PictureOfDorianGray TM 956

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

Te a c h e r ’ s Material

C O N T E N T S

To the Teacher .................................................................................................................... 3 Before Reading ..................................................................................................................... 5 After Reading: Extra Challenges ......................................................................................... 6 After Reading: Group Work ................................................................................................. 7 Possible Answers to Group Work ....................................................................................... 8 Worksheet 1: Chapters 1-6 .................................................................................................. 9 Answers to Worksheet 1 .................................................................................................... 10 Worksheet 2: Chapters 7-12 ............................................................................................... 11 Answers to Worksheet 2 ................................................................................................... 12 Final Test ............................................................................................................................. 13 Answers to Final Test ......................................................................................................... 14 Answers to Questions in the Reader ................................................................................. 15

Before using the following teacher’s material, we recommend that you read the Burlington Reader Series general information leaflet.

Copyright © 2005 Burlington Books

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The Picture of Dorian Gray

TO THE TEACHER LIST

OF

MAIN CHARACTERS

Dorian Gray: a handsome, rich English aristocrat.

Sibyl Vane: a beautiful young actress.

Basil Hallward: an artist and friend of Dorian Gray.

James Vane: Sibyl Vane’s younger brother.

Lord Henry Wotton: a friend of Basil’s.

Alan Campbell: a scientist and a former friend of Dorian Gray.

P L O T S U M M A RY In the summer of 1870, Basil Hallward is painting a portrait of Dorian Gray, and Lord Henry Wotton is watching him. Dorian arrives and meets Lord Henry. Basil does not want the two men to become friends because Dorian is young and innocent, and Lord Henry is cynical and immoral. However, Lord Henry immediately begins to influence Dorian, stressing the importance of enjoying the present. Soon afterwards, Dorian sees his finished portrait and he has a strange reaction. He wants the handsome young man in the picture to grow old instead of him. Basil doesn’t like Dorian’s reaction and tries to destroy the painting, but Dorian stops him. Basil then gives Dorian the portrait to take home. A month later, Dorian announces that he is in love with Sibyl Vane, an actress, and invites his friends to see her performance at the theatre. Sibyl’s family, however, is worried. They know nothing about her gentleman friend, not even his name. Sibyl’s brother James, a sailor, who is leaving for Australia, says he will punish this man if he hurts Sibyl. The next night at the theatre, Sibyl’s performance is very bad. Lord Henry and Basil leave in the middle of the play, but Dorian stays. Sibyl explains to Dorian she can no longer act because acting isn’t important to her since she fell in love with him. Dorian says he loved her because she was a marvellous actress. Now she is ordinary and he doesn’t want to see her again. Sibyl is terribly upset. Dorian returns home and sees a change in his portrait – there are lines around the mouth and it looks cruel. He understands that the portrait shows him as he really is. He feels sorry about his behaviour and decides to escape from Lord Henry’s bad influence. The next morning, he writes to Sibyl to apologise and to ask her to marry him. Lord Henry arrives and tells him that Sibyl has died after taking poison. Lord Henry convinces Dorian that he (Dorian) is not responsible for Sibyl’s death and that he must continue to enjoy life. Dorian is too weak to fight Lord Henry’s influence. The next morning Basil comes to ask Dorian if he can take the portrait to an exhibition in Paris, but Dorian refuses to show Basil the portrait. After Basil leaves, Dorian locks the portrait in his old study. For 18 years, Dorian Gray lives a bad life, but he still looks young and handsome. The evening before Dorian’s 38th birthday, Basil visits him and tells him he is going to Paris for six months. He also reports that people are saying terrible things about Dorian, but Dorian says he doesn’t care. He shows Basil the portrait and tells him that the painting is the real Dorian Gray. Basil sees in the portrait a tired, ugly face with evil eyes. Shocked, he tries to persuade Dorian to change. Dorian thinks about his life for the past 18 years since Basil painted the portrait and introduced him to Lord Henry. With sudden fury, he takes a knife and kills Basil. Dorian then writes to Alan Campbell, telling him to come to the house immediately. He orders him to destroy the body or he will reveal secrets about things Alan did in the past. Dorian goes walking in a poor part of London late at night. A sailor pushes him against a wall. It is James Vane. James is going to kill Dorian, but Dorian convinces him that the man who knew Sibyl 18 years earlier would look much older than Dorian. James believes him and lets him go, but an old woman watching explains to James that Dorian Gray is definitely Sibyl’s gentleman friend from long ago. James begins to follow Dorian, who is frightened and stays at home. After a week, Lord Henry suggests organising a shooting party in the country. During the shooting party, the men shoot at a rabbit between the trees and a stranger is killed. Dorian later learns that the dead man is James Vane. Dorian decides to become a better person, but Lord Henry laughs at the idea. At home, Dorian looks at the portrait to see if it shows his good intentions, but it is as ugly as before. Furious, he stabs the portrait. There is a terrible cry. When the servants come into the room, they see a beautiful portrait of Dorian Gray on the 3

The Picture of Dorian Gray

wall. On the floor, they see a dead man with a knife in his heart. The dead man’s face is ugly and the eyes are evil. It is the body of Dorian Gray.

