Discussion of Oscar Wilde’s Thoughts of the Aestheticism From The Picture of Dorian Gray 论文 定稿

毕业设计（论文）（ 2012届 ）题 目 Discussion of Oscar Wildes Thoughts of the Aestheticism From The Picture of Dorian Gray 学 号 780802010 姓 名 谢怡艳 所 属 系 外国语学院 专 业 英语教育 班 级 08级外本班 指导教师 张申艳老师 新余学院教务处制CONTENTS摘 要IAbstractIIPart 1 Memorize Oscar Wilde and His Aestheticism1Part 2 Analyse Literature View Embodied in The picture of Dorian Gray1Part 3 Analyse Aestheticism from Four Main Characters6Part 4 Conclusion11References14从道连格雷的画像探讨王尔德的唯美主义思想摘 要本文主要从纪念王尔德，道连格雷的画像中所体现的文艺观，文本中主要角色分析唯美主义思想以及唯美主义思想所产生的深远意义进行写作。王尔德的价值不仅在唯美主义的历史上得到了见证，同时，他更撼动了英国，撼动了欧洲最为顽固的礼法，让历史在前进的一页上留下了这个非凡的名字。文艺观即“生活模仿艺术，远甚于艺术模仿生活”。通过对三个主要男性人物和一个女性人物的分析，我们看到了王尔德的唯美主义的轮廓和内涵，他认为艺术不会模仿生活，而且能战胜生活的丑陋；艺术是非道德的，超越道德；艺术和时代相对抗，表现在艺术不表现时代，只表现自身，并且艺术与时代精神是相反的；最后，艺术以追求“形式”为目标。唯美主义虽然昙花一现，未能赶上现代派的洪流，但是在连接传统和现代的纽带上发挥着不可忽视的作用。关键词：王尔德；唯美主义；道连格雷的画像 Discussion of Oscar Wildes Thoughts of the Aestheticism From The Picture of Dorian GrayAbstractThis essay is mainly written for four aspects. They are memorizing Oscar Wilde, the literature view embodied in “The picture of Dorian Gray”, analysing the aestheticism and the meaning of aestheticism. Oscar Wildes value which is not only in the history of aestheticism has been witnessed, at the same time, he recounts the English and shakes the most stubborn of European etiquette, so that it leaves this extraordinary name in the historical page. The literature view is that “the life imitates the art, far better than the art imitates the life.” Through the analysis of the three main male characters and a female figure, we can see the outline of Oscar Wildes aesthetic and content, he believes that the art does not imitate the life, but overcomes the lifes ugliness: the art is non-moral but beyond the ethics; the art confronts the times, and it shows that the art does not show the times, only perform itself. Besides, the art and the spirit of the times are the opposition; Finally, the art is in the pursuit of form as the goal. Although the aestheticism is short-lived and failed to catch the flood of modernist, in the connecting link between the tradition and modern it plays a significant role.Keywords： Aestheticism; Oscar Wilde; The Picture of Dorian Gray IDiscussion of Oscar Wildes Thoughts of the Aestheticism From The Picture of Dorian GrayThe mission of art is to provide mankind with a sense of joy on the concept, rather than pass some kind of moral or emotional information. The art should not have any factors of preaching, but the pursuit of pure beauty. The aesthetes take the pursuit of arts beauty as the great joy, and believe that beauty is the essence of art and advocate the life should imitate art. Oscar Wilde is one representative.Part 1 Memorize Oscar Wilde and His AestheticismNovember 30th, 2000 is the centenary of Wildes death, a hundred years ago, when Oscar Wilde died alone in a hotel in Paris, he certainly would not have thought that one day it will be not only been more tolerant by Americans remembering him (Times compares him with Dickens), but the British who treat him so seriously and ruthlessly also bury the hatchet in his years before and after the memorial celebration with a variety of high-profile to comfort the souls inverse.His name is controversial in the history of English literature, “The Picture of Dorian Gray is known as the immoral monsterin a long time. But today, the pluralistic social value system gives a unusual evaluation to Oscar Wilde, it lets us stand in the fair and objective aesthetic position to reread his The Picture of Dorian Gray.In short, Oscar Wildes value which is not only in the history of aestheticism has been witnessed, at the same time, he recounts the English and shakes the most stubborn of European etiquette, so that it leaves this extraordinary name in the historical page.Part 2 Analyse Literature View Embodied in The picture of Dorian GrayThe preface of “The Picture of Dorian Gray contains Oscar Wildes arguments of the fundamental view on beauty. He believes that ” in addition to itself, the art does not show anything. With the same as thought, it has the independent life, and purely develops according to their own lines. Life and nature have not perfection, they must be processed through the art. The bad art is caused by life and nature, and it is the result of increasing life and nature to ideal. Sometimes life and nature can be used as one material part of art, but before they have no the real use of art, they must be converted to a conventional art. Once the art gives up its imaginary media, it will give up everything. As a kind of method, the realism is a complete failure. Each artist should avoid these two things which are modernity of the forms and modernity of the themeLife runs faster than the realism, but romanticism is always ahead in