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The Picture of Dorian Gray

Oscar Wilde · 1890

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde follows a striking young man in Victorian London who becomes the muse for artist Basil Hallward. Influenced by the cynical and hedonistic Lord Henry Wotton, Dorian becomes obsessed with his own physical beauty and makes a Faustian wish: that his newly painted portrait will bear the burden of age and moral corruption while he remains eternally young.

As Dorian descends into a life of secret debauchery, cruelty, and eventual murder, his outward appearance remains pristine and unblemished. Meanwhile, the hidden portrait, locked away in his attic, becomes increasingly hideous and grotesque, reflecting the true rot of his soul. The novel explores themes of aestheticism, vanity, moral duplicity, and the destructive consequences of prioritizing superficial pleasure over human empathy.

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Contents

  1. Opening pages5 items
  2. 1THE PREFACE26 items
  3. 2CHAPTER IMembers
  4. 3CHAPTER IIMembers
  5. 4CHAPTER IIIMembers
  6. 5CHAPTER IVMembers
  7. 6CHAPTER VMembers
  8. 7CHAPTER VIMembers
  9. 8CHAPTER VIIMembers
  10. 9CHAPTER VIIIMembers
  11. 10CHAPTER IXMembers
  12. 11CHAPTER XMembers
  13. 12CHAPTER XIMembers
  14. 13CHAPTER XIIMembers
  15. 14CHAPTER XIIIMembers
  16. 15CHAPTER XIVMembers
  17. 16CHAPTER XVMembers
  18. 17CHAPTER XVIMembers
  19. 18CHAPTER XVIIMembers
  20. 19CHAPTER XVIIIMembers
  21. 20CHAPTER XIXMembers
  22. 21CHAPTER XXMembers
  23. 22BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTEMembers

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