The conflict of the book, The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde, is Dorian trading his soul for eternal youth and beauty. The act of this is caused by Basil's confession about his idolatry towards Dorian and his obsessive compliments. It is also caused by Lord Henry's input about how his good looks will not last forever and Dorian's own vanity. All of these factors lead Dorian to say the following: "If it were only the other way! If it were I who was to be always young, and the picture that was to grow old! For that- for that- I would give everything! Yes, there is nothing in the whole world I would not give! I would give my soul for that!" (Wilde, page 28, paragraph 5). There are not as many gains to this act as there are losses. Some of the few gains include: admiration for his incredible looks at first, the love of Sibyl Vane, and also the consciousness of the affects his actions have on his soul by referring to the portrait. The losses of Dorian's actions are much more numerous however. Dorian loses his first love, Sibyl Vane, his friend Basil, and ultimately his sanity. Dorian Gray is also burdened with extreme guilt, fear of the discovery of the picture, and the simply the horror of the changed self-portrait.
Wilde, Oscar. The Picture of Dorian Gray. New York: Barnes & Noble Classics, 2003. Print.
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