“Oscar Wilde was born on 16 October 1854 in Dublin, Ireland”. He holds a degree from Oxford University. “While at Oxford he was fascinated by the aesthetic theories of John Ruskin and Walter Pater… Emphasizing aesthetics over “utility” or social and moral usefulness…”. The portrait of Dorian Gray, being one of his greatest achievements, was believed to be an expression of his self and beliefs. "Hardly any other writer has been the subject of so many biographies, novels, films and plays." Wilde identified as homosexual and wrote novels and plays that showed his true identity, which was not acceptable in his time. “In the Victorian period, men had to hide their homosexuality, but Wilde found a way to flaunt his feelings.” The Picture of Dorian Gray was one of his books that showed homosexual behavior and one of the two reasons he was sentenced to prison for "lewd acts". Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Beauty can be described in two terms: internal or external. While external beauty is always appreciated and based on the features of the face and body, internal beauty is the most truthful as it shows the pure soul of an individual. In the novel, beauty is defined primarily by physical appearance and believed to be the greatest gift. The idealization of beauty can consume one's identity and can lead to self-destruction. Once Dorian Gray embraced his own beauty, he transformed into another individual who was not himself. At the beginning of the book, Dorian did not realize his beauty and impact, after a comment from Lord Henry he became obsessed with preserving his youth. Lord Henry said: “No, you don't feel it now. One day, when you are old and wrinkled and ugly… you will feel it, you will feel it terribly” (Wilde 28). The self-destruction in the book can be seen at the end where he loses the most important thing of all, his soul. In Oscar Wilde's novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Wilde presents his personal philosophy, hints at narcissism, and reinforces the ongoing belief that youth and looks are everything. Oscar Wilde believed in the philosophy of aestheticism. Aestheticism emphasizes beauty, art and moral thought which is reflected in his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray by combining the aspects together. “It is Lord Henry who persuades young Dorian Gray to live for beauty and pleasure and to condemn all else is dehumanizing vulgarity” (Allen 25). His aestheticism was the main theme of the entire novel. Readers constantly see a fluctuation not only of youthful verses, but also of good verses and bad morals. As Dorian showed an increase in youth, this resulted in an increase in his desire to do evil deeds which reflects the result of his painting. Oscar Wilde had many different perspectives when it came to idealism and realism. “Wilde's view on realism can perhaps best be described as contradictory” (Waldrop). "Nevertheless, Wilde's opinion of realism became increasingly negative, even Pater, in the infamous review of his pupil's novel, reproached Wilde for "a whole certain antipathy to clichés...{which} leads him to protest emphatically against so-called 'realism'. ' in art”. Although it is said that a certain philosophy was used in his infamous novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, there are some contradictions when it comes to the novel. “Although aesthetics believed that art existed for its own sake, the novel can be interpreted to contradict that view… Therefore, thepainting, the true work of art, is not simply an object of beauty, but is also a direct reflection and manifestation of the soul of Dorian Gray.” The portrait in the novel was supposed to only represent her external beauty but it contradicted itself by showing her internal beauty. Portraits should not show flaws, thoughts and actions. Not only did his portrait age, but it ultimately reflected his soul which was tainted. When Dorian decides to look at the portrait for the last time, he hoped for a change in appearance but realized that it was worse than before. “A cry of pain and indignation rose from him. He saw no change, except that there was a cunning look in the eyes, and in the mouth the curved wrinkle of the hypocrite. However, it was repugnant...". Narcissism is a characteristic that is used in most cases to describe a person who is self-centered, takes charge of any situation, or perhaps blames others instead of taking responsibility for his or her own actions. Hence, the term best used to describe the character Dorian Gray. Once Dorian Gray speaks to Lord Henry, he realizes that retaining his youth and beauty was important: Then came Lord Henry Wotton with his strange panegyric about youth, his dire warning about its brevity. It had moved him at the time, and now, as he stared into the shadow of his own beauty, the full reality of the description dawned on him. Yes, there would be a day when his face would be wrinkled and withered, his eyes dim and colorless, the grace of his figure broken and deformed. The scarlet would disappear from her lips and the gold from her hair. The life that would form his soul would ruin his body. It would become terrible, horrible and crude. Dorian Gray embraces his beauty for the first time and understands that Lord Henry has tried to make him aware that this beautiful young face he has will over time turn