ABOUT

THE

AUTHOR

Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) was born in Dublin on October 16, 1854. His mother was a well-known writer, and as a boy, he was exposed to the literary talk of the time at his mother’s Dublin salon. He studied classics at Trinity College, Dublin, where he was a brilliant student, and later studied at Oxford University, where he wrote poetry, gained a reputation as a scholar and wit and soon became a well-known figure. The young Wilde had a Bohemian lifestyle: he had long hair and wore velvet knee breeches, and his rooms were filled with such objects as sunflowers and peacock feathers. His attitudes and manners were ridiculed in the comic periodical Punch and satirised in the Gilbert and Sullivan comic opera, Patience (1881). However, his sharp wit, flair and brilliance as a writer gained him many admirers. Wilde’s first published work was Poems (1881). After spending a year on a lecture tour in America, Wilde returned to London in 1884 and married Constance Lloyd, a wealthy Irishwoman. Wilde’s only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, was published in 1891, and shows how devotion to beauty and pleasure can be destructive. After this, Wilde wrote four of his most engaging comic plays: Lady Windermere’s Fan (1892), A Woman of No Importance (1893), An Ideal Husband (1895) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1895). Wilde’s last play, Salomé, was later made into an opera by Richard Strauss. Wilde also wrote several short stories, one of the best known being The Canterville Ghost (1887). In 1895, Wilde was accused and convicted of sodomy and was sentenced to two years’ hard labour. He left prison bankrupt and emotionally destroyed and spent the last years of his life in Paris, where he died of meningitis on November 30, 1900. For many years after his death, Wilde was vilified for his morals and attitudes. Today, however, he is considered a brilliant social commentator, an extremely witty author and one of the main English-speaking dramatists of the late 19th century.

BACKGROUND • The Victorian era in Britain is the period from 1837 to 1901, when Queen Victoria reigned. At that time, aristocrats and wealthy people had a very luxurious, privileged life. They lived in large houses and employed many servants. The men did not work and spent their time enjoying themselves going to the theatre, all kinds of social engagements, shooting parties in the country, etc. • Personal servants were employed by upper-class people to take care of many details of daily life, such as clothes and personal possessions, arranging the daily timetable of activities, and delivering letters by hand to and from friends and acquaintances. This was a quick way of getting letters delivered before the postal system became established. The status of a personal servant was often a little higher than the status of other household servants. • Shooting parties in the country were a popular pastime for men in Victorian England. Groups of men rode on horseback, wearing special riding clothes. They had hunting dogs to help them find birds, deer, rabbits and foxes to shoot. • Actresses were not considered respectable women in the Victorian era, at the time The Picture of Dorian Gray was written. It was not socially acceptable for a man from the upper classes to marry an actress. • Tea is a very popular drink among the British, and in Victorian times was more popular than coffee. • A painter’s knife is a special knife shaped like a spatula, but with one sharp edge. It is used by painters to scrape paint off a painting in case of mistakes. It is also used to apply paint. It gives a different texture to the paint on the canvas than a brush. • In 1770, the British sea-captain, James Cook, discovered the east coast of Australia. In those days, Britain shipped many convicts to its American colonies. This stopped in 1783 when America became independent and convicts were then sent to Australia. These were the first white people to settle there. In the 19th and 20th centuries many Britons emigrated to Australia in the hope of making a new and better life. 4

The Picture of Dorian Gray

BEFORE READING SUGGESTIONS

FOR

LEAD-IN ACTIVITIES

In pairs, students ask and answer the following questions. Alternatively, you can ask the questions and elicit the answers from the whole class. (Some suggested answers are provided in italics.) 1. In your opinion, what makes a good friend? (listens to your stories; helps you solve problems; likes the same activities and people as you do; tells you the truth; makes you laugh) 2. Do you think a photo or a picture can reveal a person’s inner character? (Yes: you can tell a lot about a person by looking at a photo or picture; you get a certain kind of feeling from a photo or picture; No: it’s impossible to know what the person is like inside from seeing just one picture of him / her.) 3. In your opinion, is it possible for a young person to make a major change in the way he or she lives? Explain your answer. (Possible: they are just learning about life, so they can change; they can choose new friends or a new place to live; Not possible: it is almost impossible to change your personality. Even if someone tries to change, it will be too difficult to do it for a long period of time.) 4. Imagine you have the opportunity to stay young forever. Will you do it? Why / Why not? (Yes: it is the best time of life. You have opportunities and adventures. You make friends easily and you don’t have many responsibilities; No: it isn’t natural. Your family and friends will grow old. You will miss many experiences in life.)

