Abstract
The works of Oscar Wilde are both entertaining and humanizing. The stories are usually critiques of the rich or wealthy in society. They also seem to a reflection of Wilde’s own life and circle.
A prevalent theme in Oscar Wilde’s works is the hypocrisy of the rich which result in the abuse of themselves and others, especially the poor or less privileged. This theme is particularly apparent in many of works. Analyzed in this paper are Oscar Wilde’s novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray; short stories, The Devoted Friend and The Model Millionnaire; and the poem, A Lament.
Oscar Wilde was born into fairly wealthy family and enjoyed a good life. He was a famous and prolific writer in his prime. Towards the end of his life, he seems to have squandered all of his wealth and earnings and ended up accumulating debt and borrowing money. He suffered from scandals and was even imprisoned as a result of his lifestyle. He ultimately destroys himself, neglecting to avoid certain things that could kill him. (Harris)
Wilde’s works are a reflection of his own life and his own class in society. He admonishes and pokes fun at the idle rich, a class in which he apparently belongs. As George Bernard Shaw describes him, he was a lazy man who enjoyed life (Shaw).
Wilde’s works criticizes the rich in many of his works. These criticisms are particularly pronounced in the works chosen for this paper: The Picture of Dorian Gray (novel); The Devoted Friend and The Model Millionaire (short stories); and A Lament (poem).
In these works, Wilde portrays the rich as hypocritical. They are greedy and proud. They not only put down the poor but even take advantage of them so the rich could enjoy themselves better and become richer. (Wilde, Devoted Friend) The rich look good, dress well, live in plush homes, do not need to toil hard, and have a lot of fun indulging in pleasurable activities. In spite of all these appearances, the rich may not at all be happy and actually have rotten souls (Wilde, Dorian Gray). They do not enjoy the goodness and happiness that the poor find in the simplicity of life.
Sadly, a lot of middle and lower class people in society aspire to be like the rich. They see only the beautiful and pretentious side of being wealthy. So, those who aspire to be rich end up doing the wrong things that the rich will do. They begin setting aside the more important aspects of life like love (Wilde, Model Millionaire), friendship and commitment (Wilde, Devoted Friend).
In comparison, Wilde portrays the poor as meek and kind. The poor are not gullible even if their rich friends take advantage of them (Dorian Gray and Devoted Friend). They are merely sincere, compassionate and committed.
The works try to teach readers a lesson, especially for the rich. The rich should realized the evil things that they do under a veil of goodness. They are actually taking advantage of other people for their own benefit. Wilde conveys this message not at all in a crusading or condemning manner. On the contrary, with the exception of The Picture of Dorian Gray and A Lament, his works are usually written in a very light or even humorous manner. While he portrays the rich as hypocritical, greedy and proud, he makes it a point to show that these people have hope as he has contrasted them with kinder and more compassionate characters in the same class of people (Dorian Gray). He is very straightforward with the message that the rich could actually be very good people in The Model Millionaire.
One can also feel a sense of remorse in these works of Wilde. They seem to be a reflection of his own life, of what he had been and of what he could have been. Somehow, the sense of rightness that Wilde tries to convey seems to be anchored in Christian teaching, in particular about the worthlessness of wealth for person who loses his soul (NRSV, MT 16:2) and about the meekness of poor (NRSV, MT 5:3). One gets a sense of warning in reading the selected works.
While the hypocrisy of the rich seems to be a prevailing theme in Oscar Wilde’s works, it does not seem. It is a theme though that is clearly conveyed in the chosen works that readers should learn from and avoid committing the same evil things.
The Picture of Dorian Gray
If every abuse, crime or other evil deed is reflected one’s body especially one’s face, would a person be committing all of these things? It seems to be a question that the novel The Picture of Dorian Gray seems to be posing.
As with the other works, Wilde shows how appearances could be misleading especially among the rich. The rich can buy the best clothes and enjoy the best pleasures in life cover up for what they really are. While they look good outside, they may be rotten inside.
The pursuit of pleasure and wealth could overwhelm people. Unfortunately, this is something that mainly the rich could do. After all, the money to do that. Sadly, this pursuit results in a person’s abandonment of the things that could make a person happy—love. In the case of Dorian Gray, he would do anything to feed his greed and pride, to maintain his status in life, and to keep enjoying his material pleasures. In his pursuit, he would get some of his loved ones and friends—some of the people that could make him happy—killed.
The portrait was a reflection of what Dorian Gray was really like as a person. It is a reflection of his soul, his being. The mere sight of the portrait makes Gray roil in a mix of emotions. While he may have felt some remorse, he did not take any action rectify his past. Interestingly, the novel seems to have many parallels in Wilde’s life. Wilde was after all a man of leisure and pleasure but who to suffer a lot towards the end of his life.
Every little evil thing that a person does affects his soul. If one’s soul had a face, the accumulation of all these actions would result in a very ugly face. Sadly, people do not think much of their own souls. When one’s soul is destroyed, his whole being is destroyed. So, when Dorian Gray stabbed his own portrait, he himself got stabbed and died. The ugly appearance in the painting got reflected on his lifeless body. This may be Wilde’s contemplation of what becomes of all people in death and decomposition. It also seems to be a contemplation of the Christian teaching and Biblical passage about rich menlosing their souls in the pursuit of wealth (NRSV, MT 16:26).
