Characters:
Lord Henry Wotton: confident and manipulative, commands presence. As he speaks with Basil in the first chapter he picks a daisy and later pulls it apart: symbolic action depicting Wotton as a destroyer of beauty and one who take joy in manipulating.
Basil: Secretive and artistic. Fairly odd but endearing. Basil is attracted to Dorian Gray both professionally and personally and wants to keep him all to himself. Basil becomes dependent on Dorian for his art as his muse, yet claims he is independent.
Dorian: Charming and fickle, full of youth and innocense. Irrational, passionate, and tragic. Physical beauty is more important to his character than any other attribute. When describing Dorian, Basil says, "he is horribly thoughtless and seems to take a real delight in giving me pain." This discription of Dorian links him with Lord Henry Wotton as a manipulator... perhaps foreshadowing a close relationship.
The Portrait: The portrait is introduced practically as its own character. In chpt. 2 Basil speaks about destroying the painting, but does not because Dorian says, "it would be murder." Again, they are treating the portrait like a human... and forshadowing future events.
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