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The narrator of “William Wilson” tells the story of his moral decline as he nears death. He pinpoints the murder of his doppelganger, William Wilson, as the defining event that led to his complete descent into depravity. The narrator introduces himself as having a hedonistic streak nurtured by a lack of parental control. However, beyond mere hedonism, cruelty appears to be an essential part of the narrator’s pleasure. For example, it’s not enough for him to enjoy gambling, he must use gambling tricks to fleece those he considers beneath him. In addition to his fears over the doppelganger Wilson’s identity, he primarily wants to kill Wilson because he puts a check on the narrator’s behavior. However, removing the last obstacle to his crimes does not ultimately bring the narrator joy. He refuses to talk about or dwell upon his worst crimes. He never mentions a spouse or friends. Given that his real name has become infamous, it’s safe to assume his behavior has made him an outcast from polite society. The narrator has gotten what he wanted: the complete freedom to sin. But in doing so he has cut himself off from companionship, love, and mercy.
Before the murder, the narrator thinks very highly of himself, and his desire to be unique and distinguished is a vital part of his self-image. At Dr. Bransby’s Academy, this narcissism seems only to appear in his desire to be the dominant student in the class. He distinguishes himself from others by emphasizing that, despite his common name, he has a “noble descent,” indicating a distant noble relative. This proximity to nobility is extremely important to the narrator. He imagines that his hangers-on at Oxford might describe him as “the noblest and most liberal commoner at Oxford”—as if only his lack of title separates him from his noble classmates. The existence of a double challenges his belief in his unique superiority. Ironically, at the end of his life, the narrator has distinguished himself from all others in his depravity. He uses a pseudonym in the story not because of his old hatred of his common name, but because his real name has become so infamous that he wants to distance himself from it.
