Concetti Chiave
- Dorian Gray adopts a hedonistic lifestyle, focusing on beauty and sensory pleasure, influenced by Lord Henry Wotton's teachings.
- Dorian leads a double life, maintaining eternal beauty while his portrait bears the consequences of his moral decay.
- His duplicity is evident as he contrasts his youthful appearance with the grotesque image on his portrait.
- Dorian's social gatherings are lavish, featuring exotic and elegant elements, reflecting his refined taste.
- He is admired by young men for his cultured demeanor, epitomizing the ideal gentleman in their eyes.
What is Dorian's hedonistic lifestyle?
In chapter 11 the protagonist’s life as a dandy is described. Dorian's lifestyle is based on the cult of beauty. As a matter of fact, Dorian Gray has been taught the principles of Hedonism by Lord Henry Wotton and devotes himself to the search for pleasure and new experiences to satisfy the five senses. In Dorian's opinion, life is the greatest ofthe arts. However, his lifestyle disregards moral conventions and even human feelings.
Dorian's double life
The reader is also informed about Dorian Gray’s double life: on the one hand, his beauty seems to be everlasting; on the other hand, the marks of age and moral corruption appears on his portrait, which gets more and more horrid. When he return home from one of his long and mysterious absences, he goes upstairs to the locked room in which he keeps his picture; he stands in front of it with a mirror, looking now at the horrible face on the canvas, and now at the beautiful young face in the mirror, and laughs.
Dorian's social gatherings
Dorian loves to be surrounded by exotic and elegant things. As a matter of fact, one or twice in the winter Dorian’s beautiful house hosts dinner and parties and he chooses the best music, food and decorations. A lot of his guests, especially the youngest men, think that Dorian embodies the perfect gentleman, as he has all that is required to be one: culture and manners.
Domande da interrogazione
- What principles guide Dorian Gray's lifestyle?
- What characterizes Dorian Gray's social gatherings?
Dorian Gray's lifestyle is guided by the principles of Hedonism, taught to him by Lord Henry Wotton. He focuses on the pursuit of pleasure and new sensory experiences, viewing life as the greatest art, while disregarding moral conventions and human feelings.
Dorian Gray's social gatherings are characterized by their exotic and elegant nature. He hosts dinners and parties in his beautiful house, selecting the best music, food, and decorations, which leads many guests, especially young men, to view him as the epitome of a perfect gentleman.
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