A Lament
A Lament, a poem, is another reflection on Christian teaching and the importance of leading a righteous life. Wilde is more straightforward in the poem about his belief in God and what a person should do. Beyond reflecting on how worth it is a person’s pursuit of wealth in this world. It reflects on the longer passage from which the one in the analysis of The Picture of Dorian Gray had been derived. The passage discusses how Christ had told his disciples what kind of life they should lead so they would go to heaven. And that would be to follow Christ’s example. (NRSV, MT 16:21–28)
As the title clearly states, it is about regret from wasting one’s life, for doing the wrong things. An easy and pleasurable life could not lead one to happiness or heaven. The poem expresses regret or warns about a wasted life. Again, the poem has partly the theme of the rich having empty lives. Wilde is obviously referring to the rich in this case with the line “with garnered gold in wide domain” (Wilde, A Lament).
In comparison, the poem suggests that those who have suffered in this life may be better off than those who did not. In their sorrows and sufferings, the they are able to find the way to God.
The poem is not explicit about the author’s belief in heaven and that it is the ultimate goal that people should pursue. It is merely implied in the reflection that a difficult life dedicated to doing good would lead to God. Thus, a hard life “builds ladders to be nearer God” (Wilde, A Lament). “God” is a reference to the Christian God and a metaphor for heaven.
Wilde’s belief in God and regrets for a wasted life can be understood in better context when one reads his other poems, in particular The True Knowledge and Wasted Days.
The Devoted Friend
The Devoted Friend is a short story for children and at the same time a political parody. It is about how the rich can abuse the poor under the guise of helping them. It is something that the political nobility in certain societies do. At the same time, it is a story about how ordinary friends could abuse each other.
The rich man purports to be a devoted friend to a poor neighbor so that he could extract the fruits of his friend’s labor and abuse the poor friend to do all sorts of work for him for free.
The poor man may appear gullible and easily taken advantage of by his rich and supposed friend. While that may be true, the more important thing is that the poor man had principles and lived by them: He valued his friendship and fulfilled his commitments. He did everything to be what he believes is a devoted friend. He died trying to help his rich friend. In contrast, the rich man claimed the same things but actually had the opposite underlying motives. He was cunning and manipulating his poor friend.
Again, the story follows the same theme of hypocrisy of the rich. The rich (wealthy capitalists, nobility and politicians) would be projecting an image of themselves when they are precisely doing the opposite. Worse, they are actually becoming rich as a result of abusing the poor. This is story is perhaps the most clear about the hypocrisy of the rich.
The Model Millionaire
The Model Millionaire is the exact of the opposite of The Devoted Friend. It is about a rich man doing the right thing. At the introduction of short story, Wilde already sets his premise. Because that only the rich can enjoy the pleasures and romance in life, they actually live by that belief even if it is not true. However, happiness could still be found in the midst of or with the use of wealth. It is for those who sincerely seek it.
The two lovers were prevented from getting married to each other. The guy is poor and the girl’s father disapproved of him. It would seem at first that the lovers were finally able to get married because they bought their happiness with money. The money did not buy the lover between the two; it was used to remove whatever stumbling blocks they so they would be united. Thanks to the rich man who gave the guy the money.
Like his other stories, The Model Millionaire is call to the rich. Instead of admonishing them, Wilde shows the rich that they could better persons, they could be generous and kind instead of being greedy and proud as the lead character in the story shown.
Conclusion
In all the selected works, Wilde has clearly conveyed that the rich men’s façade of good looks and life are merely a cover for a rotten internal life or soul. Life may be easy for them but not necessarily happy. While the poor may be leading very difficult lives, they could actually be happier than the rich ones. However, the rich still have hope. They themselves can find happiness if they simply do good.
Citations
Harris, Frank. Oscar Wild:, His Life and Confessions, Vols. 1 and 2. (n.d.). From Complete Works of Oscar Wilde. Pub. Delphi Classics. 2012. Kindle PC.
New Revised Standard Version Bible (NRSV), Catholic Edition. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2006. Print.
Shaw, George Bernard. “My Memories of Oscar Wilde.” Letter to Frank Harris. (n.d.). From Complete Works of Oscar Wilde. Pub. Delphi Classics. 2012. Kindle PC.
Wilde, Oscar. “The Devoted Friend.” (n.d.). From Complete Works of Oscar Wilde. Pub. Delphi Classics. 2012. Kindle PC.
Wilde, Oscar. “A Lament.” (n.d.). From Complete Works of Oscar Wilde. Pub. Delphi Classics. 2012. Kindle PC.
Wilde, Oscar. “The Model Millionnaire.” (n.d.). From Complete Works of Oscar Wilde. Pub. Delphi Classics. 2012. Kindle PC.
Wilde, Oscar. The Picture of Dorian Gray. (n.d.). From Complete Works of Oscar Wilde. Pub. Delphi Classics. 2012. Kindle PC.
Wilde, Oscar. The True Knowledge. (n.d.). From Complete Works of Oscar Wilde. Pub. Delphi Classics. 2012. Kindle PC.
Wilde, Oscar. Wasted Days. (n.d.). From Complete Works of Oscar Wilde. Pub. Delphi Classics. 2012. Kindle PC.
