Friendship in Dorian Gray

One theme that recurred throughout The Picture of Dorian Gray is that of friendship. Wilde describes several friendships, none of which seem to be a typical or genuine friendship. Initially, Basil is friends with Lord Henry and also friends with Dorian, but Lord Henry and Dorian have never met each other. Eventually they do meet and become friends. Some interesting dynamics also occur when the three men gather together.

Right from the beginning of the book, the relationship between Basil and Lord Henry seems to be an odd one. Basil is quiet and artistic while Lord Henry is cynical and outspoken. As was mentioned in class, Basil did not want Lord Henry to meet Dorian, but Henry disregards his wishes and introduces himself to Dorian anyways. From that point on, Dorian develops a closer relationship with Lord Henry than with Basil. Basil realizes this and eventually blames Henry for Dorian’s immoral actions. Though Basil and Henry have very different personalities, one might believe that these differences make their friendship all the more interesting. But from the point where Dorian becomes friends with Lord Henry the friendship between Basil and Lord Henry begins to deteriorate. Basil resents Lord Henry for taking Dorian’s attention and eventually finds fault in Henry’s cynicism and selfish attitude.

Dorian is first introduced to the story as Basil’s friend. Basil admires Dorian’s good looks and seems to find beauty in his youth and innocence. Basil is so impressed with Dorian that he seems to have romantic feelings towards him at some points in the novel. Dorian moves Basil so much that he paints a wonderful picture of Dorian which even Lord Henry recognizes as an excellent work of art. Basil seems to feel uncertain about his friendship with Dorian and eager to keep their relationship a secret. Once Lord Henry meets Dorian, Basil watches as Dorian becomes influenced by Henry. Henry seems to gain pleasure from watching Dorian absorb his cynical attitude. Henry makes Dorian conscious of just how attractive and young he is and urges him to be selfish while he can. Dorian enjoys the company of Lord Henry and soon becomes corrupted. Eventually, Dorian even kills Basil in his ultimate act of selfishness.

These relationships can give an idea about what friendship was like in Oscar Wilde’s time. The book shows how friends had to be near the same social status. Though Lord Henry is the most socially prominent man, Basil and Dorian both have ties to the aristocracy. Basil is a talented artist while Dorian’s parentage links him halfway with the upper class. The relationship between Lord Henry and Dorian suggests that sometimes people befriended someone of a different age. This might result in the younger friend learning and adopting the ideas of the older friend while giving the older friend a sense of youth. At some points throughout the book, the various characters attend social functions with many other people like luncheons and parties. Lord Henry gives the impression that these events were socially necessary while not always pleasant. These situations reveal that to be of a high social standing one had to maintain important social connections, find a place in a circle among important people, and work to promote a particular image at social events. Oscar Wilde helps us understand the idea of 19th century friendship by describing the relationships between Dorian, Basil, and Lord Henry.