“My enemy hath found me out, and there is no hope of peace or rest for me on this side of the grave.” This quotation comes from the novel ‘Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner’ and is one which portrays that message that both Hogg and Wilde are attempting to communicate. One interpretation of the quotation rests on the understanding of the phrase “found me out” here the suggestion is that an enemy has discovered a hidden flaw within someone and has exploited it to their own advantage, to such an extent that they will never again find peace outside of death. This interpretation could be applied to the main characters of both ‘Confessions of a Justified Sinner’ and ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’ where both are tempted to commit the most heinous crimes. In both novels there exist characters who personify temptation and who are used by the authors to physically represent evil though each novel exists within very specific and different contexts. These differences become apparent when looking at the purposes that the authors have when writing. Hogg shows how an unquestioning belief in a religious doctrine makes one open to manipulation from outside influences and exposes the irrationality of this belief. In comparison Wilde shows the excitement of breaking society’s rules and living solely for one’s own pleasure. Ultimately however both of the major characters have to pay for their sins. ‘The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner’ was written in 1824 and set in the early 1700s. Whilst ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’ was both written and set in 1890s London. Within Hogg’s novel the main character is Robert Wringham who belongs’ to a religious Protestant sect who believe in the ‘infallibility of the elect’ which is the belief that people are pre-ordained by God to go to Heaven or Hell and that nothing that they do whilst on Earth will change that. It is when Robert becomes convinced that he is one of the elect that his tempter ‘Gil Martin’ makes himself known. Within ‘A Picture of Dorian Gray’ the main character is Dorian Gray who begins the novel as a young man having his portrait painted during which time he meets Lord Henry Wotton who is used by Wilde to personify temptation and corruption. The novel follows Dorian Gray and shows how his life becomes increasingly corrupt and ‘evil’ based on the ideas given to him by Lord Henry. This change is shown physically in the portrait which symbolically represents the beginning of Dorian’s descent into evil, ‘A touch of cruelty to the mouth’ the use of the word “cruelty” shows the reader that the changes in the portrait reflect the changes in Dorian’s character. Both of these novels show the dissension of human life either from good intentions or a vain search for pleasure, both leading to the destruction of others and themselves. The presentation of evil however must be plausible. Therefore from Dr Faustus by Christopher Marlow until the present, evil is often presented as being reasonable and rational. This is shown in both of the novels, and is presented within the two characters Gil – Martin and Lord Henry Wotton who in their own way tempt both Robert Wringham and Dorian Gray. Robert is presented by Hogg as an arrogant religious fanatic “Who made thee a judge of the actions or dispositions of the Almighty’s creaturesHath he not made one vessel to honour and another to dishonour, as in the case of myself and thee” this is particularly ironic due to the contrast between the biblical style of speaking and the arrogant, insulting words being said. This is a contrast which continues throughout the novel, originating from his belief in his ability to do anything without repercussion. However Dorian Gray, while also being arrogant is more interested in having fun than dedicating himself to a single ideal “You have only a few years in which to live really, perfectly, and fully” again the irony is the use of “perfectly” since the perfection is freedom from all rules. His vain personality means that he lives solely for his own pleasure without thinking of the needs of others. Like a virus corrupting a weak immune system, the persuasive Gil-Martin and Lord Henry attack weak spots in Robert and Dorian’s personality, changing both their mind set and behavior. Within both of the novels it is the desires of the