THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY

“The soul is a Terrible reality. it can be bought And sold and bartered away.” Meet Dorian Gray, the beautiful young man with an impossibly charming face and spirit. as he sits for Basil Hallward—a deeply moral artist and a friend of the impish Lord Henry—who becomes obsessed with his beauty and wants to paint him, Dorian is enchanted by the perfection of his portrait. But, influenced by the well-phrased epigrams of the hedonist Lord Henry on the transience of youth and beauty, Dorian becomes jealous of it and wishes that the portrait bear the scars of his passing youth and age, while he would remain young forever. And Alas, his wish comes true! Enticed into dissolution and degradation while his portrait is aging in the attic, Dorian engages in scandals and sinful pleasures. We see him go from good to evil. But is he any happier? The only novel written by Oscar Wilde, the Picture of Dorian Gray is an arresting moral commentary and a classic example of Gothic fiction. with an unparalleled depiction of the Faustian bargain, this parable of aesthetic ideal remains a literary masterpiece almost 125 years after its publication. The Picture of Dorian Gray scandalized readers when it was first published in 1890. Written in Wilde’s signature style, the story has gone on to become an enduring tale of man’s hubris and narcissism. The well-known artist Basil Hallward meets the young Dorian Gray in the stately London home of his aunt, Lady Brandon. Basil becomes immediately infatuated with Dorian, who is cultured, wealthy, and remarkably beautiful. Such beauty, Basil believes, is responsible for a new mode of art, and he decides to paint a portrait of the young man. While finishing the painting, Basil reluctantly introduces Dorian to his friend Lord Henry Wotton, a man known for scandal and exuberance. Wotton inspires Dorian to live life through the senses, to feel beauty in everyday experience. Dorian becomes enthralled by Wotton’s ideas, and more so becomes obsessed with remaining young and beautiful. He expresses a desire to sell his soul and have the portrait of him age, while he, the man, stays eternally young. A tragic story of hedonism and desire, The Picture of Dorian Gray is Oscar Wilde’s only published novel.