Symbolism In The Picture Of Dorian Gray

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In the early 18th century a new genre of fiction prose, named "Gothic Novel" was introduced. The term ”Gothic” used to refer to the German tribe of the Goths, and later on signified ”Germanic”, then ”medieval”. The Gothic novel spread over the 19th century and had the popular theme of haunted places such as castles, crypts, gloomy mansions and convents; supernatural elements having the role to intensify the atmosphere. The characteristic motifs of the gothic genre were the strange places, the supernatural, magic objects, monsters, demons, science used for bad purposes. And many of them appears also in "The Picture of Dorian Gray" The protagonist is both good and bad, both handsome and ungly by his character and the picture, his own portrait, represents Dorian 's inner soul. The portrait, the main symbol of the novel, carry all the marks of Gray 's degeneration, who, is exploring all posible vices and desires, without to notice his moral decay. At first he kept the portrait in public, loving to see it, but as it began to change, he hides it in a locked room, so that no one can see it. As years pass the picture ages like a real person would age, but it not only grows older, but uglier because of all his actions. The picture is the mirror of Dorian 's soul, as he commits terrible actions the picture becomes uglier. On one hand, there is Dorians outward appearence which doesn’t change at all for eighteen years, on the other hand there is Basil’s marvellous painting, which

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