The Picture of Dorian Gray
SynopsisPlot
Enthralled by his own exquisite portrait, Dorian Gray makes a Faustian bargain to sell his soul in exchange for eternal youth and beauty. Under the influence of Lord Henry Wotton, he is drawn into a corrupt double life, where he is able to indulge his desires while remaining a gentleman in the eyes of polite society. Only Dorian's picture bears the traces of his decadence.
Story
About this book
Dorian Gray is a young man in Victorian London whose striking appearance becomes the subject of a painting by his friend Basil Hallward. When Dorian first sees the finished portrait, he is so struck by his own beauty that he wishes the painting could age in his place, leaving him forever young. That wish comes true. As the years pass, Dorian's face stays untouched while the canvas slowly changes, recording every cruelty and indulgence he pursues behind closed doors.
Much of Dorian's transformation is guided by Lord Henry Wotton, a witty aristocrat who encourages him to treat pleasure as the highest purpose in life. Dorian takes this philosophy further than Lord Henry likely imagines, leading a double existence in which his public reputation remains largely intact while the portrait hidden upstairs tells a different story. The novel follows the widening gap between the man society sees and the image only Dorian himself can bear to look at.
Oscar Wilde first published a shorter version of the story in Lippincott's Monthly Magazine in July 1890, with an expanded novel-length edition appearing in April 1891. The book is set in London's drawing rooms, theatres, and opium dens, and it explores vanity, influence, and the cost of living without moral consequence.