life. 7Through the analysis of his work, 8 I select four main idea about what is beauty. First, it is put the sensibility as beauty. Because the art is a mirror of reflecting the mirror, rather than life. It emphasizes the autonomy of the art. Secondly, it is put the interest as beauty. In the preamble of “The Picture of Dorian Gray”, it expresses in the beautiful works, someone who can find the meaning of the beauty are polite. These people have the hope. Educated can find the fun of beauty and understand the fun of beauty. Thirdly, it is put the imagine as beauty. If the put the sensibility as beauty is focus on the forms which are given concern on works by the artists, then, put the imagine as beauty is focus on the process of creating transport thinking by the artists. In The Picture of Dorian Gray, it is said: All art is a kind of behavior, it tries to realize self-personality on some imaginary plane 9. Fourthly, it is put the form of innovation as beauty. In every sphere, life is the beginning of things (forms are the beginning of all things) Form is everything. (Form would be everything). Besides, the content is just the material, The artists are always viewing the art works irregularly from the style of beauty and the describing of beauty 10 , so the form of innovation is inevitable.In The Picture of Dorian Gray, Dorian Gray is a simple, kind, handsome and young aristocrat, after seeing the picture that the artist and portrait, Basil Hallward, paints for him, he is attracted by his own handsome in the painting. Then, he makes a preposterous promise: If I can be young forever, and the portrait is growing old! For this purpose - for this purpose - I am willing to give anything! Yes, I am willing to give everything in the world, I am willing to take my soul exchange11. Unexpectedly, a language is said in, it not only carries the ugliness of his portrait looks, but also records the traces of his moral depravity. In the end of the text, the final conflict comes out between the art and the reality. We do a reflection of Dorian Grays soul, and finally realize that his beauty is nothing but a mask and the youth has become a laughing stock. What is youth ? It is a naive and immature period, it is full of shallow insights and unhealthy thoughts. Why does he always wear this body livery? Youth spoiles him 12. Therefore, Dorian, whose appearance is still young and handsome, stabs the portrait with a dagger in the extremely disgust and fear of the portrait, but he himself falls to the ground in the knife. His face is haggard, hideous, and his skin is wrinkled. However, the the portrait of the owner hanging on the wall is the same as when they met the last time, it seems so young and handsome miraculously 13.As the portrait is a symbol of the art and beauty, apparently in the final text, Wilde reveals the works aesthetic theme: the art overcomes the life, the art and the beauty are the eternal supremacy. Although Dorian is beautiful in real life, in the portrait he is slowly getting more and more ugly, older and older. His portrait is the visible reflection of the falling soul. Although he looks beautiful, his thinking is very ugly and evil, and this portrait bears all these things, it is his ugly inner externalization. The damage and distortion of the art itself shows that the more the reality of artistic life is reflected, the more it goes far away from the beauty. While at the same time, the art also reflects the reality mercilessly. Obviously the portrait is given a transcendent perfect personality, and Dorian is said to be reflected even liking the type of mirror. The work seems to show a realistic characteristics, while the realism is just rejected and depreciated by Oscar Wilde. Therefore, the portrait recoveres the original state, that is, the beauty overcomes the ugliness, which expresses his aesthetic point of view. This is precisely reflects the view of the relationship between art and life, that is the life imitates the art, far better than the art imitates the life.Put the sensibility as beauty. Oscar Wilde has a natural sensitivity and extraordinary perception to the beauty, he really has one pair of eyes which can find beauty. Once he said, people are wearing the mask of a picture, you can always change at any time, it does not matter weather it is real or not as long as it has a sense of beauty. Treating life as the stage, he always trusted the beauty of appearance. Only the surperficial features can be forever. 