into an unattractive old face. Dorian Gray begins to show hints of narcissism early in the novel. Sybil Vane was a woman he met and fell in love with in the novel. Sybil Vane was an actress and starred in the play Romeo and Juliet. Dorian Gray boasted to Lord Henry and Basil Hallward about her performances and wished them to come and see her. Lord Henry was not moved by Sybil Vane's acting. As a result, Dorian Gray was furious with how she performed that night, and he went to her and expressed his anger. “When he entered she looked at him and an expression of infinite joy pervaded her. "How badly I have behaved this evening, Dorian!" cry. “Horribly!” he replied, looking at her in amazement: “horribly! It was terrible. Are you sick? You have no idea what it was. You have no idea what I suffered. (Wilde 76). Dorian Gray felt that she was a representation of him, he bragged to his friends about her great acting and she performs poorly, which makes Dorian Gray look bad. Dorian's treatment towards Basil Hallward was the same as Sybil where he becomes inconsiderate towards their character. After Basil Howard was shown his beautiful portrait, which he had painted years ago, it has now become hideous and Dorian Gray blames Basil Hallward for the result. “Dorian Gray looked at the picture, and suddenly an uncontrollable feeling of hatred for Basil Howard came over him, as if it had been suggested to him by the image on the canvas, whispered in his ear by those sneering lips” (Wilde 134) . Dorian Gray did not take responsibility for the events he brought upon himself, and like most narcissists, they blame others and ultimately kill Basil Hallward. Dorian Gray embraced his beauty and never wanted to let his youth beso in explaining his story to Basil. he reveals that he made a "prayer" with which in other words he entrusts his soul to the devil. “One day you introduced me to a friend of yours, who explained to me the wonder of youth, and you finished a portrait of me that revealed to me the wonder of beauty. In a moment of madness, which even now I don't know whether I regret or not, I made a wish – perhaps one might say a prayer…” (Wilde 132). By making this prayer he did not realize that the path would lead him to self-destruction. Dorian Gray sees the portrait alter before his eyes and sees the painting as his soul and realizes that his soul was ugly. Was it really true that you could ever change? He felt a wild longing for the spotless purity of his childhood—his pink-white childhood, as Lord Henry once called it. He knew that he had darkened himself, that he had filled his mind with corruption, and that he had given horror to his imagination; that he had been an evil influence on others and had taken terrible joy in being so; and that of the lives that had intersected his, had been the most beautiful and full of promises that he had brought to shame. But was it all irreparable? Was there no hope for him? Dorian Gray knew he had to destroy the portrait. He wanted to erase what had become and erase the past. Then he decided to stab the image that indicated to free his soul: “It will kill the past and without its horrible warnings he would be at peace. He grabbed the object and pierced the picture with it” (Wilde 188). After stabbing the photo, he was killing himself too. As a result of the stabbing, the painting appeared to become as Basil Howard had painted it years ago and Dorian Gray's body resembled the horrific painting before he stabbed him. “When they entered the house they found hanging on the wall a splendid portrait of their master as they had last seen him in all the wonder of his exquisite youth and beauty. Lying on the floor was a dead man... He was wizened, wrinkled and with a repulsive face...” Maintaining youth and beauty is still an important factor today. Every woman now, even men, want to look as perfect as possible. Plastic surgery, Botox, liposuction are what individuals like celebrities prepare themselves for to maintain their body, face and youthful appearance. Today's society's opinion has a great influence on what beauty should be. The obsession with beauty has become an all-time high thing. People everywhere are taking selfies using filters on instant chat to enhance their appearance. Women, instead of simply making sure their clothes are clean and not wrinkled and walking away from the mirror, have to spend hours in the mirror making sure their appearance is in perfect order. Like males, a male can change outfits five times until the right outfit looks right. There are many disorders linked to the obsession with beauty. One of the most common is body dysmorphic disorder, in which the individual sees defects in their body that only they can detect. Little girls/boys are introduced to the world of teenagers when appearance seems to start to matter. Especially for teenage girls, this is the time when they get into hair, nail polish, makeup and find their place in the world. While beauty is defined in many different ways by different individuals, it is obvious on television what is considered beauty. Tyra Bank's show Next Top Model is a show based on up-and-coming models. Mostly the whole woman is quite slim, tall and pretty. Actresses and actors cast in films have to look a certain way. If the acting world sees them as too ugly or not fit enough, or physical characteristics are, 1906