K E Y V O C A B U L A RY 1. Pre-teach the following key vocabulary. Divide the class into pairs and tell them that they have five minutes to write a paragraph using as many of the words as possible. The pair with the most words used correctly wins. portrait

feelings

meet

hate (v)

address

worried

behave

news

angry

heart

2. Pre-teach the following nouns, adjectives and verbs. Ask pairs of students to write four sentences each using at least one noun, verb and adjective in each sentence. They can use each word only once. sailor soldier boring caught

actress heard

scientist laughed

ugly found

handsome tired ill

gentleman thought (v)

BEFORE READING ACTIVITIES The Before Reading activities in the Burlington Reader Series general information leaflet, pages 8-11, can be applied to The Picture of Dorian Gray. In addition to the activities in the general leaflet, students can do the following activities. 1. Look at the picture on the front cover of the reader. Describe the picture on the wall and also the young man. (The picture shows an old man. He’s ugly and looks unhappy and cruel. The young man looks shocked and also frightened. The painting might be a portrait of the young man.) 2. Read paragraphs 2-4 on page 6. Describe Dorian Gray. (He’s young and handsome with dark curly hair and bright blue eyes. He’s also innocent and he doesn’t know anything about life.) 3. Read paragraphs 6-8 on page 14. What is James’ reaction after he heard Sibyl talk about her gentleman friend? (He is worried because Sibyl doesn’t know anything about this man.) What does James tell her? (to be very careful) What does James say he will do if the man hurts her? (he’ll kill the man) 4. Look at the picture on page 26. Describe what is happening. (Two men are taking a painting upstairs. A young man is watching them. He doesn’t look happy.) What do you think is the reason for this action? (The young man doesn’t like the painting and doesn’t want to see it.)

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The Picture of Dorian Gray

AFTER READING: EXTRA CHALLENGES MAKE YOUR STUDENTS THINK Here are some points that more advanced students can be asked to consider after reading the book. 1. Describe Dorian Gray’s character and the changes in his personality during the 18 years the story covers. 2. Why did Basil worry that Dorian was too handsome and could suffer for it one day? Write a short paragraph listing your ideas. 3. Imagine Sibyl doesn’t take poison, but instead reads the letter from Dorian. How will the story be different? 4. Discuss Mrs Vane’s reactions after Sibyl told her about Prince Charming. Do you think Mrs Vane behaved correctly? 5. In your opinion, was Dorian responsible for Sibyl’s death? Write a paragraph explaining your answer. 6. James Vane wanted to kill Dorian for hurting his sister. In your opinion, was he right? What else could he do to punish Dorian? 7. Write a short continuation of the story and describe Lord Henry’s reaction after he hears about what happened to Dorian Gray.

DRAMA ACTIVITIES

AND

PROJECT SUGGESTIONS

You may want to present some of these activities in the students’ own language. 1. Work in a group of three. Imagine you are three ghosts: Basil, Sibyl and Alan Campbell. Act out a conversation about Dorian Gray for the class. The three ghosts could be criticising Dorian. 2. Imagine that you are Lord Henry. Write a page in your diary describing the day at Basil’s studio when you first met Dorian Gray. 3. Work with a partner. One of you is Sibyl’s mother and the other is her friend. It is a week after Sibyl died. Write the conversation in which Sibyl’s mother tells her friend what happened to her daughter after she met Prince Charming. 4. Imagine you are Dorian’s friend Basil Hallward. Prepare a speech about what you are going to say to Dorian on his 38th birthday to persuade him to change his life. Act it out in front of the class. 5. Imagine that you are a private detective following Dorian Gray. You follow Dorian the evening before his 38th birthday and you watch the night’s activities from outside Dorian’s house. Write a short report for your boss about the people you see entering and leaving the house during the night. 6. Work with a partner. One of you is a newspaper reporter and one of you is Dorian Gray. Act out the conversation when the reporter asks Dorian questions about the death of the man in the hunting accident. Then write the reporter’s article for the newspaper. 7. Work with a partner. One of you is Dorian Gray’s personal servant and the other is a policeman. The policeman asks the servant questions after Dorian’s body is discovered. He asks about Dorian’s friends, where he went, his way of life, etc. The servant tells the policeman what he / she knows. Act out the interview for the class. 8. Make a poster to advertise the film version of The Picture of Dorian Gray. You can also list the names of famous actors you select to play the parts of Dorian, Lord Henry and Sibyl. 9. Work in a group of three. Prepare the scene between James Vane and Dorian Gray and between James and the old woman at 2 o’clock in the morning after James follows Dorian. Act it out for the class. 10. Use an encyclopedia or other reference book or search on the Internet to find out about a. life in upper-class English society in Oscar Wilde’s time or b. a famous portrait painter. Write a paragraph and read it to the class.

