The Doppelgänger as a Gothic Aspect in Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray

Abstract

Early gothic fiction follows a consistent pattern of fascination with the past, which is projected into a typical setting of haunted castles, ruins, and abbeys. Rooms such as gloomy corridors and battlements are features of these medieval structures that contribute to fear and anxiety. Gothic fiction was established in 1764, when Horace Walpole wrote The Castle of Otranto. However, the Victorian age introduced the concept of romanticism. Oscar Wilde, a fin de siècle writer, violated Victorian standards by writing a work that mocked their behaviors and ideals and added a touch of aesthetic blended with terror. Despite being criticized and labeled an immoral book at first, the work has received the acclaim it merits even centuries after it was created. The Picture of Dorian Gray is a gothic novel that avoids scandalous behavior: the genre's supernatural elements give a framework for saying unsayable things. The novel narrates the story of Dorian Gray, a beautiful young man who is given the ability to explore every possible sin and desire while his moral degeneration is hidden in his painted portrait. The doppelgänger is the theme of Dorian Gray's double life and identity, in which he experienced a conflict of good vs. evil within his conscience. The following dissertation will analyze and investigate the provided theme and how it functions as a death omen.