14. Reflected in “The Picture of Dorian Gray”, the meaning of the beauty is rich and complex, on the path of seeking the beauty, it not only can have a nightingales singing and angels halo, but also the colorful dance of a female demon and indulgent pleasure. Throughout the creation, “The Picture of Dorian Gray”, we can find, in this work, there are all sorts of the fine characterization of the appearance of beauty and enthusiastically eulogizing the beauty of spirit, as well as enjoying the beauty of the delicate description of the sensory. Shocked in his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray , the aesthetic beauty of a clear preference for the senses makes no secret of the pursuit of sensual pleasure, Treating the souls pain through the senses and getting rid of the starvation by the soul are one of the great secret of life 15.Aestheticism extremely worships the form and appearance of the beauty, and its works of art are concerned with the form of beauty rather than content. Oscar Wilde, the first person who regards literature as the art, obviously attaches great importance to his work in the perfection of the form. His literary works presents the colorful aesthetic world to the readers. The art is the lie, it does not tell the true story about the beauty. Whether themes, characters, or scenes, they are trying to stimulate the readers imagination and arouse the readers yearning for ideal beauty. In “The Picture of Dorian Gray”, Oscar Wilde does his best to practice his faith of the aestheticism, the musicality of the language and awakening of the quality on the beauty of visual effects, it can make those into peoples consciousness. Oscar Wilde has always been the pursuit of beauty of language is to spare no effort. He attaches importance to the beauty of language, rhythm, imagery and symbolism of beauty and so on.Oscar Wilde also places great emphasis on the plot of work. Either the rich and fascinating plot, or the ingenious idea, surprisingly has shown his relentlessly pursuit for the plot of the beauty with sparing no effort. He works his vertical and clever wit of the language to an extreme talent. Words are singing 1. His language is the most wonderful achievement 2. Those dazzling absurd argument, ironic humor and exaggerated contrast, have been a pleasant surprise. The way of life of the beauty is also the pursuit of Oscar Wilde. In The Picture of Dorian Gray, Dorian and Lord Henry believe in the new hedonism, in fact, it is a typical way of life of the aestheticism. Out of the exclusion of the vulgar reality, even out of the understanding of life going, we should make life into an art, put ourselves into a work of art and pay attention to the beauty at any aspects in life.And obviously, at the end of the text, it reveals one theme of the aestheticism of the relationship between art and life: life is ugly, art overcomes life, art and beauty are the eternal supremacy. Dorians portrait is on behalf of the art itself, and Dorian is the speaker of the life. Dorian who lives in the life is beautiful, and Dorians portrait which is in his consciousness grows old and ugly day by day. So we can see that the portrait is the portrayal of Dorians fallen, his looks is contrary to his heart. We not only see his face and body which are scared to Heavens, but also see his dirty, ugly and numb soul. The portrait is the externalization of his evil heart, and the damaging and distortion of art by him shows that the more the art reflects the real life, the more it is away from the beauty, just as the portrait with the increase of Dorians misdeeds becomes increasingly more ugly. So in fact, Dorian is more afraid of his growing old, he is fear of losing youth. He treats his portrait as a benchmark of life, but after repeated constantly struggling, and finally he uses a dagger to stab himself in contradictions, and died lying on the ground. However, the portrait stands in place, it still maintains its original. The youthful in the portrait is in the solidification of the eternal. Visiblely, the life acknowledges being defeated by the art. Art and life have no relationship with each other or art can catch the beauty unless it is over the life, it can reflect its non-utilitarian nature, no purpose, and this is even a manifestation which the life imitates the art, that is, the life imitates the art, even more than the art imitates the life.Part 3 Analyse Aestheticism from Four Main CharactersSo, how does Oscar Wildes aestheticism in art and ethics, the relationship between art and the times in the portrait embody? I believe that we can analyze it from the three heroes personality psychology in the text. This is the best embodiment of Oscar Wildes three different sides.3.1 Analyse Aestheticism from Basil HallwardFirst, lets look at Basil Hallward, he is the painter who paints a portrait for Dorian. After reading the whole text, we can clearly see that he is a typical aestheticism, his pursuit of the art has reached the crazy point that the whole people become stiff atheists. When Basil Hallward sees the moment of Dorian, he is shocked by Dorians beauty, he feels that the whole person, the