Assignment: Week 12 Reading Reflection: Fear, Death, and Literary Analysis  

Introduction: I selected this assignment because it permitted me to focus on two large ideas, fear and death, and discuss them with the tools and techniques that I have learned as a literary critic. By writing this reflection, I have been able to analyze Wilde’s imagery and tones to discuss Dorian’s internal fear as it relates to the consequences of his actions. I believe that this assignment represents my progress as a literary critic because I have been able to interpret Wilde’s work and relate large concepts about morality and destruction.

Work:

The Weight of Fear and Death in Dorian Gray 

Fear influences Dorian Gray far before the subject of death arises, and Oscar Wilde captures that evolution of fear inside him. One fear that demonstrates Dorian’s disposition is his reaction to the first time he sees the portrait change. Wilde states, “It had altered already, and was bearing the signs of corruption” (Wilde, ch. 7). Dorian experiences an intense fear of exposure, if only to himself. The diction in this portion of the story, especially the word “corruption,” instills an immediate sense of panic and urgency, as the portrait represents a mirror of his own conscience. Wilde’s imagery then exacerbates that fear. The portrait is described with noted small, but alarming detail; it is almost alive, and holds judgement over Dorian. Through the vivid imagery, Wilde displays Dorian’s fear of aging as well as the fear of anyone knowing what is behind his beauty. The way the narrator highlights Dorian’s inner takeaway simulates fear. He was not afraid of age, he was afraid of the moral degradation that the portrait now defined for him. This moment explains the role fear plays as the mechanism that brings Dorian deeper into secrecy and denial.

Death takes on a similar significance later in the narrative. With Halward dead, Wilde illustrates, “The thing that had been Basil Hallward lay on the floor like a wax image” (Wilde, ch. 13). This indicates that death becomes more than just a physical cessation. It becomes a representation of moral annihilation, and Basil’s body is cold and still, as it is represented as a “wax image.” Wilde describes this imagery to indicate how Dorian’s choices lead to death. In describing Basil compared to a “wax image,” Wilde shows the staleness that Dorian evokes inside himself. The chilling tone of this moment arises from the neutral way the narrator describes death, as if Dorian is removing his attachment from circumstance altogether. The conflict in the following scene demonstrates the heavy price of trying to free himself from the moral implications of killing Basil. Dorian is captured even further in fear because he finds a more horrific portrait. Basil’s death is not a means of freedom, but it extends the trap Dorian is creating.

Together, these passages show how fear and death work together in the novel. Dorian’s fear leads him to hide from the truth, and each attempt to escape that fear brings him closer to death, both moral and physical. Wilde uses imagery, diction, and tone to show how fear can twist a person until death becomes the only possible ending.