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The Picture of Dorian Gray

AFTER READING: GROUP WORK TO

THE

TEACHER:

1. Hand out this page to each group. 2. Give each group one of the following characters to research: Dorian Gray, Basil Hallward, Lord Henry Wotton, Sibyl Vane, James Vane, Mrs Vane. 3. The group spokesperson reports the group’s findings to the whole class.

TO

THE

STUDENTS:

1. In the centre of the page, write the name of the character assigned to your group. 2. At the top of each of the first two squares, write a different characteristic (a word or a phrase) for your character. Find two or three examples from the text to support each characteristic and write these examples in the correct square. 3. In the third square, write the name of the person who you think the character interacts with most, explaining the relationship. In the fourth square, explain the character’s importance in the story. 4. The group spokesperson reports the group’s findings to the whole class.

2. ___________________

1. ___________________

Name of character: _________________________ 3. ___________________

4. ___________________

See the Burlington Reader Series general information leaflet, pages 13-15, for more After Reading activities. 7

Group Work

POSSIBLE ANSWERS Dorian Gray 1. Weak / Easy to influence: p.8: Lord Henry’s strange new ideas were interesting and stimulating to Dorian. They made a strong impression on him. p.19: Dorian could become a better man under Sibyl’s influence. p.23: Lord Henry’s influence was very strong and Dorian couldn’t resist it. He was weak.

was very innocent and happy before he met Lord Henry. Because of Lord Henry’s influence, Dorian lives a bad life. Sibyl Vane 1. Beautiful: p.11: Sibyl Vane was beautiful, 19 years old and a marvellous actress. p.14: James looked at his beautiful sister. 2. Innocent and emotional: p.14: Sibyl was sure she could trust Prince Charming, but she didn’t know anything about him. p. 22-23: She took poison because Dorian didn’t want to see her again.

2. Bad / Evil: p.27: For the next 18 years, Dorian Gray lived a bad life. His other friends were immoral. There wasn’t any good influence in his life. p.29: In sudden fury, Dorian stabbed Basil.

3. Sibyl interacts most with Dorian. She loves him and wants to marry him.

3. Dorian interacts most with Lord Henry. Lord Henry has a very strong influence on him and influences him to live a bad life.

4. Sibyl loves Dorian, but this love is not enough to change Dorian. She kills herself after he says he doesn’t want to see her again.

4. Dorian is the main character. The story shows us how a young, weak man becomes an evil, immoral one.

James Vane 1. Violent: p.14: James was prepared to kill Sibyl’s gentleman friend if he hurt his sister. p.32: He found the man Sibyl called Prince Charming and was going to kill him because he ruined his sister’s life.

Basil Hallward 1. Good friend: p.7: Basil was worried that Lord Henry could have a bad influence on Dorian. p.28: Basil didn’t want to believe bad things about Dorian.

2. Cares about his family: p.14: He was worried about the situation between his sister and her Prince Charming. In his opinion, she should be very careful. p.14: He wanted to become a rich man and take care of his mother and sister.

2. Serious / Thinks about things: p.6: He worried that Dorian Gray was too handsome and could suffer for it one day. p.28-29: He told Dorian to pray for God’s help. 3. Basil interacts most with Dorian. He’s a good friend to Dorian and he worries about Lord Henry’s bad influence on Dorian.

3. James Vane interacts most with his sister, Sibyl. James cares about Sibyl and tries to protect her from unhappiness.

4. Basil is the most moral / serious person in the book. Basil wants to help Dorian and tries to persuade him to change his life. However, Dorian blames Basil for his bad life.

4. James Vane cares about his mother and his sister. He frightens Dorian and tries to kill him because he caused his sister’s death.

Lord Henry Wotton 1. Cynical: p.6: He was cynical and laughed at everything.

Mrs Vane 1. Worried / Sad: p.13: She was worried and asked many questions. p.14: James was going to be away from England for many years and his mother was very sad.

2. Immoral and cruel: p.6: Lord Henry didn’t believe in anything or care about anyone. He saw the bad in everything and ridiculed the good. p.36: Someone killed a man during the shooting party, and in Lord Henry’s opinion it was a stupid accident. He was not shocked or sad.

