The Picture of Dorian Gray

While watching The Picture of Dorian Gray, several scenes appealed to me. The scene I chose occurs towards the beginning of the movie. I was really pulled into the conversation between Gladys, Lord Henry, and Dorian Gray. Basil Hallward had just finished painting the picture of Dorian. Gladys signed her initial on the canvas. Lord Henry proceeds to ask Gladys if she prefers Dorian’s portrait, or Dorian. Lord Henry then tells Gladys that Dorian, as a person, will get old, but his picture will be young forever. Next, Gladys talks to Dorian and says, “He’ll stay the same ‘til I’m grown, right Dorian?” Dorian says he will, of course. At this point, Gladys leaves the room and Dorian mentions that he would give everything to be young forever and how convenient it would be if his portrait could take on his age while he remained the same. Lord Henry is then astonished that Dorian would dare say such a thing in the presence of one of the seventy-five gods of Egypt (the cat statue).

What really interested me about this particular scene in the movie was the conversation about growing old. At first, Dorian seemed to be comfortable in his own skin, but soon after Lord Henry suggested Dorian aging, Dorian’s confidence quickly disappeared. In the very beginning of this scene I saw the high expectations that Dorian and Gladys had of youth that were crushed by Lord Henry’s ranting. Throughout the movie Lord Henry was repeatedly bitter towards people. Lord Henry discourages youthful pondering between Gladys and Dorian. This reminds me of how the young are assumed to have an heir of innocence that the aged have lost. I was caught off guard to hear that Dorian would give everything to stay young. Everybody has to age eventually, even if they don’t do it gracefully. To give up everything in order to avoid the rite of passage (aging) seemed astounding to me. However, consequences are sure to follow every action whether they are good, or bad. The segment I have chosen is the beginning of Dorian’s horrific life. His “wish” gets granted and his picture takes the shape of his aging soul. The scene I chose got the ball rolling on the series of events. It would seem that my scene is the one that people look back to at the end of the movie in order to understand the overall message. Most people remember their youth as some of the best years of their life; you have to live all those years to accumulate valuable life experiences. I have to think that if Dorian had been able to see how his soul was changing on his person, instead of his portrait; he would have quickly changed his ways because in the beginning of the movie he appears to be good at heart. Overall, it seems that the moral of the story is to age yourself, not in a portrait, therefore allowing you to experience life to its fullest and learn from your mistakes.