ipl-logo

Duality In Victorian Literature

2011 Words9 Pages

In Victorian literature the idea of duality and the double present as a theme which is common. This ever present theme within literature from the fin de siecle of the Victorian Era allow readers of the text to be able to gain an insight into Victorian culture and the socialial ideals of the period. In using Stange Case Of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson and also The Picture Of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde allows the reader to gain an insight into the previlence of this theme, dispite themes within these novels being rejected by soicitey at the time. I will write about both of these works with the aim to analyise, compare and contrast the depiction of the double within the Picture of Dorian Gray and The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll …show more content…

Applying this definition to the duality presented within The Picture of Dorian and Jykell and Hyde show the idea of the duality of human nature and phycology and that humans always have two coflicting personalities which are interlinked and interrelated. The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Stange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde demonstrate the inportance of literature as as soical and cultural tool used as a platfrom to discuss and cast light on issues, interests and desires which link to 'devenciy ' in the victorian era.
The Picture of Dorian Gray has many different elements which suggest the depiction of duality and the double within human nature, one of the most previllant examples of duality within this novel is the apparent stuggle between good and evil ' 'Your voice and the voice of Sibyl Vane are two things I shall never forgot...I don 't know which to follow ' ' …show more content…

' 'The love that he bore him -- for it was really love -- had nothing in it that was not noble and intellectual ' ' (10.7). This quotation direct from the novel denotes, the idealised romantic and sexual love which Bazil implicly holds for Dorian. ' 'It was such love as Michelangelo had known and Winckelmann.. ' ' (10.7). The use of the names of painters, Michelangelo and Winckelmann if sigificant because these painters had fervent admiration of the male form in an artistic sense and were also known homosexuals. We also see the mixing themes of homosexuallity and hetrosexuality; this is shown by the relationship between Sybil Vane and Dorian ' 'Dorian Gray leaped to his feet, with flushed cheeks and burning eyes. "Harry! Sibyl Vane is sacred!" (4.10). This is another aspect of duality within the novel, and this duality is bought out by the relationship that Dorian has with Basil and the heterosexual relationship he has with Sibyl. I believe that Wilde 's mixing homosexual and hetrosexual themes depicts a conflict within Dorian regarding his sexuality and it suggests that he may be bisexual and is torn between love with both male and female characters. This pecieved duality is due to the fact that in the Victorian Era, any type of homosexual or bisexual relationships were considered to be seen as excessive intimacy and these types of

Show More
Related

  • Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde Diction Essay

    592 Words  | 3 Pages

    Words can create unbelievable images in people's mind , it does not have to be a full sentence to blow up reader’s imagination. In Chapter 2 of the Noble “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” Diction takes place as an important form of expressing the author’s feelings. Mr. Robert Louis Stevenson (The author) apply the use of Diction with negative words; words like detestable, madness, disagreeably were implemented in this Chapter. Diction is also used to involve the reader by the use of a vocabulary that contain a specific mood, in this case the mood could be taken in different ways. Anxiety, angst or horror, depending on the reader’s mind are some feelings or thinkings that are involved in the story.

    Read More

  • Jekyll And Mr Hyde Duality Analysis

    1062 Words  | 5 Pages

    Duality is the ghost of man. It haunts man in unperceivable matters such as the right and left brain (Melina par 1). Although duality may not make complete monsters out of humans, as seen in Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein”, which is the first science fiction work (Stableford par 7), it can still summon unimaginable evils from within us all. This is especially seen in the Gothic and fictitious novella known as Robert Louis Stevenson’s “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.” This book contrasts his previous works such as Treasure Island, an adventure tale (Robert Louis Stevenson par 9); however, “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” is also an adventure tale in its own right.

    Read More

  • Jekyll And Mr Hyde Identity Analysis

    1545 Words  | 7 Pages

    In the gothic novel “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”, Robert Louis Stevenson depicts an idea of the supernatural realm. It is a tale of a man that is well-known among the townspeople as Dr. Henry Jekyll. The doctor transforms into a being completely opposite of himself. Being a man of science, he feels a compulsion to create a potion that will release his alter ego, Mr. Hyde, while protecting his true identity. Throughout the story, many examples of symbolism are presented to the reader.

    Read More

  • Duality In Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley's Frankenstein

    274 Words  | 2 Pages

    Along with the establishment of psychology as science, the literary double represents a completely new way of thinking. Consequently, evil is not presented as something external anymore, but rather perceived as something existing within every human. From the beginning of the 19th century to its end, the doppelgänger motif changed from being an outer manifestation of good and evil (e.g. Frankenstein and its creature) to an expression of duality within only one person (e.g. Dorian Gray in The Picture of Dorian Gray).

    Read More

  • Religion In Oscar Wilde's The Picture Of Dorian Gray

    756 Words  | 4 Pages

    The relationships focused on in the novel are very unstable and based on almost no connection other than money. Although there are many different views about different romances. One type of romance that has long been under fire are LGBTQ romances. While many live happily being who they are, others face the scrutiny of others throwing what they believe to be true onto them. That is the case with Oscar Wilde himself.