2. Poor: p.13: She worked, but didn’t make much money. p.14: In her opinion, if the gentleman friend was rich, it could be a good thing. 3. Mrs Vane interacts most with Sibyl.

3. Lord Henry interacts most with Dorian Gray. His bad influence ruins Dorian’s life.

4. She worries about her daughter, but doesn’t try to help her daughter think carefully about Prince Charming.

4. Lord Henry changes Dorian Gray’s life. Dorian 8

The Picture of Dorian Gray

WORKSHEET 1: CHAPTERS 1-6 A. Choose the correct word in brackets to complete the following sentences. 1. The servant asked Dorian to come (boring / upstairs) to the studio. 2. Lord Henry was happy to (spend / meet) young Dorian Gray. 3. Sibyl Vane was 19 years old and was a marvellous (play / actress). 4. “When you see Sibyl act, you’ll understand my (feelings / performance) for her,” said Dorian. 5. In Basil’s opinion, perhaps Sibyl was (ugly / ill) when she acted badly in the play. 6. “Dorian wants to marry Sibyl, but he’s (making / doing) a mistake,” Basil thought. 7. Lord Henry took his (armchair / coat) and left the theatre. 8. Lord Henry spoke to Dorian in a (kind / thin) voice. B. Complete the sentences with words from the box below. trembling

laughed

shoulder

gentleman

news

country

dark

worried

1. The man in the portrait has got ........................ curly hair and bright blue eyes. 2. Basil was ........................ that perhaps Dorian Gray was too handsome. 3. Lord Henry visited his uncle, an old ........................ called Lord Fermor. 4. Dorian lived in the ........................ until his grandfather died. 5.

“We’ll love each other forever,” said Sibyl and she ........................ happily.

6. “Did you hear the ........................ about Dorian and Sibyl?” Lord Henry asked. 7. Sibyl looked at Dorian in horror and her hands were ........................ . 8. Lord Henry sat next to Dorian and put his arm around Dorian’s ........................ . C. Match A and B to form sentences. A

B

1. Dorian fell in love with Sibyl

...... a.

as he really was, with a cruel face.

2. James Vane was going to Australia

...... b.

there was going to be an investigation.

3. Dorian’s friends left the theatre

...... c.

and Dorian could not resist it.

4. Dorian was surprised to see Sibyl

...... d.

when he saw her act in Romeo and Juliet.

5. Dorian’s portrait showed him

...... e.

happy and smiling after the play.

6. Dorian wrote Sibyl a letter

...... f.

and his family was very sad.

7. Sibyl didn’t die accidentally and

...... g.

but Dorian stayed until the end of the performance.

8. Lord Henry’s influence was very strong

...... h.

to ask her to marry him.

D. Put the following sentences in the order they happened in the story. ...... a. Sibyl told her mother about Prince Charming. ...... b. Lord Fermor told Lord Henry about Dorian’s parents. ...... c. Basil wanted to destroy the portrait of Dorian. ...... d. Dorian stood in front of his portrait and studied it carefully. ...... e. Lord Henry said to Dorian, “You must forget Sibyl and enjoy life.” ...... f. Lord Henry explained his philosophy of life to Dorian. ...... g. Dorian asked Sibyl about her bad performance. He was angry and perplexed. 9

Worksheet 1: Chapters 1-6

ANSWERS A. 1. upstairs 2. meet 3. actress 4. feelings 5. ill 6. making 7. coat 8.

kind

B. 1. dark 2. worried 3. gentleman 4. country 5. laughed 6. news 7. trembling 8. shoulder C. 1. d 2. f 3. g 4. e 5. a 6. h 7. b 8. c D. 1. f 2. c 3. b 4. a 5. g 6. d 7. e

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The Picture of Dorian Gray

WORKSHEET 2: CHAPTERS 7-12 A. Match the words in A with their correct definition in B. A

B

1. heart

...... a.

the opposite of remember

2. caught

...... b.

closed with a key

3. pocket

...... c.

the centre of a person’s feelings and emotions

4. safe

...... d.

captured

5. cupboard

...... e.

a person’s street name, street number and city

6. forget

...... f.

the part of a shirt, skirt or trousers for carrying things

7. address

...... g.

a place in a room for keeping things

8. locked

...... h.

not in danger

B. Complete the sentences with words from A above. 1. Lord Henry said to Dorian, “You must ........................ Sibyl and enjoy life.” 2. After the workmen left, Dorian ........................ the door of the old study. 3. Dorian hid Basil’s coat and bag in a ........................ in the living room. 4. James suddenly ........................ Dorian and pushed him against the wall. 5. Dorian wondered, “Where did he get my name and ........................ ?” 6. After the accident, Dorian’s servants found a pistol in the dead man’s ........................ . 7. Dorian thought to himself, “I’m ........................ . Now I won’t be frightened any more.” 8. The servants saw a dead man on the floor with a knife in his ........................ . C. Write T (True) or F (False) next to each sentence. ...... 1.