soul, together with the art itself are swallowed by him, Dorians beauty not only makes Basil Hallward look at things and past in different view, but also gives him revelation of a new technique, a new style. He exhausts all his mental and physical force into the creation and appreciation among the portrait. In some extent, Dorians beauty becomes only a way of life and supports his conviction, so we see that he is addicted to painting for Dorian at the first time. In a quiet atmosphere, he gets narcissism, self-paralysis, he finds Dorians beauty, at the same time, he creates the beauty. More important, he pursues the beauty, so when we see Henrys appearence, Dorians abnormal activity and preference for that people who makes him feel puzzled, Basil Hallward feels upset, loss, or even despairing. Entirely, his personality is Oscar Wildes reflection of his own pursuit for aestheticism.Basil Hallward also does not want to display the portrait, because the aestheticism advocates non-utilitarian nature, he is not willing to use art in exchange for money and fame, just as a gift for Dorian, so Basil Hallward is focus on only form or the moment of beauty, and has nothing to do with the morality.3Originally the painter treats the portrait as his ideal beauty, but the harsh reality has continued to be tampering with his ideals, the artistic beauty which the artist creats by his own ideals falls in connection with the gradual decline of Dorians degeneration. But he remains confident for the beauty, and forgives Dorian again and again, and he wants to save Dorian by using religional power. However, he does not know this is counter-production for Dorian, Henrys hedonism has taken root in his mind, as the ideal beauty is the gratuitous nonsense even without pleasure, at the same time it will arouse Dorians desire to destroy. In pursuit, there are two fundamental moral differences and contradictions, so what he kills Basil Hallward is inevitable. If the final death is Basil Hallwards tragedy, then it is also the aestheticisms tragedy, in which we can see Oscar Wildes contradiction and disillusionment. Oscar Wilde lets Basil Hallward go to die, on the one hand, it shows that he might have realized that the pursuit of pure beauty and separating the relationship between art and life are inevitable demise of the outcome. And Basil Hallward, who is his over-emphasis on art above all else, even poses that each portrait painting drawn by the inner emotion is the artist not a model, the model is occasionally involved in. It is an incentive, the artist reveals not the model on the color of the canvas, but the artist himself, I do not want to take this picture to be displayed, because it exposes the secrets of my soul ; Due to the excessive pursuit of the pure of the art and we can not resist the temptation of the beauty, so even he has known Dorians fall, the rumors have been imagined no authenticity and eventually he dies in the hands of Dorian and becomes victim of his own work-beautiful offerings; On the other hand, it also shows Oscar Wildes contradiction and confusion. Originally Basil Hallward is on behalf of Oscar Wildes pure absolutely, he advocates arts first, it is above morality, but he simply can not seem to get rid of the reality and absolute self-transcendence of life, he can not let the pursuit of the thin pure stand in the history of the great wave of reality, so what he arranges Basil Hallwards death is his thought of society and lifes contradiction, frustration and confusion.3.2 Analyse Aestheticism from Lord HenrySecondly, lets look at Lord Henry, it is said that Oscar Wilde is a person who seems from outside world, the reality of Oscar Wilde and Henry in the text have been used to make a similar comparison, there is no doubt that Lord Henry is an aesthete. Because we say, in nineteenth-century, British society is capitalism in transitional period, Victorian is filled with moral hypocrisy, pan-mercantilism and the utilitarian nature of color of the social habits. Oscar Wilde practices aesthetic doctrine with standing all this critical position on the hands, he thinks that in this era of turmoil and confusion, in this moment of terrible strife and despair, there is only worry-free paradise of the beauty, you can make people forget and be happy. Where we should go if we do not go to the beautiful paradise? The temple of beauty is the aestheticism and his nothing more than another ideal state. In action, he often wares loose collar, tunic spike trimmed with black velvet, filament socks, and velveteen pants. And he wins the crowds attention by the quick-witted and sarcastic language in social intercourse. We say that Oscar Wilde uses this unusual way to resist the high society, since Lord Henry is the projection in the illusion, then he is against the bourgeoisie in the