In his 1891 novel, "The Picture of Dorian Gray," Wilde uses setting and place to explore not only the character and moral conscience of his protagonist, but also the divisions inherent in Victorian society as it contrasts the wealthy homes of Mayfair with the crowded poverty of London's East End. The differences between places so geographically close reflect the duality of Dorian Gray's identity and at the same time raise questions about the hypocrisy of aristocratic life in the late nineteenth century. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essayLondon, the setting of most of the novel, is everywhere personified as something monstrous. Although more explicit in descriptions of the East End, where "this gray and monstrous London of ours" spreads "like the black web of a tentacled spider", it is also present in scenes apparently devoid of threat, its "dark roar" heard also from Basil Hallward's study, a place that seems to symbolize all innocence. Perhaps this was intended to show how inescapable the nature of the city is. Victorian society was very concerned about ever-growing London and the looming threat that an expanding working class posed to the refined lifestyle enjoyed by the elite aristocracy, and a London that seemed aware and omnipresent may have been a presentation of this fear. Gothic Tradition: An Idea of ​​Sentient Place The idea of ​​sentient place is where old houses or castles often seem to display enough personality or awareness to cause harm. However, "The Picture of Dorian Gray" breaks convention by being set not in a remote place but in the heart of a vast metropolis. This may be Wilde's response to the changing fears of his audience, a world no longer afraid of isolation but of others. Indeed, more rural and secluded places – such as Dorian's Selby Royal and the surrounding countryside – are presented as routes of escape, even redemption. It is there that James Vane is killed, thus freeing Dorian from the threat of his revenge. It is in a small orchard that Dorian decides that he will "change himself" and subsequently begins his "reform". Thus the novel inverts traditional Gothic concepts of danger and security, bringing fear closer to the readers' reality. The location is also used throughout the novel to reflect Dorian's fall from grace. It is encountered for the first time, “intact”, in the prelapsarian enclosure of Basil Hallward's study and garden. However, as his sin increases, the novel follows him to Whitechapel and the docks, “the sordid shame” of the city. This descent into sin echoes the fall of Lucifer, or perhaps Belial. Following this interpretation, Basil's garden is a representation of paradise. This is evidenced by the abundance of beauty present. The description is sensorial, focusing above all on the sense of smell with discussions of "delicate scent", "rich smell" and "intense perfume". This creates an almost overwhelming sweetness that is later reflected in the "strong smell of opium" that fills the air of a Whitechapel den. Although the scent of opium is known to be both sweet and floral, it lacks the connotations of purity associated with real flowers and instead suggests corruption. This may suggest that Dorian is unsuccessfully attempting to replicate the paradisiacal nature of his youth that has since eluded him. The two locations, however, are contrasting in their colors. Basil's garden is depicted in light, bright colors, from plants with "pink flowers" to "honey-colored" flowers to the "blue thread" of a dragonfly. Whitechapel, on the other hand, isfilled with “grey-flannel fog” broken by “fan-shaped orange tongues of flame.” These create a more hellish appearance, of fire and darkness rather than growth and light. One could consider this to be a place of death, where Basil's garden is a place of life. The people themselves also demonstrate the heaven/hell division of places. The key figure of the opening Eden is, in fact, Dorian himself, the very image of classical beauty with its “passionate purity”. In contrast, the inhabitants of the East End are often dehumanised in their presentation, described as “monstrous puppets”. This nightmarish vision lends unreality to the East End and its people, their “fantastic shadows” making it seem more like an underworld in the mythological sense than in terms of class and law. This development from the pure and perfect setting of the novel's opening to the dark and hellish end demonstrates to the reader the change in Dorian's situation, his metaphorical shift from angelic to demonic. West London allows Dorian to live his double life, changing identities as he moves from one to the other. This could be seen as a demonstration of the hypocrisy of high society who criticize the crude and criminal nature of those who live in the poorest neighborhoods but make the most of the freedoms these offer themselves. Perhaps most prominently, it illustrates the division between the classes, with people of the lower classes seen as steeped in sin and barely human while the aristocracy lives in a more refined atmosphere. The proximity of these two worlds, separated geographically by only a few miles, emphasizes this contrast and suggests a denial on the part of the nobility of the world outside their window. Their proximity in the text works similarly. For example, Chapter XVI sees Dorian visit an opium den near the docks while the chapters both before and after depict the houses and drawing rooms of Mayfair. This could be seen to illustrate the duality of society, providing a direct comparison and showing how easily Dorian shifts from one to the other. Their very closeness underlines the fear felt by many Victorian aristocrats that the working class was a threat looming over them, a growing danger to their way of life. Furthermore, it is only in the East End that people see Dorian for what he is: a corrupt man. Although there are “whispered scandals” and “strange rumors” about him in West End clubs, these words suggest they are unfounded, mere speculation. Indeed, few seemed capable of believing these stories at all since there was “something in the purity of his face that reproached them.” This purity does not seem to affect the people of the East End, who openly insult it, declaring it "the devil's bargain". Perhaps then it might be said that people from the lowest and darkest parts of London see the truth more clearly; they are closer to reality. You can still see it in the way they are almost always portrayed on the outside, people of the streets rather than of interior rooms. They are experiencing the world instead of shutting it out. In the West End, however, the novel almost always focuses on interiors, drawing rooms, drawing rooms and ballrooms. A layer of etiquette and politeness hangs over everything. It could then be said that people from the upper classes are detached from reality while those from the lower classes or not. Likewise, Dorian's beauty and charm that hide his corruption parallel the beauty and charm of the homes of the aristocracy, perhaps a subtle commentary on the darker secrets hidden by the outward appearances of Victorian society. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper now from our expert writers. Get an essay.