Dorian went to visit Mrs Vane after Sibyl died.

...... 2.

Basil wanted to take the portrait of Dorian to an exhibition in Paris.

...... 3.

Dorian was worried that his servants could be curious about moving the portrait.

...... 4.

For 18 years, Dorian lived a bad life.

...... 5.

Dorian took his gun and shot Basil in the neck.

...... 6.

Alan Campbell and Dorian were once friends.

...... 7.

James Vane learned from an old woman that Dorian Gray was Prince Charming.

...... 8.

Dorian organised a shooting party to kill James Vane.

...... 9.

After Dorian was dead, the servants saw a portrait of the young, handsome Dorian.

...... 10. Dorian’s servants recognised his body by his ugly, evil eyes. D. There are four false sentences in exercise C above. Correct them. ....................................................................................................................................................................... ....................................................................................................................................................................... ....................................................................................................................................................................... .......................................................................................................................................................................

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Worksheet 2: Chapters 7-12

ANSWERS A. 1. c 2. d 3. f 4. h 5. g 6. a 7. e 8. b B. 1. forget 2. locked 3. cupboard 4. caught 5. address 6. pocket 7. safe 8. heart C. 1. F 2. T 3. T 4. T 5. F 6. T 7. T 8. F 9. T 10. F D. 1. Dorian did not visit Mrs Vane. 5. Dorian took a knife and stabbed Basil in the neck. 8. Lord Henry organised a shooting party for Dorian to forget his problems. 10. Dorian’s servants recognised his body by the rings on its fingers.

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The Picture of Dorian Gray

FINAL TEST A. Choose the correct answer. 1. After Lord Henry met Dorian, Basil was worried because a. Lord Henry liked to use other people’s money. b. he saw that Lord Henry and Dorian liked each other. c. Lord Henry and Dorian did not invite him to dinner.

4. Dorian put a cloth over the portrait because a. he wanted to send it to an exhibition in Paris. b. he did not want Sibyl to see it. c. it was ugly and it made him sad. 5. Basil saw the changes in Dorian’s portrait and a. felt shocked and ill. b. decided that Dorian should destroy the portrait. c. knew that Lord Henry was responsible.

2. Basil thought that Sibyl a. was not an appropriate wife for Dorian. b. and Dorian were too young to marry. c. was a good influence on Dorian’s life.

6. After Alan Campbell destroyed Basil’s body, a. he killed himself in Dorian’s old study. b. he stopped speaking to Dorian and left the house immediately. c. he left his chemicals and instruments near Dorian’s house. 30 points (5 points each)

3. James Vane was going to Australia a. because he had problems with the police. b. to escape from his mother and sister. c. to make his fortune.

B. Choose the correct answer. Dorian Gray was a (1. handsome / curly), innocent young man when Basil painted his portrait. In Basil’s studio, Dorian (2. destroyed / met) cynical Lord Henry Wotton. Lord Henry and Dorian became friends, and soon Dorian became enchanted with Sibyl Vane, a beautiful (3. shoulder / actress). Sibyl loved Dorian, although her family was worried because she didn’t really know anything about her (4. gentleman / country) friend. Dorian invited Lord Henry and Basil to see Sibyl act in Romeo and Juliet, but her (5. performance / news) was very bad. “How (6. must / can) I imitate love when I know the real emotion?” she asked him. Dorian didn’t want to see Sibyl again and told her that. The same night he saw changes (7. in / with) his portrait. It looked cruel. Dorian then understood that Sibyl was good and (8. angry / sweet). He wanted to marry her, but it was too late because Sibyl took (9. poison / feelings) and died. For the next 18 years, Dorian led a bad life and (10. much / many) of his friends were immoral people. One night, Dorian showed Basil the (11. ugly / strong) changes in his portrait and in sudden fury, Dorian stabbed Basil in the (12. cupboard / neck). Later that night, James Vane (13. catches / caught) Dorian and almost killed him. Dorian escaped but he wasn’t satisfied with his life. He decided to become a (14. best / better) man, but his portrait did not show his good intentions. Dorian stabbed it with all his strength. Soon the servants arrived and saw a dead man with a knife in his (15. address / heart). It was the body of Dorian Gray. 45 points (3 points each) C. Choose one topic and write a paragraph. Your paragraph should be at least 30 words long. 1. Explain why the title The Picture of Dorian Gray is appropriate for the story. 2. Explain how Basil Hallward tried to be a good friend to Dorian. 3. Describe Lord Henry’s philosophy of life. 25 points

