"The Picture of Dorian Gray": quotes from the book

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Oscar Wilde is not only a talented writer whose works of fiction have been admired or criticized. He was an outstanding personality, famous for his wit, and many of his statements became popular expressions. A special place in the work is occupied by "The Picture of Dorian Gray". Of course, the work may seem too cynical to some, but the writer tried to talk about that side of a person that many do not think about. Below are quotes from The Picture of Dorian Gray.

About love

The main character - a young man Dorian Gray - was too vain and proud. But Lord Henry Wotton made him so in many ways. He became interested in a handsome young man and began to seduce him with various temptations, while leading cynical and even slightly misanthropic conversations. Of course, the hero of the work could not avoid the topic of love in his conversations:

“You love everyone, and to love everyone is to love no one. Everyone is equally indifferent to you.”

This is one of the most famous quotes from The Picture of Dorian Gray. Of course with the dataone can argue with a statement, but you rarely meet a person who treats all people equally. All the same, a person will not be able to go to great lengths for all people to help or support them. This kind of love is superficial and just allows people to keep in touch.

"Don't say 'the best romance of my life'. Say better: "first".

This quote belongs to Lord Henry Wotton, and it can be explained by the fact that every person has a desire to be the one and only. This is especially true for love. Therefore, if a person wants to win the favor of a lover and his trust, you need to show him that such a serious relationship was with him. Lord Henry Wotton was a good psychologist, so he was able to influence Dorian Gray.

About friendship

The main character had no friends because he put himself above others. The only one Dorian Gray listened to was Lord Henry Wotton. It was the lord who talked with the young man on important topics, including friendship.

"It's not bad if friendship starts with laughter, and it's best if it ends with it."

A quote from a book about Dorian Gray says that friendships should not be considered permanent in a person's life. It is necessary to try to end the communication on a joyful note, so that only pleasant memories remain of friendship and a good idea of \u200b\u200bthe person is preserved.

About youth

This,perhaps one of the main themes of the book. Of course, all people want to stay young as long as possible for various reasons. Someone worries about appearance, someone believes that in youth a person has more opportunities, while others believe that youth is the happiest time.

Dorian Gray wanted to keep her because of his appearance: he was very handsome, and Lord Henry brought up pride and vanity in him, tried to instill in the young man that the only thing that matters in life is youth.

"Youth is the only we alth worth cherishing… It makes kings of those who have it."

Dorian Gray followed the advice, but it led to the destruction of his personality. Caring only about appearance, a person does not think about his inner beauty, as a result, close people will not remain with him, and life will turn out to be empty and monotonous. The kings will be those people who care about their inner beauty.

"And he smiled because youth is cheerful for no reason - this is her main charm."

This quote from "Dorian Gray" is different from the others: there is not an iota of cynicism in it, it simply says what is so charming about youth. Young people are carefree, rarely think about the future, being sure that it will certainly be happy. In youth, they find more reasons to be happy, so it is not surprising that boys and girls often smile.

"To regain youth, one has only to repeat all its follies."

This quote from "Dorian Gray" showsthat the protagonist's point of view is wrong. It's not about appearance, but about the inner feeling of a person. If he remains energetic, tries to find positive aspects in everything, then he feels young. Sometimes it is worth doing unusual things in order to feel again the carelessness and ease inherent in young years.

About people

Lord Henry tried to show the main character that people are mostly hypocritical, weak and envious. Their morality is built on a hidden desire to be as vicious as the lord, but foolish beliefs prevent them from doing so. But not all of his reasoning is cynical.

"When we are happy, we think we are good people, but not all good people are happy."

This quote from "Dorian Gray" can be explained as follows: when people are happy, they feel that they deserve this happiness because they are good. At the same time, such individuals become a little selfish and do not think about others. Therefore, the fact that a person feels happy is not at all an indicator that he is good. It's just that such a person knows how to appreciate what she has.

"Whenever a person commits stupidity, he does it from the most noble motives."

Lord Henry believed that it was because of the nobility of people that nonsense was obtained. This can be explained as follows: when a person tries too hard, he can forget what the other person really needs. And because of their excessive efforts, people do stupid things, but they do it fromwell-meaning.

On public opinion

Lord Henry taught young Gray not to pay attention to public opinion, because it means nothing. He said that it is more important to live a life of pleasure than to follow any moral principles.

"If it's unpleasant when people talk about you, it's even worse when they don't talk about you at all."

This quote from "Dorian Gray" can be explained as follows: people do not discuss only uninteresting and inconspicuous individuals who do nothing. But if a person strives for something or is talented in something, he will arouse interest among others. If a person is confident that she is doing the right thing, then she does not need to pay attention to public opinion.

About life

The meaning of the book can be called a quote from Dorian Gray:

"Everyone lives as he wants and pays for it himself."

The protagonist of the work spent his life only on entertainment, while not trying to fill it with meaning. Burning life without worrying about the feelings of other people, a person will pay for it with loneliness and disappointment. But no one can impose their ideas about life on anyone.

Everyone chooses their own priorities and lives as it seems right to them. Just be aware that everything has its price. Therefore, if you are only looking for entertainment, then you should be prepared for the fact that a lot of time will be wasted. Therefore, a person should think things over well.

Quotesfrom "Dorian Gray" by Oscar Wilde are distinguished by some cynicism, irony. You can disagree with them, but it should be noted that they contain a bit of worldly wisdom and philosophical reasoning.