ability as an actress, and while Lord Henry praises him forthis, Wilde does not. Dorian yells to Sybil, “You used to stir my imagination. Now you don’t even stir my curiosity. You simply produce no effect. I lovedyou because you were marvelous, because you had genius and intellect,because you realised the dreams of great poets and gave shape and substanceto the shadows of art. You have thrown it all away.”(Pg 98 Chapter VII) Dorians passion for the aesthetic are apparent in that statement. He managesto contrast this false feeling of love with her true sweet self by showing Sybilsloss of her acting skill. Sybil becomes so involved with Dorian that she haslost her ability to act and once that happens he no longer cares for her. Wildeclearly shows how vanity such as this can only hurt others and eventually hurtyourself, just as it did to Dorian.This love for the aesthetic is an underlying theme of Wilde’s that canbe seen in Salome, The Importance of Being Earnest, and The Picture ofDorian Gray. In all three works, we see how this love or want of appearanceis wrong. The Importance of Being Earnest shows us how Lady Bracknell’slove for appearance and the superficial can inhibit life’s enjoyment. Salomeshows us how the young Syrian captain’s obsession and Herod’s fascinationwith the young Princess Salome’s beauty will do nothing but bring harm to asituation. The Picture of Dorian Gray shows us how the love for the aestheticresults in tragedy. In all three, Wilde’s message that infatuation for thesuperficial will do nothing but bring troubles. This is a very strong commontheme in all three works.In The Importance of Being Earnest, Salome, and The Picture ofDorian Gray, Wilde portrays several underlying themes. His disapproval ofthe aristocracy, marriage, the nature of evil, and woman are apparent in allthree works. From his writing, one can draw valuable lessons on life...
