In his 1891 novel, “The Picture of Dorian Gray,” Wilde uses setting and location to explore not only the character and moral conscience of his protagonist , but also the divisions. inherent to Victorian society, as it contrasts the wealthy houses of Mayfair with the crowded poverty of the East End of London. The dissimilarities between such geographically close locations reflect the duality of Dorian Gray's own identity while also raising questions about the hypocrisy of aristocratic life in the late 19th century. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay London, the setting for the majority of the novel, is personified as something monstrous. Although most explicit in descriptions of the East End, where "our gray and monstrous London" spreads "like the black web of a tentacled spider", it is also present even in seemingly unthreatening scenes, its " low roar” heard even from Basil Hallward’s studio, a place that seems to symbolize all innocence. Perhaps this was meant to show how inescapable the nature of the city is. Victorian society was very concerned about the constant growth of London and the looming threat that an expanding working class posed to the refined lifestyle enjoyed by the elite aristocracy. A London that seemed conscious and omnipresent could be a representation of this fear. The Gothic Tradition, An Idea of ​​a Sensitive Place The idea of ​​a sentient place is where old houses or castles often seem to display a personality or awareness of causing harm. However, “The Picture of Dorian Gray” breaks with convention by taking place not in a remote location but in the heart of a vast metropolis. This could be Wilde's response to the changing fears of his audience, a world no longer afraid of isolation but of others. Indeed, more rural and isolated locations – such as Dorian's Selby Royal and the surrounding countryside – are presented as means of escape, even redemption. It is there that James Vane is killed, freeing Dorian from the threat of his vengeance. It is in a small orchard that Dorian decides that he is going to “change” and begins his “reform”. Thus, the novel subverts traditional Gothic concepts of danger and safety, bringing fear closer to readers' reality. Location is also used throughout the novel to reflect Dorian's fall from grace. It is encountered for the first time, "intact", in the prelapsarian enclosure of Basil Hallward's studio and garden. However, as his sin increases, the novel follows him to Whitechapel and the docks, "the sordid shame" of the city. This descent into sin echoes the fall of Lucifer, or perhaps Belial. According to this interpretation, Basil's garden is a representation of heaven. This is evidenced by the abundance of beauty present. The description is sensory, focusing in particular on the sense of smell by speaking of “delicate perfume”, “rich smell” and “heavy perfume”. This creates an almost overpowering sweetness that is later reflected in the "strong smell of opium" that fills the air of a Whitechapel den. Although the smell of opium is known to be both sweet and floral, it lacks the connotations of purity associated with actual flowers and instead suggests corruption. This could suggest that Dorian is trying in vain to replicate the heavenly nature of his youth that has since eluded him. The two places, however, are contrasting in their colors. The Basil garden is depicted in light, bright colors, from plants with "pink flowers" and "honey-colored" flowers to "blue thread» of a dragonfly. Whitechapel, in contrast, is filled with a "gray flannel haze" broken by "fan-shaped tongues of orange flame." These create a more hellish aspect, that of fire and darkness rather than that of growth and light. We could consider that it is a place of death, where Basil's garden is a place of life. The people themselves also demonstrate the heaven/hell divide between places. The key character of the opening Eden is in fact Dorian himself, the very image of classical beauty with his "passionate purity". Conversely, the residents of the East End are often dehumanized in their presentation, described as “monstrous puppets.” This nightmarish vision lends an unreality to the East End and its inhabitants, their “fantastic shadows” making it appear more like an underworld in the mythological sense than in terms of class and law. This development from the pure and perfect setting of the beginning of the novel to the dark and hellish ending demonstrates to the reader the change in Dorian's situation, his metaphorical shift from angelic to demonic. An exploration of the duality of Victorian society The divide between East and West. West London allows Dorian to live his double life, changing identities as he moves from one to the other. This could be seen as a demonstration of the hypocrisy of high society who criticize the crude and criminal character of those who live in the poorest neighborhoods, but who themselves enjoy the freedoms these offer them. Perhaps most visibly, it illustrates the divide between classes, with people of the lower classes seen as steeped in sin and barely human while the aristocracy exists in a more refined atmosphere. The proximity of these two worlds, separated geographically by only a few kilometers, underlines this contrast and suggests a denial on the part of the nobility of the world outside their window. Their proximity in the text works in the same direction. For example, Chapter XVI sees Dorian visiting an opium den near the docks while the chapters before and after describe the houses and parlors of Mayfair. We could see it as an illustration of the duality of society, a direct comparison and a demonstration of the ease with which Dorian passes from one to the other. Their very proximity underscores the fear felt by many Victorian aristocrats that the working class was a threat to them, a growing danger to their way of life. Furthermore, it is only in the East End that people see Dorian for what he is: a corrupt man. Although there are "whispered scandals" and "strange rumours" about him in West End clubs, these claims suggest that they are unfounded and mere speculation. Indeed, few people seemed able to fully believe these stories because there was "something in the purity of his face that rebuked them." This purity does not seem to affect the residents of the East End, who openly insult it, calling it a "devil's market." Perhaps then it could be said that people in the lowest and darkest parts of London see the truth more clearly; they are closer to reality. This can be seen again in the way they are almost always depicted outdoors, people from the streets rather than indoor venues. They discover the world rather than exclude themselves from it. In the West End, however, the novel's focus is almost always on the interior, on drawing rooms, parlors and ballrooms. A layer of etiquette and kindness hangs over everything. We could then say that people from the upper classes are detached from reality while the lower classes or not. Likewise, beauty.