    Read More

  • Dorian Gray Theme Of Duality

    904 Words  | 4 Pages

    The theme of duality is explored through the ongoing push and pull that Dorian faces between the influence of Lord Henry and the influence of Basil. This is made apparent as Dorian ponders whose guidance he should listen to and thinks, "When I close my eyes, I hear them, and each of them says something different. I don 't know which to follow”. Wilde’s use of sensory imagery illustrates the physical toll that this mental conflict is taking on Dorian. The juxtaposition of visual and aural imagery shows Dorian’s internal battle, but the fact that Dorian cannot see them, only hear their voices displays the blind faith that Dorian has in two men who have completely contrasting moral ideals, displaying Dorian’s mercurial and conflicting morals.

    Read More

  • Art In Oscar Wilde's The Decay Of Lying

    1882 Words  | 8 Pages

    Dorian, the immoral aesthete; Basil, the moral artist; Lord Henry, the amoral critic. Dorian, who in the pursuit of physical sensations aestheticizes every aspect of his life and simultaneously thinks he can act with impunity, keeps neglecting “the visible emblem of conscience”, the portrait (Wilde 75). Following the primrose path, he finds, is self-destructive, not self-promoting. Basil and Lord Henry, both artists in their own right, paint and write Dorian. One of them has good intentions.

    Read More

  • Monster Culture In Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde

    1330 Words  | 6 Pages

    Mr. Hyde and Dr Jekyll majorly relates on the tale adapted from Robert Stevenson’s novella about a man who develops and takes a specific type of drug, which releases his evil side and turns him from a mild-mannered science man into a murderous maniac. As the plot goes on, his appearance changes along with the behavior. This paper analyzes this characters using Jeffrey Jerome’s concept as outlined in the “monster culture”. Discussion From this novel, it is apparent that Stevenson has demonstrated, through his characters, the concept of “Monster Culture” outlined by Cohen. For instance, Dr Jekyll a principle character in this novel is a man with two distinct personalities,

    Read More

  • The Picture Of Dorian Gray Moral Analysis

    873 Words  | 4 Pages

    Morality and The Picture of Dorian Gray “The pendulum of the mind oscillates between sense and nonsense, not between right and wrong.” C.G. Jung The Picture of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde, was first published in 1890, right in the middle of the Victorian Era, an era that was characterized by its conservatism. Ever since, and due to the content of the book, it has been condemned as immoral. Furthermore, on 1891, Wilde published a preface protecting his book from public punishment in which he said “There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written.

    Read More

  • Hedonism In Oscar Wilde's The Picture Of Dorian Gray

    1283 Words  | 6 Pages

    I worshipped you. I grew jealous of every one to whom you spoke. I wanted to have you all to myself. ” (Wilde 83) This quote demonstrates how Wilde vigorously accepts homosexuality by displaying Basil’s intense love for Dorian.

    Read More

  • The Picture Of Dorian Gray Literary Criticism

    750 Words  | 3 Pages

    Dorian Gray is a handsome, narcissistic young man enthralled by Lord Henry 's new enjoyment. He satisfies in every pleasure of moral and immoral life ultimately heads to death. Henry tells

    Read More

  • Aestheticism In The Picture Of Dorian Gray

    883 Words  | 4 Pages

    In Oscar Wilde’s, The Picture of Dorian Gray, the symbolism of the portrait illustrates the conflict between outer appearance and inner immorality. The central conflict presents the question; is the facade people portray representative of their true intentions? Furthermore, does their deceit ever receive punishment? In the last three decades of the 19th century people considered art as a substitute of older values.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Appearance In Dorian Gray

    937 Words  | 4 Pages

    The theme of appearance extends further in Dorian’s life. Dorian’s outer beauty allows him to get away with almost anything, due to the fact that people equals his outer beauty to him being a good person. In reality, Wilde makes it very clear that Dorian Gray is not a good person. The theme of appearance is illustrated through underlying criticism within Wilde’s use of motifs and symbols. A main motif used by Wilde is the painting done by Basil Hallward.

    Read More

  • Gothic Elements In Oscar Wilde's The Picture Of Dorian Gray

    1215 Words  | 5 Pages

    Lord Henry even gave particular offense for female of the species, he said to Dorian Gray that ‘women are a decorative sex, no woman is a genius and women represent the triumph of matter over mind’. But, Dorian ignores Lord Henry’s advice and even invited him and Basil Hallward to watch Sibyl Vane’s act. This part was my favorite because Dorian Gray did not care what other people thought and truly believed himself that Sibyl Vane was a women that suites him and he was confident in his decision. The way of Oscar Wilde wrote this book was interesting because of good plot and twisted ending that made me hard to predict which is great. I loved it when this story touched about beauty and consequences if we did wrong, that was when Dorian Gray tried to kill the portrait, reflected as his soul made him killed himself.

    Read More

  • Blood Sweat And Tears Logos

    740 Words  | 3 Pages

    Basil and Henry in a way are the moral options Dorian had available to choose from. To him both were friends that helped him and realized influenced him. Basically, Basil and Henry represent the opposite influences of good and evil as is trying to take over Dorian’s soul. Basil is Dorians “good” while Henry is obviously the “evil”. have already chosen a side.

    Read More

More about Duality In Victorian Literature

Open Document