Characterization: James Vane and Lord Henry

Stephen Simmons-Uvin
AP English/Mr. George
3/30/10
Character analysis: James Vane

James Vane is the physical representation of revenge gone wrong, setting out to annihilate his sisters “killer,” and suffering the very fate that he wished upon Dorian; he is a critique of human instinct and the very emotions that we feel.
James Vane is a character who appears very few times in the novel. However, James Vane is an essential character in the Picture of Dorian Gray because he can be seen as a critique of people in Wilde’s era, as well as people in the world today. James is first introduced when he promises to murder any man who might wrong his sister, and as we learn later in the novel, when Dorian’s corrupt life coincides with James’, he had been searching for Dorian or “prince charming” so that he may avenge his sisters death and destroy Dorian. The simple act of revenge as we have learned from various other books such as The Scarlet Letter, is a poisonous concoction that harms everyone involved in it and everyone near it. James Vanes over zealous desire to kill Dorian simply leads to his unfortunate death in a hunting accident. He is used as a critique of human nature and emotions because he exemplifies that amplitude of emotions and the serious repercussions of those that we fail to control. Revenge was the real accident, because some emotions are simply uncontrollable.
James Vane is a little child in the sense that he is unable to control his emotions and does not posses what I call a moral filter; something in your head that separates the moral things from everything else, purifying ones acts and cleansing the soul.
James Vane is like Lewis Black, preaching whatever intrudes his mind, and filtering nothing that comes out of it.

Stephen Simmons-Uvin
AP English/Mr. George
3/30/10
Character analysis: Lord Henry

Lord Henry is influence and evil incarnate, using his devious witticisms and abstract logic to manipulate the virgin minds of the innocent and instilling corruption within.
Lord Henry was introduced as a fellow with the tendency to influence people, and to win over the minds of those whom he spoke to. This can be best exemplified in Lord Henry’s influence and control over the young and naïve Dorian Gray, who whimsically fell in love with Henry’s outlandish theories and embarked on his journey to evil, all because Lord Henry proposed that beauty is something that must be savored and should never go away. He felt that Dorian made a fine experiment, and continued to bask Dorian in his lies: “Talking to him was like playing on an exquisite violin…There was something terribly enthralling in the exercise of influence” (Wilde 39). One must take note that Lord Henry was a very intelligent man as he was able to fool anyone and alter their beliefs in a matter of hours, as we saw with Dorian Gray. Henry was intelligent enough to realize the repercussions of his influence, yet seized to stop it and reverse the effect of his demonic paradoxes. Henry was a devil in the sense that he was not bothered by other people’s misery and used the world as his laboratory, which is reflected in Dorian.
Henry is like the devil that lingers on your shoulder perpendicular to the angel. He attempts to influence your decisions and force you to do terrible things. The devil resembles temptation which is what Lord Henry prescribes.
Lord Henry is like the President of the United States whom we all chose and have always chosen to believe for no logical reason, other than his position and presentation.