Sphinxes without secrets.

In 'The Picture of Dorian Gray', Henry Wotton described women as 'Sphinxes without secrets'. This describes the view of women in this society perfectly. They are meant to be mysterious and secretive, but in actual fact, there is nothing underneath this facade of mystery. Indeed, the book focuses on male relationships, and women are portrayed as shallow and holding no real value in society, described by Wotton as being the 'decorative sex'

This is highlighted by the fact that there are no lasting female relationships, while the male relationships in the novel are very, very strong, lasting the entirety of the book. The only two prominent female relationships in the novel are the one between Dorian and Sybil, and the marriage of Henry and his wife, who get divorced at some time during the course of the book.

The presentation of women themselves also highlights this fact. Sybil Vane, the most prominent female character in the novel, is portrayed as being rather childlike and shallow. This is shown when she is talking to her brother about he romance with Dorian, and she proclaims 'I shall love him for ever!'. The over dramatic exclamation emphasises her childlike nature, and illustrates how she dramatises her life. Indeed, she views Dorian as her 'Prince Charming', as though she is in one of the Shakespearean plays she performs. Another instance which highlights the novel's depiction of women is when Dorian meets Victoria Wotton, Lord Henry's wife. She is portrayed as rather foolish and romantic, with this being her only appearance in the novel, despite being married to one of the main characters.

eternal youth, infinite passion

The society portrayed in 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' place youth and beauty above all else, even the morals that the society are supposedly bound by. Even though Dorian is surrounded by rumours of sin and debauchery,  he is still accepted into upper class society as he looks innocent due to his youthful face. As Basil states, 'sin is a thing that writes itself across a man's face', the only difference with Dorian is that it is not his own face he is destroying, but the one in the painting. This idea allows Wilde to reveal the hypocritical nature of victorian society, as the society do not care what anyone does, so long as they appear to be upstanding members of society. All in all, 'every gentleman is interested in his good name'; the only thing that matters is reputation.

Youth and beauty are also portrayed as the most important part of society by Henry Wotton, highlighted when he says 'youth is the one thing worth having', and 'beauty is a form of genius'. Wotton uses his opinions on youth to influence Dorian into a life of hedonism, by almost scaring him with the prospect of a life without beauty and youth, a life without meaning, 'when your youth goes, your beauty will go with it, and thn you will suddenly discover that there are no triumphs left for you'.

The stakes for beauty are shown to be extremely high, indeed Dorian must pay the price of his soul for eternal youth, however his demise suggests that too much importance was placed on his youth and beauty.    

all art is quite useless, or is it?

'All art is quite useless'. These words, written by Wilde in the preface of the novel portray what at first seems to be the message of 'The Picture of Dorian Gray'. Wilde was a major proponent of the movement known as aestheticism, and its main ideal was that art is intended simply to be beautiful and to be admired, not to have any deeper meaning or cause social enlightenment. It was also a backlash against the bourgeoise middle class of victorian britain, and against romanticism, which had dominated the first half of the 19th Century.

The way in which the novel is written seems to highlight this message, with long descriptive passages, full of beautiful images, serving no purpose other than to set the scene. Indeed, the first sentence of the book,  'The studio was filled with the rich odour of roses, and when the light summer wind stirred amidst the trees of the garden, there came through the open door the heavy scent of the lilac, or the more delicate perfume of the pink-flowering thorn.' highlights to the reader the importance of beauty and aesthetics in this society. This theme is also highlighted throughout the novel, with Henry Wotton constantly reiterating this philosophy, saying things such as 'beauty, real beauty, ends where an intellectual expression begins'. Wotton highlights the aesthetic philosophy present in late 19th century victorian society, as he constantly spouts controversial 'theories' which are simply designed to shock the upper middle class company he keeps.

However, despite Wilde's advocacy of the aesthetic movement, the book does seem to portray a message opposite to that of aestheticism. The two main symbols for this are the book which influences Dorian into hedonism, and the painting itself. The book acts against the aesthetic movement, as it influences and corrupts Dorian, sending him into a life of hedonism and sin, while aesthetics believe that art should have no moral impact on a person. Wilde himself stated both that 'there is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book' and that Dorian Gray was 'poisoned by a book', two conflicting ideas. The painting is a symbol against aestheticism, as Basil states that art must be 'unconscious, ideal, and remote', yet his painting of Dorian is anything but that. In fact the painting serves as a moral compass for Dorian, acting as a mirror to his soul so that he can see clearly the sin and corruption he is inflicting upon himself. It also almost acts as a prophecy, with its decline signaling the demise of Dorian himself. Henry Wotton also emphasises the deeper meaning of art portrayed in the novel, as in the first half of the book, his words seemimportant and majestic, with his ideals going against the main victorian values, yet by the end of the book, his grand theories no longer seem so grand, instead they seem rather silly and shallow.

While many of the characters in 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' do advocate an aesthetic approach to art, and life, the deeper meaning of the book is one quite opposite to the ideals of aestheticism, almost coming across as a cautionary tale.

