Critical Notebook Entries for The Picture of Dorian Gray

General Guidelines

1) Each CN entry should be at least 150 words. Do not go over 300 words. Each entry should be typed.

2) You should read all of the assigned chapters that lead up to a log before attempting to answer any of the questions. Most questions—even the ones that pertain to specific passages—assume that you have the overview of all of the assigned chapters in your mind.

3) You should argue a main point in each CN entry. The questions will be broad. Feel free to narrow them into an arguable thesis.

4) You should make specific references to the novel in your CN entry. Be sure to document quotes and paraphrases with MLA-style parenthetical citations. A works cited page is not necessary for these entries.

5) I will collect your CN entries as they are due and give you feedback about your ideas. These CN entries can and should lead to your thesis for your literary analysis paper.

MWF Schedule, Sections 07 and 09 (TTH Classes, scroll down)

Prompts for CN #2, Preface – Chapter 3 (Choose one)

1) Based on Chapter 1, who is Dorian Gray? What does he represent for Basil Hallward? Is Dorian Gray more of a person or an idea to Basil? Why do you say that?

2) Why does Dorian Gray have the reaction that he does when he first sees Basil’s finished portrait of him in Chapter 2 (20-21)? What does the portrait represent for Dorian? Do you see a shift in his character from before he’s seen the painting to afterwards?

3) Re-read Lord Henry’s musings on his relationship with Dorian at the beginning and the end of Chapter 3 (29-30 and 46-48). How would you characterize Lord Henry’s relationship with Dorian? Why?

4) If you were forced to pick one character as the “good guy” and one as the “bad guy”, who would you choose, and why? If you don’t think anyone fits neatly into either category, why do you think that?

Prompts for CN #3, Chapters 4 – 7 (Choose one)

1) Why is Dorian Gray in love with Sibyl Vane? What do his reasons tell you about his character?

2) Why is Sibyl Vane in love with Dorian Gray? Is this a marriage that you think will succeed? Why or why not?

3) How do you interpret Dorian’s reaction to Sibyl’s lackluster performance? What do his reaction and response tell you about his character?

4) After Dorian sees how the picture has changed, he promises himself that he will “resist temptation from now on (75). Do you think he’ll be successful at that? Why or why not?

Prompts for CN #4, Chapters 8 – 10 (Choose one)

1) Re-read the conversation between Lord Henry and Dorian about Sibyl’s death on 82-85. Is Lord Henry responsible for Dorian’s moral transformation? Why or why not? How does Dorian’s reaction to the picture on 86-87 mark a change in his moral transformation?

2) Compare Dorian’s reaction to and thoughts about Basil at the end of Chapter 9 with his earlier opinions of Basil in Chapter 2. What has changed?

3) Why does Dorian decide to hide the picture away in Chapter 10? What kind of future behavior/lifestyle does this portend? What significance do you see in the location where Dorian decides to hide picture?

4) If you were forced to pick one character as the “good guy” and one as the “bad guy”, who would you choose, and why? If you don’t think anyone fits neatly into either category, why do you think that?

Prompts for CN #5, Chapters 11 – 14 (Choose one)

1) Why do you think Wilde summarizes so many years in Chapter 11? What do we learn about Dorian during this chapter? What does Dorian’s attitude toward experimentation seem to be? Give examples.

2) Why does Dorian decide to show the picture to Basil? Is it because he can’t handle the guilt? Because he’s proud of what he’s done? Because he blames Basil for what’s happened? Or for some other reason? Why do you say this?

3) In Chapter 2, Basil nearly destroyed the picture with a knife. Compare this scene with the use of a knife on 129-130. What parallels do you see between these scenes, and what do you make of those parallels?

4) On 130-131, Dorian thinks to himself that “the secret of the whole thing was not to realize the whole situation.” What do you think he means by “the secret of the whole thing”?

5) Does Dorian show any signs of guilt or repentance for his actions? If he really is living up to the ideals of New Hedonism, should he?

TTH Schedule, Section 17 (MWF Classes, scroll up)

Prompts for CN #2, Preface – Chapter 5 (Choose one)

1) Based on Chapter 1, who is Dorian Gray? What does he represent for Basil Hallward? Is Dorian Gray more of a person or an idea to Basil? Why do you say that?

2) Why does Dorian Gray have the reaction that he does when he first sees Basil’s finished portrait of him in Chapter 2 (20-21)? What does the portrait represent for Dorian? Do you see a shift in his character from before he’s seen the painting to afterwards?

3) Re-read Lord Henry’s musings on his relationship with Dorian at the beginning and the end of Chapter 3 (29-30 and 46-48). How would you characterize Lord Henry’s relationship with Dorian? Why?

4) If you were forced to pick one character as the “good guy” and one as the “bad guy”, who would you choose, and why? If you don’t think anyone fits neatly into either category, why do you think that?

5) Why is Dorian Gray in love with Sibyl Vane? What do his reasons tell you about his character? Why is Sibyl Vane in love with Dorian Gray? Is this a marriage that you think will succeed? Why or why not?

Prompts for CN #3, Chapters 6 – 12 (Choose one)

1) How do you interpret Dorian’s reaction to Sibyl’s lackluster performance? What do his reaction and response tell you about his character?

2) Re-read the conversation between Lord Henry and Dorian about Sibyl’s death on 82-85. Is Lord Henry responsible for Dorian’s moral transformation? Why or why not? How does Dorian’s reaction to the picture on 86-87 mark a change in his moral transformation?

3) Compare Dorian’s reaction to and thoughts about Basil at the end of Chapter 9 with his earlier opinions of Basil in Chapter 2. What has changed?

4) Why does Dorian decide to hide the picture away in Chapter 10? What kind of future behavior/lifestyle does this portend? What significance do you see in the location where Dorian decides to hide picture?

5) Why do you think Wilde summarizes so many years in Chapter 11? What do we learn about Dorian during this chapter? What does Dorian’s attitude toward experimentation seem to be? Give examples.

Prompts for CN #4, Chapters 13 – end (Choose one)

1) Why does Dorian decide to show the picture to Basil? Is it because he can’t handle the guilt? Because he’s proud of what he’s done? Because he blames Basil for what’s happened? Or for some other reason? Why do you say this?

2) In Chapter 2, Basil nearly destroyed the picture with a knife. Compare this scene with the use of a knife on 129-130. What parallels do you see between these scenes, and what do you make of those parallels?

3) Does Dorian show any signs of guilt or repentance for his actions? If he really is living up to the ideals of New Hedonism, should he feel guilt?

4) How do outsiders (who know nothing about what he’s done) view Dorian at Lady Narborough’s party? Do you think the narrator approves, disapproves, or is indifferent to their tendency to judge based on appearance? Why?

5) While on his way to the opium den, Dorian reflects, “Ugliness that had once been hateful to him because it made things real, became dear to him now for that very reason. Ugliness was the one reality” (152). Does Dorian seem happy with his life?

6) Read the narrator’s comments on sin on 156. Do you think the narrator approves, disapproves, or is indifferent to Dorian’s actions?

7) Re-read Lord Henry’s comments on the influence of books on 179. How does this relate to the conversation we had about the Preface on our first day of discussion?

8) Were you surprised by the ending? Why or why not? Do you think it’s a just ending? Now that you’ve read it, answer again Wilde’s claim that “there is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book” (xxiii).