Connected symbolism in the photo of dorian gray

Dracula, The Picture of Dorian Dreary

Throughout the Medieval novel Dracula, Stoker uses symbology and imagery to expose social stresses and concerns over the overdue Victorian age, for example the usage of animalistic explanation and blood vessels. Wilde, in the own Medieval novel The Picture of Dorian Gray uses imagery to explore the nature of man, specially in relation to bad thing, pleasure, and influence. These types of differing uses of relatively similar devices show just how sharply these two novels curve. While Stoker focuses generally on the sociable fears of enough time, such as the wreckage of guy into beast, Wilde intensively explores the psyches of his troubled characters.

One of the dominant themes within Dracula is definitely duality, a fear of the double or perhaps doppleganger. In Dracula there exists a struggle in defining the blurred lines between gentleman and animal, a struggle presented through the physical appearance of Count Dracula him self. The character’s introduction can be fraught with animal-like points. He is defined to have “moved impulsively”, working on instinct because an animal will as opposed to conforming to morals that centered 19th 100 years Britain. The count’s hair curls in its “own profusion’, he has “peculiarly sharp white teeth”, great ears are “extremely pointed”, like those of a wolf. It is evident that Dracula is one of the liminal: he is on the threshold of devolution from guy into beast. This shows the Victorian fear and belief that just as man could evolve (in lumination of Darwin’s then lately released theories) man could also devolve. Whereas Stoker utilizes the Medieval motif from the double to divide gentleman and beast, Wilde uses the twice to split body and soul. Raising example in the novel is definitely the portrait that Basil provides painted, and what it is symbolic of. While Dorian wishes, the art work grows outdated and documents the ill doings from the boy, and he, in turn, receives timeless youth and beauty, hence dividing the body and soul. Dorian will then indulge in the pleasure of his sins and live his recently found hedonistic lifestyle whilst keeping his bod, as a result, the portrait alters and begins to display signs of “cruelty”. This is to some extent to do with the Victorian best of keeping up appearances, that it can be better to look nice rather than to really be good. This observed that despite Dorian’s vile personality, his immediate influence above others because of his physical beauty remains great. Probably Wilde’s use of the dual reveals the impracticality of his own homosexual way of life, the fact that he would need to hide his lifestyle and repress homosexual tendencies in order to keep up open public appearances.

Another prominent, related idea within both novels is that of seduction. Within The Picture of Dorian Dreary, imagery of music or perhaps musical tools is used. The moment Dorian fulfills Henry the first time hes referred to to have a “low, musical voice”. Sybil is also described as lulling her audience and which makes them as “responsive as a violin”: she experienced “long drawn music” in her tone of voice. Wilde regularly uses imagery of music in association with seduction, particularly in voices, like a literary meaning to Ancient greek language mythology, in particular the Sirens which characteristic in Homer’s Odyssey. (Sirens were pets which tempted sailors for their destruction with the irresistibly amazing singing. ) In the previous case, Henry is able to jump Dorian together with his influence, which is the impressive “singing” that ultimately leads to Dorians break down. Stoker as well makes use of audio imagery, one example is during Jonathan’s seduction by the Count’s wedding brides. They have “such a silvery, musical laugh”: an alluring vibrato inside their voice seduces Jonathan and leads him to wait pending what’s to come (again, an allusion to the Odyssey).

