in a different way, I believe that Wilde did not truly believe that art has no point. From the chapters we have read so far, and the fact that the picture of Dorian is constantly referred to as a mirror or something of the like, it would seem that art is truly a reflection of the soul. Now in most cases, art is the representation of the soul of the artist, not the subject. Look at how beautiful the painting was before Dorian's soul was placed in it. Basil created a master piece that even the cynical lord Henry admired, and looking at Basil it appears his soul is a mostly innocent and pure one. However, now that the painting represents the soul of Dorian, it is becoming dark and evil.

    Basil looks to art as his outlet, a way to release his thoughts in his own way. Perhaps this is what Wilde truly thought of art? Lord Henry looks at art as something nice to look at, but useless, much like how Wilde said he viewed art. And Dorian now views art as a reflection of the soul, and maybe that is what Wilde wanted art to be.

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  16. Art is a major part of the book, throughout several connections are made to art. I believe the art is used for dorian to show and express his inner personality, and gives him a sence that he is not perfect. Although he is afraid to see he is not truly beautiful on the inside, he still expresses it through art.

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  17. Art is a major part of the book, throughout several connections are made to art. I believe the art is used for dorian to show and express his inner personality, and gives him a sence that he is not perfect. Although he is afraid to see he is not truly beautiful on the inside, he still expresses it through art.

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  18. Art plays a huge role in this play, not only because it has to do with the name of the book, but also because so much revolves around it. Art I believe is the reflection of the individual, weather it is the painter, or the person the picture is painted of, or the observer. Basil is the painter and I think that it reflects his fascination with outer beauty and how he struggles to look past the outer layers of people. This is also a trait that Wilde wants to convey about Victorian society. Dorian is the person that the picture is of, he gets to see his sins shown on the painting as he commits them. He can stay young and have no guilt about his actions. Lord Henry is the observer and he wants to change things about the "painting", but he really wants to change Dorian, to promote his own lifestyle.

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  19. Art is what The picture of Dorian Grey is centered around. It depicts the consequences of many everyday decisions, and is viewed differently by each of the main characters in the book. Basil, being an artist, loves art and creates art that is fascinating and fun to him. Dorian,on the other hand does not seem to like art. As he notices the picture that Basil painted him change from the moral decisions that he makes he grows to detest art. Lord Henry doesn't view art as horrible or fun, more like a source of pleasure since Lord Henry is a hedonist. Lord Henry uses art as a conduit to appease his hedonistic nature.

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  20. The art in this book is very significant in the fact that it is the truth being told to the audience. Dorian Gray's portrait seems to reveal to him that his sins will slowly tear him apart because of subtly imperfections in the painting. Sibyl's acting shows that she does not live in a reality but instead devotes all of her passion into her plays and is therefore blinded by fantasy. Basil views art as a window into the creator's mind and personality. Lord Henry thinks that art is a reminder that the world can never reach the same level of perfection. Dorian Gray does not want anything to do with his portrait because he believes that it displays his own secrets for the world to see.

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