The Picture Of Dorian Gray: Chapter 7

“she was curiously listless” (87).  Listless- having or showing little or no interest in anything; languid; spiritless; indifferent 

“their beauty seemed to bring him an anodyne for his pain” (93).  Anodyne- a medicine that relieves or allays pain 

“She crouched on the floor like a wounded thing, and Dorian Gray, with his beautiful eyes, looked down ate her, and his chiseled lips curled in exquisite disdain.  There is always something ridiculous about the emotion of people whom one has ceased to love.  Sibyl Vane seemed to him to be absurdly melodramatic.  Her tears and sobs annoyed him” (92).

In this quote there is a change that is seen in Dorian.  He used to worship the ground that Sibyl walked on and now, because of a horrible acting performance, he cannot stand to even look and her and tells her he never wants to see her again.  This is amazing and really surprising.  I knew something would happen between them, but not because of her acting.  This shows that Dorian did not really love her but the acting or just the idea of her.  Dorian’s actions are shocking.  He is annoyed by her crying and really does not care that he just broke her heart.  It seems that his feelings are rapidly changing, and this is definitely not going to benefit him.  It is most likely because of the influence of Harry, and something terrible will happen because of this influence.  

“For every sin that he committed, a stain would fleck and wreck its fairness.  But he would not sin.  The picture, changed or unchanged, would be to him the visible emblem of conscience.  He would resist temptation.  He would not see Lord Henry” (96).

The picture is changing when Dorian commits a sin or has a feeling of guilt!  That’s pretty weird, but it is an interesting turning point in the plot of the story.  While Dorian tries to mend his relationship with Sibyl and end his relationship with Harry the picture should go through many different changes.  It will serve as a mirror to Dorian’s conscience.  When he does something bad or regrets and action it will be seen in the changes of the picture.  Most likely it will change to the point where it is old and withering away.  He will maybe be overtaken by trying to prevent the picture from changing, but will most likely make more changes in the picture trying to prevent it.