The conscience of Dorian Gray in The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde Much of the criticism regarding The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde concerned Dorian Gray's relationship with his own portrait (Raby 392). While some may argue that the portrait represents a reflection of the character of Dorian Gray, this is only a superficial analysis of the novel and the character of Dorian. Although Dorian Gray's true character never changes, it is his perception of his character (his conscience) that is reflected in the changing face of his portrait. In essence, Dorian's image becomes a mirror through which the "real Dorian" judges his own metamorphosis while the superficial "Lord Henry Dorian" attempts to embrace Lord Henry's teachings. Dorian's duality of character causes a constant internal struggle within him, ultimately culminating in his own suicide. Initially, Lord Henry's doctrine of the "new hedonism" contrasts sharply with Dorian's innocence and youthful passions. These initial feelings are the reader's first and clearest experience with the soon-to-be repressed "real Dorian." The terminology, however, does not imply that Dorian has never been affected before. This unblemished character simply represents Dorian's self at the beginning of the novel, a state that he accepts as his own and in which he is able to find peace. From this first conversation, Dorian's peace begins to shatter as he learns of Lord Henry's philosophy and its implications for his own life. Dorian is described as a “beautiful, mindless creature” (3), appropriate since all Dorian has at this stage of the novel are his initial, pristine feelings. So this "pre-Henry" phase is the only time in the novel that Dorian outwardly expresses his "true self." This "brai...... middle of paper ...... The Picture of Dorian Gray: A Norton Critical Edition. Ed. Lawler, Donald L. (1988). 405-412. Raby, Peter. Oscar Wilde. (1980): 164. Rpt. in Twentieth Century Literary Criticism Ed. DiMauro, Laurie. Gale, 1991. "The Journey Beyond Tragedy. (1980): 57-71. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. DiMauro, Laurie. Vol. 41. Detroit: Gale, 1991. 501-502. Summers, Claude J. "In Such Surrender Might Be Earned: Oscar Wilde and the Beginnings of Gay Fiction." Gay Fictions: Wilde to Stonewall, Studies in a Male Homosexual Literary Tradition. (1990): 29-61. Rpt. in Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism. Ed. DiMauro, Laurie. Vol. 41. Detroit: Gale, 1991. 398-401.Wilde, Oscar, 1998.