Guilt is a feeling that many people throughout time experience, and the outcome of the guilt they feel usually ends in destruction. The Picture of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde, is a book about the guilt that Dorian experiences from the sins that he commits. At the beginning of the book, a man named Basil painted a picture of Dorian. Throughout the book, the picture changes with Dorian’s sins. Dorian has to cope with the guilt of the sins; the result of the guilt ends in his destruction. “What does not kill you makes you stronger.” is a cliche that is seen throughout the book that means the challenges you overcome in life only make you stronger. In Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, the cliche “What does not kill you makes you stronger.” is not shown through Dorian’s anger towards Basil and the destruction of Dorian’s sins.

One example of how the cliche “What does not kill you makes you stronger.” is not seen throughout the book is when Dorian kills Basil. One night, Basil goes to Dorian’s house to find out if the rumors that people are saying about his poor reputation are true. Basil is surprised and does not believe that the rumors are true: “But you, Dorian, with your pure, bright, innocent face, and your marvelous, untroubled youth-I can’t believe anything against you.” (Wilde 154).  This quote shows how Basil always thinks highly of Dorian and sees him as a role model. Dorian is mad and offended that Basil would ask him this since they have known each other for a long time. They get into an argument, and Basil is concerned for Dorian. Then Dorian asks Basil if he would like to see a representation of his soul. Basil says yes, and Dorian shows Basil the deformed painting. He is surprised to see how the painting looks now compared to when he first painted it. After he sees the deformed painting, he immediately tells Dorian that he has to repent for his sins. Dorian gets frustrated with Basil, and he says that it is too late for penance. Since he is not able to control his emotions, Dorian stabs Basil to death. Dorian killing Basil when he tells him to repent for his sins is not an example of the cliche “What does not kill you makes you stronger.” because he continues to sin. This shows his weakness and how he lets his emotions dictate his decisions. Dorian killing Basil is an example of why the cliche “What does not kill you makes you stronger.” is not present in The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Another example of how the cliche “What does not kill you makes you stronger.” is not seen throughout the book is when Dorian tries to destroy his sins and wrongdoings, but he ends up killing himself instead. Dorian tries to repent for the sins that he committed, but he cannot confess that he did them because he feels guilty. Dorian is so mad that he tries to destroy the painting; he gets the same knife that he killed Basil with and destroys the painting. After the servants hear a crash and rush to see what happened. The servants see an old deformed man on the ground; the man is Dorian. On the ground is the painting of Dorian that looks young and youthful: “When they entered they found hanging upon the wall a splendid portrait of their master as they had last seen him, in all the wonder of his exquisite youth and beauty.” (Wilde 229). This quote shows how the painting of Dorian now looks like it did before he commits all of the sins. Since the beginning of the book, Dorian longs for the painting to look young and youthful forever. As Dorian commits more sins, the painting becomes more deformed. When Dorian tries to destroy his sins and wrongdoings it is not an example of the cliche “What does not kill you makes you stronger.” because instead of confessing his sins he tries to escape them by killing himself. Dorian trying to destroy his sins and wrongdoings and later killing himself is another example of how the cliche “What does not kill you makes you stronger.” is not seen throughout The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Dorian’s anger towards Basil and the destruction of Dorian’s sins are two instances in The Picture of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde, that does not represent the cliche “What does not kill you makes you stronger.” When Basil sees the deformed picture of Dorian, he wants Dorian to repent. Dorian gets very angry with Basil, and he stabs him to death. Also, Dorian wants to repent for his sins, but he can not confess that he did them. He gets the knife that he killed Basil with and he destroys the painting, which ends up killing him instead. Instead of showing strength by choosing to work through the obstacles Dorian faces, he shows weakness by continuing to sin and not repenting for his sins. “What does not kill you makes you stronger.” is present today through the wars that are fought throughout the world because when they are over the country unites for the good or the bad.