A tragedy

In the chapter named, 'A tragedy' Gandhi describes how he was once strayed from the path of vegetarianism by a friend. The significance of this event is easily shown through the title, as it implies that he felt this detour was a terrible mistake, and one of huge importance. Gandhi further shows the tragedy of this event in the sentence 'I was beaten.' as the battle like language used here suggests that he was forced into straying from vegetarianism, and he knew that he really didn't want to do it, he was simply swayed by others. This is further emphasised by the use of the short, emphatic sentence.

'Every time I dropped off to sleep it would seem as though a live goat was bleating inside me, and i would jump up full of remorse'

This shows how much Gandhi regretted his behavior after he ate meat for the first time,  and is particularly emphasised by the simile of the goat. It also suggests that although he believed (at that time) it was right to eat meat, he did not believe it was morally correct, and it suggests that he did not enjoy his meals of meat for the year they lasted. 

In the congress

'No one had troubled to understand the resolution, everyone was in a hurry to go and, because Gokhale had seen the resolution, it was not thought necessary for the rest to see it or understand it!'

In this chapter, Gandhi discusses the procedures of the congress of India, focusing in particular on the passing of his resolution concerning Indians who had settled in South Africa. This quote illustrates how none of the delegates really cared much about the resolutions they were voting on, and so simply voted them all through. This is emphasised by the rule of three used, and the tone suggests that Gandhi was not happy with the way in which congress was run, and wanted things to change. This quote contrasts greatly with another from later in the chapter:

'As soon as it was time for my resolution, Mr. Wacha called out my name. I stood up. My head was reeling.'

This quote emphasises the importance of this resolution to Gandhi, and this importance contrasts greatly with the lack of interest or caring from the congress as shown earlier. Gandhi conveys his commitment and passion for his cause in this quote, and this is further emphasised through the use of short, emphatic sentences which really show how important this was to him.

Colour Bar

'Fate has purposely made her blind, in order that she may not judge a person from his exterior but from his intrinsic worth. But the Law Society of Natal set out to persuade the Supreme court to act in contravention of this principle and to belie its symbol'

In this quote, Gandhi shows how the prejudice and racism in South Africa made it extremely difficult for him to become a member of the Law Society in Natal. By using the metaphor of the blind woman holding the scales, the symbol of a court of justice, he emphasises how this prejudice is not fair, and how it goes against the fundamental beliefs of the justice system. The juxtaposition between the description of the symbol of a court of justice and the institutionalised racism in the Natal court of justice makes the unfairness of the situation even more apparent to the reader. Racism is a recurring theme throughout Gandhi's time in South Africa, and further on in this chapter he shows the difficulties he had to go to, just to be accepted in the courts of justice in Natal, as he had to go through a much more rigorous application process than a european barrister would have had to.

'Natal owed its growth to European enterprise, and therefore it was necessary that the European element should predominate in the bar' 

This shows why prejudice was so apparent in the courts of justice, as without the Europeans, the people of Natal would not have any enterprise or the economy it did, and so they feel that the Europeans were owed the majority of seats in the bar, and by letting in an Indian man, the people of Natal were worried that it would upset the Europeans and they would leave, taking their trade and enterprise with them. They were also worried that if they let Gandhi be admitted, gradually more and more non Europeans would start joining, and then the Europeans would be outnumbered, and not happy. By using forceful words such as 'owed' and 'necessary' it shows how important it was to the people of Natal that Europeans dominated the bar, and very few, if not none, Indians or other non Europeans were admitted.  

       

Literature is everywhere.

One idea i found particularly interesting in chapter two of 'The Educated Imagination' was the idea that literature is found in every human society, even if it hasn't been separated from other aspects of human life. This almost accidental literature is found particularly in religion, where stories are told about the gods and their heroic actions, creating myths and legends. These myths are then refined and edited until they are no longer one singular story about a god, but a whole host of fictional stories, based upon this original myth. This idea is particularly emphasised in the phrase 'but we can see literary expression taking shape in these things, and forming an imaginary framework, so to speak, that contains the literature descending from it.' This emphasises how literature evolved from everyday occurrences and practices, gradually becoming more and more refined. The metaphor of the 'imaginary framework' emphasises the way literature grew from these other aspects of life.

Another way literature was found in many aspects of human life was through the use of literature for a practical purpose, such as the need for a funeral lament or wedding song. This is shown in the phrase 'Poems used for certain occasions, war-songs, work-songs, funeral laments, lullabies, become traditional literary forms'. The use of asyndeton in this phrase emphasises the fact that literature came from almost anywhere, and was not confined to one aspect of life.

Literature never evolves.

“Literature doesn’t evolve or improve or progress.”

This quote suggests that Frye believed that Literature, unlike science, is already at the best it can be and although other works may be written that are equally as good, or in a different style or genre, than classic literature, it will never be better than those classics. This is particularly emphasised through the fact that while many students still study Shakespeare and Ovid, science that was developed at the same time as both writers is very basic by today's standards, and sometimes wrong. I do agree with this view, as i believe that classic novels will never become out of date or irrelevant to our society, and that although many new novels and literature is written, nothing really new is ever created; it is just the same basic ideas being rewritten in different ways. The rule of three emphasises Frye's point, and the anaphora of 'or' adds further emphasis to the fact that literature can never be improved upon. McCullough's speech, 'the love of learning' has some similarities to Frye's ideas as they both discuss how people view literature and it's impact on society.