The Tragedy of Dorian Gray: From the Perspective of Lacan’s Three Registers Hypothesis

Abstract

Oscar Wilde’s novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, tells a story of the conflict between soul and body, with a tragic suicide of Dorian Gray as an end. Analyzing the reasons for the protagonist’s suicide tragedy in The Picture of Dorian Gray can help readers better understand the development and literary connotation of the novel. This article takes Lacan’s three registers hypothesis psychoanalytic method as the theoretical perspective, returns to the original text, focuses on the protagonist’s psychological characteristics and interaction with the “Others,” and analyzes the inner interaction of the “three registers hypothesis” in his growth process, thereby interpreting the reasons why Dorian Gray commits a tragic suicide. This paper believes that Dorian Gray leads to his internal imbalance while seeking harmony between the Imaginary and the Symbolic, eventually leading to his suicide. Analyzing the tragedy of Dorian Gray from the perspective of Lacan’s “three registers hypothesis” theory enables readers and researchers to have a deeper understanding of the character of the protagonist in the novel.