Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Fishbowl Blog March 3rd

Is it Dorian's fault that he is the man he has become, or is it Lord Henry's influence? Is it a combination of both? Why?

19 comments:

  1. I think it is both of their faults. I think that Lord Henry has definately had a very good influence on Dorian, but it is Dorian that has to make the decisions. Just like in our life, we have many people that shape our lives and influence us, but we ultimately have to make our decisions. I think that Basil has had a big influence on Dorian as well, and as both Lord Henry and Basil have put Dorian on a pedastel, we see Dorian getting a bigger head and his soul (the picture) getting more and more grotesque.

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  2. I think it has more to do with Lord Henry's influence but I thik it is kinda both their faults because Dorian is absorbing far too much of what Lord Henry is saying and allowing it to transgress and corrupt his mind in a way that I don't believe Lord Henry meant it to.

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  3. I believe in a mixture of nature vs. nurture, and with a mixture of both, you become who you are as a person. Dorian should have done the right thing and not listened to Lord Henry, but since of who he is as a person, he followed every inch of Lord Henry. If Henry wasn't around, Dorian probably still would have gotten into bad things and turned to who he was, but maybe not as extreme as he became from Henry's help. Dorian as a person is somebody who really just doesn't care, and that would have showed with or without Lord Henry.

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  4. I believe it is a combination of both. Lord Henry did influence Dorian, but Dorian made the choices that led him to become the man he is now. Dorian was easy to influence and Lord Henry took advantage of that, but it comes down to free will and ultimately Dorian made all the decisions.

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  5. I believe that it is a comibination of the both. I think that Lord Henry is to blame for a very big part of how Dorian turned out because he constantly gave Dorian advice and told him what he thought he should believe in. Dorian made the choice to listen to all of the things that Lord Henry told him so he is partially to blame for the man that he turned into also. I think that if Dorian had never met Lord Henry that he would have turned into a different person but I'm sure that the next person that came around would have influenced Dorian greatly because that is the kind of person Dorian is. He likes other people to determine what he believes in and also is very easily influenced.

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  6. I also think it is a combination of both. Obviously Dorian has control of his own mind and is able to think for himself. But he is influenced by everyone around him, just as everyone else is. And that influences him to think differently then he may think if it was someone else besides Lord Henry. Dorian made the choice to listen to Lord Henry but Lord Henry made the choice to talk to Dorian. They are both to blame, although I think it is more of Dorian's fault then Lord Henrys. But I kind of believe in fate, and it was Dorian's fate to to meet Lord Henry and talk to him so now he must deal with the results and possible consequences.

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  7. I think it's both because Dorian wasn't this person until Henry so in that aspect it's Henry's Fault but also at the same time it's Dorian's fault too for letting it happen. They are bother very much to blame, Lord Henry played painter while he slowl created Dorian to be this way, slowly feeding him beliefs and values and in a way isolating him from the rest of the world so then Dorian didn't know how to be any other way and that's HEnry's fault. I also believe it's Dorian's fault too because what kind of person just feeds so much off another person that they can become completely shaped by that person in just a matter of weeks. It's almost as if Dorian wasn't really a person until Lord Henry came along, we've never seen Dorian without the addition of Henry. I think DOrian did all of his developing when Henry came into the picture and started making him the person he is now.

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  8. In the end, this all comes down to the argument of nature versus nurture. Was it already decided (nature) that Dorian Gray would become a conceited, egotistical man. Or was it from the people who have influenced him throughout his life (nurture) like Lord Henry. I do believe it is a combination of the two. During the fishbowl, someone pointed out that we are completely, 100% influenced by the people around us. And I agree. Dorian was influenced greatly by the presence and words of Lord Henry. However, free will must be added to the mix. It was Dorian's free will, or lack there of, to give into the poor influence of Lord Henry, instead of working to be a better man. Because of his choices and the people around him, Dorian is who he is.

