Harry's Science Project

In Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, Harry perceives Dorian as his creation. Basil’s creation is a work of art; however, Harry’s creation is evident through the influence he possesses over Dorian. He states, “There was something enthralling in the exercise of influence. No other activity was like it” (33). On page 51, Harry contemplates, “…through certain words of his, musical words said with musical utterance, that Dorian Gray’s soul had turned to this white girl and bowed in worship before her. To a large extent the lad was his own creation.”  Harry believes that “Talking to [Dorian} was like playing upon an exquisite violin.” (33). Dorian is not as close to Basil as he is to Harry because he feels that Basil is too invested in his art to appreciate humanity over art, or the abstract. Dorian is too ingenuous to understand that Harry seems him as a science project rather than as a friend.

            Dorian is vulnerable because he is young, rather than immature. He does understand that he lacks information to be successful in life, which is why he behaves like an apostle towards Harry. He worships Harry in similar ways to how he worships Sibyl Vane.

Harry’s desire to learn about human nature drives him to use Dorian as subject in an experiment.  He approaches Dorian’s relationship with Sibyl as an opportunity to learn more about human nature’s connection to love. He is not elated because Dorian has found a significant person in his life. Harry is excited because he will have the opportunity to witness the nature of Dorian and Sibyl’s love. He is observing them without their knowledge.

This reminds of me of Foucault’s notion that “power is not negotiable.” Harry’s experience gives him the ability to have influence over Dorian, which is a strong form of power. We see that Basil has the power to immortalize Dorian’s beauty through his art. In fact, Dorian is jealous of the painting because it always been younger than him. According to Harry, whom he worships, youth is the purest form of beauty. Thus, Harry and Dorian take part in a ceaseless exchange. To be observed, Dorian must not be aware that Harry constantly observes him.

Harry’s art lies in his ability to influence Dorian. Dorian is enthralled by Harry, but he does not possess the intellectual competence to understand the complexity of Harry’s art, which is the ability to possess a heavy influence over others that resembles a sort of hypnotism, to an extent. Dorian has the cultural competence to find meaning in Basil’s art, but that bores him. It is human nature to become bored with what one knows. In similar fashion, it is human nature to be curious about the unknown. Dorian sees Harry’s mystery, and that sparks a curiosity to attempt learning from him. This attracts Dorian to Harry. I suppose Dorian is searching for Harry’s art, but fails to see himself as the work of art because he is used to being worshipped over his good looks, rather than measured by his intellect.

City Life

Undoubtedly, the city created a new culture. Walkowitz’s “Urban Spectatorship” reminds me of Engels’ “The Great Towns.” Both accredit the establishment of cities to the evolution of new cultures; however, Walkowitz’s anecdote of Henry James at the beginning of the text introduces the city in the eyes of a scholar. James refers to the London as a “dreadfully delightful city.” This captures the beauty of the city under the lens of a scholar. This is striking because the beauty of the city is not visible to the naked eye. It takes an educated, cultured eye to appreciate its beauty. Although Engels describes London, Manchester, and other English cities as filthy and decadent, he accredits the development in the countryside and agriculture to the knowledge cultivated in cities. 

            Walkowitz examines the linear time that exists in cities through the monuments, and landmarks that promote nationalism and cultural identity in the city. However, I strongly believe that appreciating these features in a city and evolving national identity is mostly bourgeoisie experience. As Engels describes, most city-dwellers work from sunrise to sunset, so they either cross these symbols of nationalism under the veil of darkness or fatigue after a hard day’s work. The city is described as a labyrinth, not only because of its tall buildings, and twisting streets, but also due to the propensity in losing one’s identity amidst the turmoil of city life. The segregated or geographic separations that divide the rich from the poor are the compass of the city. The neighborhood in which one resides determines one’s social class. These features are strongly cemented in large cities and create many anxieties that were nonexistent before the creation of cities.

Walkowitz also describes the “consumer culture” developed in cities. The consumer culture reminds me of the creation of Crystal Palace in the early 1850s. The Crystal Palace was one of the first malls in England strictly for the bourgeoisie.  This ignited the creation, in my opinion, of the “defamiliarized world of the consumer culture.” This “consumer culture” is part of Engels’ description of the United Kingdom’s cities. This helps cement the poor as a “race apart.” The material culture is the root of the social forces that create the anxieties found in many city-dwellers.

The prostitute is a unique feature to urban life. The prostitute is unique to the “poor side” of town. It is the geography of the city that distances the rich from the poor. This is used to conceal male desire of the bourgeoisie husbands from their wives. The city harbors the vices that are taboo in the countryside. This makes the city decadent, but also the perfect setting to ignite social progress. Henry James’ appreciation of the city is restricted to the eyes of the educated. Only the cultured and educated can view the decadence of the city as a breeding ground for social progress. The city may be decadent, but the decadence hides fruitful characteristics that may only be used by those who possess the training to transform the decadence into social progress. 

Wirth, Engel, and the City Life

In Louis Wirth’s “Urbanism as a Way of Life,” the dominance of the city is attributed in its concentration of commercial, industrial, financial, and administrative industries. This reminds me of Engels’ “The Great Towns” in which he attributes the expansion of agriculture and farming to the academic and scientific progress that takes place in cities. Wirth examines the “potency” of the city’s influences on “molding the character of social life into urban form.” The influence of the city is not only experienced through innovations in agriculture, and farming, but also through social life. This influences younger generations into leaving the countryside for the social, and academic opportunities available in the city. The blending of different cultures and customs in cities also tends to reduce prejudice, which influences the social milieu of younger generations. Engels attributes this mixture of ideas in helping reduce social prejudice in large cities. In today’s culture, this is evident in the emergence of fashion movements aimed at capturing the essence of city life.  Modern day clothing stores like “Urban Outfitters” and other clothing stores that seek to use urban culture to attract customers, are not only popular in large cities, but also rural areas. During a recent trip to a small Colorado mountain town, I noticed that teenagers tend to dress similarly across the country, regardless of their living conditions. Wirth states, “the bonds of kinship, of neighborliness, and the sentiments arising out of living together for generations under a common folk tradition are likely to be absent or, at best, relatively weak in an aggregate of which have such diverse origins and backgrounds.” The city allows one to be free. The city eliminates the scrutiny found in small towns, or rural areas. Wirth describes that city-dwellers tend to rely on more people for the satisfaction of their “life-needs;” whereas, those living in rural conditions depend on less people to satisfy their “life-needs,” but depend more heavily on specific people than city-dwellers. This limits the expansion of ideas, and dialogue. The strong reliance on specific people places a social burden to please specific people, which can intensify prejudice, and reduce public dialogue. The anonymity of city-dwellers can also lead to social decadence. The concentration of large groups of people promotes a diffusion of responsibility amongst those living in densely populated areas, which can also lead to crime, and the obliteration of moral values.  Engels describes something similar in “Great Towns.” He meticulously describes the slums scattered throughout the United Kingdom as testaments to the injustices that take place in the cities. These harsh conditions for the laboring class could be influenced by the financial structure of a city, and not solely connected as a characteristic that is unique to all cities. In the cities, there at the most minimal level, exists an opportunity to establish self-identity. This characteristic could be the factor that has set into motion many social movements aimed at improving the conditions of the working class. The movements seem to always ignite in the cities because city-dwellers often have more freedom of expression than those living in rural areas.