13

Final Test

ANSWERS A. 1. b 2. a 3. c 4. c 5. a 6. b B. 1. handsome 2. met 3. actress 4. gentleman 5. performance 6. can 7. in 8. sweet 9. poison 10. many 11. ugly 12. neck 13. caught 14. better 15. heart C. Accept all logical and grammatically correct answers. Possible points for inclusion: 1. The picture shows the real character of Dorian Gray. At the beginning of the story, Basil paints a picture of Dorian. It is very good and shows a handsome, innocent young man. Soon Lord Henry begins to influence Dorian and Dorian begins to change. After Sibyl’s bad performance, Dorian is cruel to Sibyl and that same night, he sees changes in the picture. There are lines around the mouth and it looks cruel. He puts the picture in his old study because he does not want to see it. After Sibyl dies, Dorian spends more and more time with Lord Henry. For the next 18 years, Dorian lives a bad life, but he still looks young. The evening before Dorian’s 38th birthday, Basil visits Dorian and Dorian shows Basil the picture. It shows an ugly, tired man with evil eyes. That is the real Dorian Gray. At the end of the story, after Dorian is dead, the picture changes again to show the young, handsome Dorian from 18 years earlier. 2. Basil likes Dorian. He knows that Dorian is young and innocent. He’s frightened that Dorian could become friends with Lord Henry. Basil worries about Dorian after Lord Henry begins to influence Dorian, but he doesn’t know what he can do to help Dorian. Basil does not think Sibyl is an appropriate wife for Dorian, but he feels sad for Dorian after Sibyl’s bad performance. Later in the story, Basil does not want to believe bad things about Dorian and tells Dorian that people are saying terrible things about him. After Basil sees the ugly changes in the portrait, he feels sad and shocked. He tries to persuade Dorian to change and to ask for God’s help. He still wants to be a good friend to Dorian, but it is too late. Dorian stabs him in the neck. 3. Lord Henry Wotton is cynical and he laughs at everything. He doesn’t believe in anything and he doesn’t care about anyone. He sees only the bad in everything and he ridicules the good. Nothing is important to him and he spends his life drinking and going to parties. In his opinion, life is short, pleasure is the only important thing and love does not exist. It is just a word. Lord Henry influences Dorian to live a bad life, and he enjoys this. 14

The Picture of Dorian Gray

ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS IN THE READER These answers relate to the questions on pages 40-43 of the reader itself. 4. Some people made a fortune in Australia and James wanted to try. He was probably going to be away from England for many years.

Chapter 1 1. He was very handsome, with his dark curly hair and bright blue eyes. 2. Basil painted much better than usual. Dorian was a very special young man. 3. Lord Henry knew a lot about life, but he didn’t believe in anything and he didn’t care about anyone. He only saw the bad in everything and ridiculed the good. Nothing was important to him and he spent his life going to parties and drinking. 4. Lord Henry told Dorian about his journeys, his experiences and his cynical philosophy of life. Dorian listened carefully. He learned new things and heard strange new ideas. They confused him.

Chapter 4 1. It was terrible because an actress wasn’t an appropriate wife for Dorian. Dorian was an aristocratic young man with a position in society. 2. Something happened between them. They kissed for the first time, then Dorian sent her a letter and declared his love. 3. Her voice was weak and unnatural, and she acted her part without emotion and without understanding. 4. There were only a few people in the theatre. Dorian went to Sibyl’s dressing room. He was very surprised when he saw her. She was happy and smiling. 5. It was because of Dorian. How could she imitate love in a play, now that she knew the real emotion? He taught her the difference between real life and acting, and acting wasn’t important to her any more. 6. She looked at Dorian in horror and she was trembling. Then she fell on the floor and cried. She was very unhappy.

Chapter 2 1. a. After Lord Henry’s words, Dorian couldn’t appreciate it any more. b. Because of Dorian, Basil now hated the picture and didn’t want it any more. 2. He took it quickly and turned towards the portrait. But Dorian saw him with the knife in his hand, and before Basil could do anything, Dorian stopped him. 3. He remembered Lord Henry laughing and he was worried about his young friend’s future. 4. She was a very beautiful girl and all the men were in love with her, but she fell in love with a poor young man. He was a soldier. Her family was angry, so she left home and married the young man secretly. He died a year later in a duel, and Lady Margaret died a few months after him. 5. Lord Kelso took the child to his home in the country and Dorian lived there until his grandfather died. Then Dorian finished school in London.

