Dorian Gray: Chap 8

Definitions:
1) sanguine- cheerfully optimistic, hopeful, or confident; bloody
"to find his way through the sanguine labyrinth of passion through which he was wandering" (Wilde 100).

2) cognizance- awareness, realization, or knowledge; perception
"Did it merely take cognizance of what passed within the soul" (109)

Quote- "When we blame ourselves we feel that no one else has a right to blame us. It is the confession, not the priest, that gives us absolution. When Dorian Gray had finished the letter, he felt that he had been forgiven" (100).

Explanation- In a sense this is true because when one admits to their sin they feel better. Through a theological approach, the more you admit to your sin the better you feel accustomed to it; instead of feeling ashamed of it. One feels like they can openly admit their sin whenever they are asked. But Dorian Gray is only half right in his quote. He feels that it is only necessary to confess his sin openly and without the help of the priest;ergo without the help of God. As we have seen in "The Crucible" and "The Scarlet Letter" you need to bear your sin to God and openly; so both privately and publicly to be absolved of one's sin. You can not have one without the other. Ergo you can not be absolved and be lead into the eternal kingdom of God.

"I am afraid that women appreciate cruelty, downright cruelty, more than anything else. They have wonderfully primitive instincts. We have emancipated them, but they remain slaves looking for their masters, all the same. They love being dominated" (106-107).

Explanation- Lord Henry seems to believe in an age where women are not too bright and are seemingly second-class to men. As he says,"My dear boy, no woman is a genius. Women are a decorative sex" (51). He is telling Dorian that women are just play things to men. Harry is trying to pass on these principles to Dorian, making Dorian believe that what he did to Sibyl was the right thing to do. In essence that is what she wanted from. In Lord Henry's age, men are at the 'head' of society, and women have no say in the matter. In the modern age this idea is thought as an 'old school' thought( or how the churches view marriages). In this present age society has moved on to equality throughout all things: marriages, families, etc. They are no longer decorative. They are a smart and intellectual gender.