Dorian Gray #4

            As Dorian Gray begins to succumb to corruption and cruelty, the portrait Basil painted of him reveals his true inner nature. After watching Sibyl’s abysmal performance with Basil and Harry, Dorian approaches her in the dressing room and declares that he no longer loves her. Dorian cruelly leaves his love weeping at his feet, even as she explains that the reason she can no longer act is because her love for Dorian surpasses the art she has created in the past. Back at home, Dorian notices that his portrait has “a touch of cruelty in the mouth” that had not been present in the past (Wilde 66). He immediately recalls his wish in Basil’s studio that the portrait would age while he remained young. Dorian, though still believing that he was in the right, begins to feel profound regret for the way he treated Sibyl. As he looks at the portrait, a “sense of infinite pity, not for himself, but for the painted image of himself, came over him” (67). Dorian loves his beauty more than anything, so the loss of beauty even in a picture of himself devastates him. He vows that the portrait will become his conscience, reminding him not to listen to Harry’s theories anymore. He decides that the portrait “would be a guide to him through life, would be to him what holiness is to some, and conscience is to others, and the fear of God to us all” (70). Dorian recognizes that Harry’s influence is bad for him. As he contemplates his morality, Dorian decides to make amends to Sibyl and try to repair their relationship. The portrait has the potential to positively influence Dorian and keep him on the right track. Unfortunately, Harry subsequently arrives and tells him that Sibyl has committed suicide. Dorian can no longer repair the damage, so he decides to listen to Harry and pretend that she was merely a figure in a work of art, just acting out a story. The portrait will no longer be his conscience but would “bear the burden of his shame” (77). He accepts that his soul, and the portrait, will continue to be corrupted, but he is complacent because his beauty will remain intact. Perhaps he could have turned his life around, but since Sibyl has died he has no reason to. The portrait will continue to deteriorate and his soul will as well. Already he is hiding the portrait from the world, and hopefully he does not hide it from himself as well.