I am only 4 1/2 chapters into The Picture of Dorian Gray yet it is already becoming one of my favorite books. Not only is every sentence craftily pieced together into works of art but I am always intrigued when novels written centuries ago relate to modern day themes.
This caught my attention just several pages into the book.
It becomes clear in the first few pages who is the Devil's advocate and who is God's. Essentially, Basil Hallward is a good man living in a bad world. He voices his opinion against the ugly influence of Lord Henry.
In general, Lord Henry is a manipulative man who aims to corrupt conventional ways of thinking. When Henry suggests to Basil that he should display his most recent painting all over in order to gain a reputation, Basil declines because he has "put too much of [himself] in it" (6). Basil then goes on to explain the beauty of a mystery.
He says, "When I like people immensely I never tell their names to any one. It is like surrendering a part of them. I have grown to love secrecy. It seems to be the one thing that can make modern life mysterious or marvellous to us. The commonest thing is delightful if one only hides it. When I leave town now I never tell my people where I am going. If I did, I would lose all my pleasure. It is a silly habit, I dare say, but somehow it seems to bring a great deal of romance into one's life. I suppose you think me awfully foolish about it?" (7-8)
Then summarizes himself in saying, "The reason I will not exhibit this picture is that I am afraid that I have shown in it the secret of my own soul" (9).
Finally he concludes by stating, "We live in an age when men treat art as if it were meant to be a form of autobiography. We have lost the abstract sense of beauty. Some day I will show the world what it is; and for that reason the world shall never see my portrait of Dorian Gray" (14).
Did any of Basils logic ring true or ironic to anyone else? To me, these three statements accurately describe today's use of social media.
I can hardly remember the point of taking pictures without the mainstream and somewhat narcissistic reason "picture or it didn't happen". What happened to living in the moment and being content with sharing your most precious moments with only your most intimate acquaintances? Now it is almost as if we do things simply to receive recognition and praise for it.
Don't get me wrong, I fall into the trap myself. Sharing pictures and moments through sites like Instagram and Twitter has it's benefits. It is a super convenient way for people who are too lazy to keep a journal or diary updated (like me) to document fun memories. It serves as a reminder to take pictures in order to preserve the moments we aren't ready to turn into memories. I'm not saying it's a bad thing.
However, I think it is equally important to remember to sometimes just put down the phone or the camera and simply live. Take pleasure in your own mystery. Create moments meant for just yourself. Find beauty in the present and forget the future for a couple minutes. It seems to me that sometimes the most amazing moments are lost or forgotten in the silly effort to take the "perfect" picture.
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