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Close Reading Questions for Portrait of Dorian Gray
Chapters 1-5
1. On page 7, Lord Henry claims that “conscience and cowardice are really the same.” Do
you agree? Why or why not? (8-12 sentences with data).
2. Look in Chapter 1 where Lord Henry discusses the “sincerity of man.” (Wilde10). What
is Lord Henry’s philosophy regarding the sincerity of character? What tone is reflected
here? How does Wilde use language to convey this attitude? (8-12 sentences with data).
3. Re-read pages 20-21 starting with “have you really a very bad influence, Lord Henry…”
and ending with “Or rather let me try not to think.” Discuss the Hedonistic ideals (that we
discussed with Crime and Punishment) revealed in this passage. What evidence is there
that Lord Henry is influencing Dorian Gray’s mindset? (8-12 sentences).
4. In the passage that states, “People say sometimes that Beauty is only superficial. That
may be so…..”(25), there is a different set of morals. How does the belief stated in this
paragraph contrast with the world’s traditional belief system in the late Nineteenth
Century? In the early Twenty-first Century? (8-12 sentences).
5. Why does Wilde use dialogue on page 29 instead of interior monologue? (beginning with
“Don’t you like it?” and ending with “I will not let it come across our three lives and mar
them.”). What is the effect? How is this scene similar to a Faustian tale? (8-12
sentences).
6. In Chapter 5, page 69 (beginning with “A rose shook in her blood” and ending with “I
feel terribly proud”), how are figurative language and diction used to convey meaning
(theme)? What is the effect upon the reader? (8-12 sentences).
7. What is the significance of the seasons and sensory imagery used on page 77? (beginning
with “Our proverbs want re-writing” and ending with “There he is!”) How do these add
to the meaning? (8-12 sentences).
8. How does Wilde describe Sybil Vane? What language does he use in his description?
What is the significance in her name? How does this affect the reader’s perspective of
Sybil? (8-12 sentences).
9. How does the conversation between Jim and Sybil foreshadow Sybil’s fate? (3-5
sentences).
10. Why does Wilde focus on the familial background on pages 80-81? (beginning with
“Mother, I have something to ask you…” and ending with “She felt that they would all
laugh at it someday.” How does this develop the characterization of Sybil and Dorian?
(8-12 sentences).
Chapters 6-10
1. “Sybil was playing Rosalind” (Wilde 85). What is the effect of this allusion? (3-5
sentences).
2. On page 87, Dorian proclaims his love for Sybil (beginning with “I love Sybil Vane”).
Look at the diction he uses in this proclamation. Is his love true? Support you answer
with evidence. (8-12 sentences).
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3. On page 89, Lord Henry and Dorian discuss women (beginning with “Oh! I should fancy
in remorse…” and ending with “Harry, you are dreadful!...) What is Lord Henry’s
attitude toward women? How is this conveyed by Wilde? (8-12 sentences).
4. “He felt as if he had come to look for Miranda and had been met by Caliban” (Wilde 91).
What is the allusion? How does this allusion reveal Dorian’s mindset and attitude? (8-12
sentences).
5. Discuss the irony of the Romeo and Juliet allusion on page 94. (8-12 sentences).
6. ‘“Love is a more wonderful thin than art.”
“They are both simply forms of imitating,’ remarked Lord Henry” (Wilde 95).
Why does Wilde entangle the concepts of love and art? How are love and art “forms of
imitation”? (8-12 sentences).
7. On page 103, Sybil is described as being “shallow and unworthy” (Wilde). How is this
ironic? Discuss Dorian’s reaction to Sybil’s death. (8-12 sentences).
8. How does the tone shift on page 119 or at the end of Chapter 9? (beginning with “A
feeling of pain crept over him…” and ending with “Why inquire too closely into it?”
What is the focus of the novel at this point? (8-12 sentences).
9. Explain the significance of the Adonis allusion in Chapter 9. (8-12 sentences).
10. Describe how Wilde creates an atmosphere of entanglement and obsession in Chapter 10.
(8-12 sentences).