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  9. I believe it is both Dorian and Lord Henrys fault. Lord Henry has always had a bad influence on Dorian and his thought are reflected through Dorian. It is Dorians fault also because everybody has the power to choose who and what influences them in life. Sometimes it is inevitable to be influenced by what is around you but i think Dorian let Lord Henry take it to far.

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  10. I agree with mostly everyone that it is a combination of both. Lord Henry has given Dorian advice but Dorian doesn't take it. I don't know if Dorian will ever change his ways either. Dorian is influenced on what others think and say and I think that in today's society, that is how it is and everyone cares about what others think of them. So I think it is both, Dorian is the way he is because of himself but a little bit of Lord Henry too.

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  11. I agree with what everyone else is saying. As Sarah said it is a mixture of nature and nurture. People have are influenced a lot on what happens to them in their life, and who influences them. Lord Henry was a big inpact in Dorian's life and Dorian has now turned into a person that Lord Henry "created". By this I mean that Lord Henry influnced Dorian to do things that Dorian would not have done if Lord Henry was not around. But it is more than just Lord Henry's fault. Dorian was more than willing to listen to what Lord Henry was saying to him, and was willing to take the things Lord Henry said to his heart. So both of them together have made Dorian into what he is now.

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  12. I think that it is completely Dorian's fault that he has become the man he is. He made himself susceptible to Lord Henry's influence instead of ignoring it. We have the free will to act how we want and choose who we surround ourselves with. Regardless of influences from others, ultimately, we are all responsible for our own actions.

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  13. I think its a combination of both because Dorian has the choice to make his own choices and has freedom of choice, but at the same time Lord Henry is pushing him in a direction and Dorian is going with it. But i also believe we are responsible for our own choices in the end and that should not be determined by our influences.

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  14. I believe that a certain amount of blame can be placed on Lord Henry, but the vast majority of the blame resides with Dorian simply because he is the one in control of his own life. Although Lord Henry had an enormous amount of influence and it's likely that Dorian wouldn't have been quite as awful as he is if he had never been introduced to Lord Henry, but Lord Henry can talk all he wants but it's Dorian who is "choosing" to take his wisdom to heart. It's like if someone offers you drugs, do you blame them for opening the opportunity or yourself for taking them?

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  15. I think that it is Dorian's fault that he has become the man he is. He chose to listen to Lord Henry and therefore he chose the life he now lives.

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  16. It is Dorian's fault that he has become the man he is. He chose to follow the words Lord Henry filled his mind with. It was his free will. However, it is also Lord Henry's fault because some words can not be ignored. Perhaps at first, Dorian was able to fend for himself but as time wore on the words resonated deeper and he was more susceptible to them. It is mainly Dorian's fault but Lord Henry did have a hand in creating the man Dorian has become.

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  17. I believe it is most certainly a combination of the two. We are influenced as much as we let ourselves get influenced. Dorian Gray is at the mercy of Lord Henry, and likewise, Lord Henry is at the mercy of Dorian Gray. They play upon eachothers souls like drums. When the beat gets choatic they are both to blame. I profess that they will both get sucked "down the rabbit hole" in the end.

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  18. I think it is a combination of both Dorian and Lord Henry that has made Dorian the person that he has become. Dorian was weak enough to allow Henry to influence him but it was Henry's fault that h wanted to "experiment" on Dorian. With the combination of the both of them, it has made Dorian the twisted person he is. He has no sense of right and wrong, sinning verse not sinning and good verse evil. He is unable to decipher what the will happen to him because of his own actions. He is just worried waht his picture will turn out like. He is responsible for his own actions now, but Lord Henry was the one that originally put them into his head.

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  19. There is a term called "common sense" or natural law that gives everyone a universal sense of moral value. Basil contributes a positive influence towards Dorian and resembles this idea of common sense. Therefore, Dorian has only himself to blame for his enmity and vile person he has created within himself. However, the extinct of common sense can become distorted by the destructive influences by Lord Henry.

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