Schwanzgeile also offers up the symbology and imagery of flowers of numerous kinds, all of which carry different sentiments and illustrate several meanings. First, in the beginning in the novel, Master Henry “plucked a pink-petalled daisy¦” and “¦pulling the daisy to bits”, disposed of the bloom. This images of the break down of the floral relates to the theme of effect, specifically, this illustrates the result of Henry’s influence for the premature Dorian, represented because the daisy. The “pink” colour in the daisy perhaps makes Dorian somewhat even more effeminate than the other two men, potentially adding to his natural beauty which could be compared to that of a flower. The narrative likewise conveys a feeling of carelessness upon Henry’s component, unaware of the damaging associated with his influence on the fresh, impressionable Dorian. The bouquets within the story are used often in association with Sybil Vane. The “petals of her lips” are described along with her description of a “pale rose”. The “petals of her lips” suggest a delicacy to her character, a fragility, the description of “pale rose” appears, switching innocence, impressionability and chastity. These meanings could foreshadow that Dorian will have a damaging impact on Sybil, just as Holly had a harming impact on Dorian. The lips could also provide connotations of strong sexual interest, a love based simply on lust, and to a specific degree, Dorian’s narcissistic vanity. Furthermore, the flowers inside the novel hold specific representational meaning tightly related to their positioning. In part seven, when Dorian has disposed of Sybil carelessly (much like the Daisy that Holly listlessly tore apart) and it is walking through London, many images of flowers display on his walk, helping you interpret what Dorian’s feelings are regarding the conflict with Sybil. “Huge carts filled with nodding lilies” rumble down the street, “lilies” being representational of hatred in some cases. Also, there are boys carrying crates of “striped tulips” which usually convey love. And finally, the boys are carrying “yellow and crimson roses” as well, the former transporting meaning of the broken heart and apology.

Other symbols relate with the events of Wilde and Stokers age. During the nineteenth century, medical science was making progress, perhaps one of the most significant developments during that time. The scientists invented a new research based on blood which was, in respect to these people, connected to ethnic and lovemaking issues. Pertaining to the Victorians, an exchange of blood was emblematic of an exchange of seminal fluid, making blood vessels highly sexualized. Indeed, Stoker uses blood vessels as imagery for sex encounters and loss of purity and virginity. In part seven, when ever Lucy is first bitten by the Count, Sl?ktens arrives to look for that “on the group of her nightdress was obviously a drop of blood”. We know that the exchange of blood vessels is a lovemaking act, plus the drop of blood on the “white” nightdress is representational of a deflowering of the modest Lucy, a loss of her virginity. Next, Lucy continually fall extremely ill and once again blood is definitely symbolically essential, this time by means of several transfusions. Van Helsing states that she will “die for large want of blood”: together with the connotations of blood currently explained, this kind of conveys a specific sexual cravings, which will quickly be quenched with ongoing transfusions by three guys. In effect, Lucy is quenching a intimate hunger with bodily orders of bloodstream and thus having sexual contact with many guys. This brings about the Even victorian fear of girl sexuality, which will contradicts the widely approved belief that ladies were meant to be passive during intercourse and not enjoy sexual joy of any kind.

One particular final mark that both Gothic novels use is that of the publication in relation to the theme of forbidden knowledge. Inside the Picture of Dorian Greyish, Henry gives Dorian a mysterious “yellow book” to read, undoubtedly associated with his values and beliefs in line with new hedonism. The “yellow book” is self-evidently the peculiar and unhelpful ? awkward ? obstructive ? uncooperative French new by Joris-Karl Huysmans, Against Nature (1884), a new based about French decadence. This yellowish book is the symbol of forbidden know-how for Dorian, containing the theories of recent hedonism that could ultimately bring about Dorian’s decline. Much like in The Picture of Dorian Grey, Dracula also contains an e book of banned knowledge. It is the journal retained by Harker (chapters 1-4). Harker provides Mina the book, since he features forgotten all of that had happened to him since his brain fever, and requests her to “share [his] ignorance” and not read that but instead keep it secure. In a starting from The Photo of Dorian Gray, the discovery of the knowledge of ghosts (when Sl?ktens eventually states the diary) is very helpful, a means of preventing a downfall. Quite a few forms of forbidden knowledge are underpinned by the theories of Sigmund Freud, who contended that once you transgress and gain forbidden know-how you cannot ever come back to the state you were in before that discovery, for you to cant ignore. This is true in both The Photo of Dorian Gray and Dracula and calls to mind the story of Genesis. After Adam and Eve consumed from the woods of knowledge, they could by no means return to the purely happy and uninformed state these were in prior to, and so nor can the characters from Dracula or Dorian Gray.