Chapters 11-15
1. Compare and contrast the Catholic’s belief of sacrifice to Hedonism on pages 149-150.
(beginning with “It was rumored once…” and ending with “He knew the senses, no less
than the soul…”) Why is Dorian “attracted” to these contradicting philosophies? (8-12
sentences).
2. Describe the organizational pattern on pages 150-156 (beginning with “And so he would
now study perfumes…” and ending with “It had been taken from the Turkish camp…”).
What effect does this have on the reader? (8-12 sentences).
3. How does the description of the ecclesiastical vestments on page 157 contradict the
religious philosophy described earlier on pages 149-150? (8-12 sentences).
4. What does Dorian have in common with the church? (8-12 sentences).
5. “Yet he was afraid” (Wilde 159). Why was Dorian afraid? Why is this ironic? (8-12
sentences).
6. “Is insincerity such a terrible thing? I think not. It is merely a method by which we can
multiply our personalities” (Wilde 160). Is Dorian an insincere and/or evil character at
this point of the novel? Give support for your answer. (8-12 sentences).
7. “Dorian Gray had been poisoned by a book.” Does literature have this lasting effect?
How? Professor Jeffrey Eugenides claims in his critique of Portrait of Dorian Gray that
this novel is about the “spiritual risks of reading” (Introduction xii).Do you agree with
this? Why or why not? (8-12 sentences).
8. Discuss the religious allusion on pages 178-179 (beginning with “It is never too late,
Dorian” and ending with “”Dorian Gray glanced at the picture…”). How is Basil
Hallward a different confidante to Dorian from Lord Henry? How do you think Lord
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Henry would have responded if he had been involved in this conversation? (8-12
sentences).
9. What “deadly sins” has Dorian committed by the end of Chapter 13? (3-5 sentences).
10. How do the first two paragraphs on page 183, (first two paragraphs in Chapter 14)
provide a shift in tone? (8-12 sentences).
11. Discuss the use of light and darkness on page 184. What do these symbolize? (8-12
sentences).
12. Dorian Gray describes in Chapter 15 that “for a moment (he) felt keenly the terrible
pleasure of a double life” (Wilde 198). How does this oxymoron reveal the duality of his
character? (8-12 sentences).
Chapters 16-20
1. “To cure the soul by means of the senses, and the sense by means of the soul” (Wilde
209). How does the use of chiasmus reveal the internal conflict for Dorian? What is the
effect of the repetition of this phrase? (8-12 sentences).
2. Compare and contrast Sybil Vane with the Duchess of Monmouth. What role does
Gladys play in the novel? (8-12 sentences).
3. How is Time used in Chapter 18? What is the effect of color and diction in paragraph 3 of
Chapter 18?
4. How does Dorian change in Chapter 18? (8-12 sentences).
5. What does the end of Lord Henry’s marriage reveal about his philosophy of life, love and
women? (8-12 sentences).
6. “The soul is a terrible reality” (Wilde 245). Dorian stated this to Lord Henry. Earlier in
Chapter 16, he argued the “ugliness in the one reality” (Wilde 211). Explain the
connection between these two. Is Dorian a self-realized man? (8-12 sentences).
7. Why does Dorian destroy the painting at the end? (3-5 sentences).
8. Oscar Wilde confessed himself that there is “a terrible moral in Dorian Gray.” Was he
correct? If so, what is the terrible moral? If not, what is a positive lesson to learn from it?
(8-12 sentences).
Checklist and Reminders
 Include internal citation and Work Cited.
 Minimum 3 data per paragraph that is 8-12 sentences; if you do not use the minimum
data, half of the points will be deducted.
 Use 20 vocabulary words from units 4-7 (identify the units in parenthesis following the
word and underline the words).
 Use the literary present tense.
 Avoid 2nd person and contractions.
 Use example and/or more information transitions within the paragraph introducing the
data; give the context of the data (Who says this to whom? When? Where?)
 Using the analysis packet and diction handout, describe the specific type of diction.
 Read aloud to make sure you are saying everything you mean to say and how you mean
to say it.
 DIVIDE and CONQUER: do not wait until the last minute. Remember, when you
perform well on the Reading Guides, they will end. 