Chapter 5 1. In the portrait, everything was the same, except his mouth. There were lines around it and it looked cruel. In the mirror, his mouth was beautiful and there weren’t any lines around it. 2. All the changes in his life will appear on his portrait and not on his real face. 3. It was ugly and it made him sad. He took a big cloth and threw it over the portrait. 4. The picture was the same as the night before. The lines around the mouth were still there and his face still looked cruel.

Chapter 3 1. One evening, when Dorian was walking through a poor part of London, he passed an old theatre. There was a man outside, trying to convince people to go into the theatre and see the play. Fortunately he listened to the man. Sibyl was playing Juliet in Shakespeare’s play, Romeo and Juliet. 2. She lived in a modest house with her mother and her brother, James. 3. He was very handsome and aristocratic and rich, too. He admired and loved her, and he was very good to her.

Chapter 6 1. Sometimes Lord Henry’s letters were cruel and they hurt Dorian’s feelings. 2. Sibyl was dead. 3. Sibyl didn’t die accidentally. She took some poison and another actress found her on the floor of her dressing room. 4. He (Dorian) wasn’t responsible for what Sibyl did. He didn’t want to sit at home and be sad, so he decided to go to dinner and the theatre with Lord Henry that evening as usual.

15

The Picture of Dorian Gray

Chapter 7 1. In Basil’s opinion, Dorian didn’t have a heart and he didn’t have any emotions. 2. There was going to be an exhibition of his pictures in Paris and he wanted to take Dorian’s portrait there. It was his best work. 3. He decided to hide it upstairs in his old study. He didn’t use it now and nobody ever went in there. 4. The servant mustn’t see the workmen carrying the picture to the old study. If he takes a note to Lord Henry, he won’t be at home for an hour. 5. The workmen came into the room. Very carefully, they carried the heavy picture upstairs to Dorian’s old study. When they left, Dorian locked the door and put the key in his pocket. Chapter 8 1. In the street near his house, he passed a man. The man was carrying a coat and a bag. It was Basil, but Dorian didn’t want to speak to him. 2. Everyone in London was talking about Dorian and they were saying terrible things. 3. He saw a tired, ugly face with evil eyes. It was clearly the face of a very bad person. After a few seconds, he recognised the face. It was Dorian. 4. He looked at his old friend. Then he cleaned the knife, put it on the desk and left the study silently, locking the door behind him. 5. It was the servants’ free day and his personal servant was in the kitchen. Chapter 9 1. He saw Basil’s coat and bag and hid them in a cupboard. He planned to burn them later. 2. Dorian called his personal servant from the kitchen and sent him to Alan Campbell’s house with the note. Alan Campbell arrived an hour later. 3. Alan did some very bad things years ago. They were secret but Dorian knows about them. If Alan doesn’t help him, Dorian will tell people about them. 4. He went upstairs to the old study, opened the door and looked inside. He put the cloth over the picture again and smiled with satisfaction. Then he locked the door, went downstairs and prepared to go out.

Chapter 10 1. He was wearing blue clothes and he had tattoos on his arms. He looked like a sailor and had a pistol in his hand. 2. He was looking for Sibyl’s Prince Charming and he heard an old woman say the name. He was going to kill Dorian. 3. Sibyl knew Prince Charming 18 years before and Dorian was a small child then, so he couldn’t be Prince Charming. 4. He went with Dorian under a street light and looked at his face. He saw a young man, so it was impossible that he was Prince Charming. 5. If he finds Dorian again, he’ll kill him. Chapter 11 1. He saw a face outside the window. Somebody was looking into the room and watching him. It was James Vane. 2. Dorian and his friends went out shooting. 3. A rabbit ran between the trees and a few of Dorian’s friends tried to shoot it. A second later, there was a horrible cry. It sounded like a human cry and everyone stopped shooting. 4. The man looked like a sailor. He was wearing blue clothes and had tattoos on his arms. They also found a pistol in his pocket. 5. The dead man was on the floor in a corner and there was a cloth over his face. The servant removed the cloth and Dorian looked at the man’s face. It was James Vane. Dorian was safe. Chapter 12 1. He wasn’t satisfied with his life. He wasn’t a nice person and he was going to change. 2. He died two weeks ago. It was suicide. He didn’t leave a note and nobody understands what happened. 3. Alan Campbell and Basil both disappeared on the same night. 4. There wasn’t any change. The face was as ugly as before, and the evil eyes were exactly the same. 5. On the wall, they saw a beautiful picture of Dorian Gray, looking young and handsome. Then they looked at the floor and saw a dead man with a knife in his heart. The dead man’s face was very ugly and the eyes were evil. 6. They saw Dorian’s rings on his fingers.