Reading this week’s homework was less enjoyable than the story (which is expected) but it was also very interesting to gain Alley’s insight on Oscar Wilde’s story. I thought that Henry M. Alley did a good job thoroughly depicting Oscar Wilde’s story about Dorian Gray. Even the title was nicely and accurately thought out—I could definitely agree with Alley and say that Basil is the gay artist but more so the tragic hero in this story. I particularly liked this passage,
“…The Picture of Dorian Gray is an impassioned affirmation of homoerotic love and its
healthy potential, since such love comprises the interior theatre for a compelling tragic drama, giving
new meaning to Wilde's statement, "Hallward is what I think I am" (Wilde qtd. in Hart-Davis 116). In
The Wilde Century: Effeminacy, Oscar Wilde, and the Queer Moment, Alan Sinfield writes that
"Hallward comes closest to same-sex passion and is an artist, so we have one correlate in the Wildean
queer image" (101)….”
When Alley writes this, he gives a broad statement. He says that The Picture of Dorian Gray has a definite meaning/theme, which is homoerotic love as he calls it, and that makes it a good and interesting story for readers to become intrigued with because it is so filled with compelling drama that is almost scandalous. Now as for the meaning of “homoerotic love,” I found a few things. Wikipedia (I hope this is an alright source to use…) claims that:
“Homoeroticism refers to the erotic attraction between members of the same sex, either male-male (male homosexuality) or female-female (lesbianism),[2] most especially as it is depicted or manifested in the visual arts and literature. It can also be found in performative forms; from theatre to the theatricality of uniformed movements (e.g., the Wandervogel and Gemeinschaft der Eigenen). According to Oxford English Dictionary, it's "pertaining to or characterised by a tendency for erotic emotions to be centred on a person of the same sex; or pertaining to a homo-erotic person.” (Wikipedia) So that relates to the novel in the sense that Basil had become “infatuated,” so to speak, with Dorian and his striking good looks. He even mentions that Dorian is “necessary to him.” This “homoerotic” relationship can also be seen between Dorian and Lord Henry. Although there are other women introduced in the novel, like Sybil and Lord Henry’s wife Victoria, they do not keep the mind off of the possible “homosexual undertones” of the story. Both women appear to be very unimportant and are kind of dismissed as being naïve. It’s almost like Wilde wanted to provide an ulterior view of the story, so that people reading it can view it as having homoerotic circumstances in the story and also the view of misunderstanding of the bond between Lord Henry, Basil and Dorian. Although, if you knew about Oscar Wilde, you would probably lean towards the view of noticing the homoerotic undertones.
Other than that, I liked Alley’s interpretation of the meaning behind the story and I think he dissected it well, though it got kind of confusing to read at times I think I understood most of it.
Btw I hope this green font is easy to read, I thought I'd get in the spirit of St. Patrick's day, since this IS Irish Literature! :)
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The article was very difficult for me to interpret but your blog clarified some things for me a bit. I liked your analysis that said,
ReplyDelete“This “homoerotic” relationship can also be seen between Dorian and Lord Henry. Although there are other women introduced in the novel, like Sybil and Lord Henry’s wife Victoria, they do not keep the mind off of the possible “homosexual undertones” of the story. Both women appear to be very unimportant and are kind of dismissed as being naïve. It’s almost like Wilde wanted to provide an ulterior view of the story, so that people reading it can view it as having homoerotic circumstances in the story and also the view of misunderstanding of the bond between Lord Henry, Basil and Dorian. Although, if you knew about Oscar Wilde, you would probably lean towards the view of noticing the homoerotic undertones.”
I agree with what you are saying. The women in the novel don’t seem to play an active or important part in the novel at all. Did you agree with most of what Alley was saying? I definitely enjoyed parts of his perspective (the parts that I could understand) I feel like everyone is so concerned with analyzing Dorian’s character that Basil is often overlooked. I like how Alley analyzes Basil. Some parts of it were hard to connect to because he mentioned references that I have never heard of before. I like when he describes Basil as, “He cannon make up his mind as to whether he should experience life, being caught up as he is in the perfected world of art” (2). I agree that homoerotic love is a major theme in the novel. I’m just not sure what to make of the events that take place in the novel. I’m not sure what Basil’s character is suppose to represent, yes gay love, but it’s more than that. His murder must signify something. Often times people do not become known from something until after they are dead. Maybe Basil’s death signify’s that morality was killed. But then Dorian killed himself because morality is always going to previal. I don’t know. This article has my mind going in circles. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
I commiserate with you on your opening statement about this reading versus the novel, since it's also the view I have. I'm just not crazy about the criticisms! I do like how you've broken it down, however.
ReplyDeleteI like that you researched the term 'homoeroticism'. I feel like it's something that we might assume we understand, so we just breeze by it when we're reading, but having it clearly defined makes it that much easier to accurately connect the term to the story.
There was a comment you made that really got me thinking. When you said, "Although, if you knew about Oscar Wilde, you would probably lean towards the view of noticing the homoerotic undertones.", I wondered...if we DIDN'T know so much about Wilde's background, would we take a different perspective from the story? It's difficult for me to imagine what else might come to mind if someone were associating the relationships in a non-gay way. I can't imagine that there would be another explanation for the intense devotion Basil has for Dorian, but what if there were? I would be curious to hear a different take on all of this.
By the way- the green wasn't difficult for me to read, I appreciated the festiveness :)