The picture of Dorian Gray Summary | Novel by Oscar Wilde

The picture of Dorian Gray 

by Oscar Wilde

The Picture of Dorian Gray is a novel that centers on Dorian Gray, a beautiful, yet susceptible young man who has recently inherited a fortune.

 The setting is London in the 1800s, better known as the Victorian Age. At the beginning of the novel, we see Dorian arrive in London where he quickly meets a friend named Basil Hallward.

Basil, a painter becomes fixated on capturing the beauty of Dorian through painting. This portrait of Dorian is set to be Basil’s masterpiece. Next, Dorian meets another man named Lord Henry who is almost the opposite of Basil.

Lord Henry is completely transfixed on pleasure seeking, and practices it while mocking those who attempt to alleviate human suffering. Lord Henry is a twisted person. He tells Dorian that he should enjoy his youth and seek out all the pleasure he can.

Lord Henry remarks to Dorian that although he is beautiful now, it will all fade through time. When Basil finishes his portrait of Dorian, it immediately begins to serve as a reminder that even though the painting of Dorian will remain beautiful, Dorian himself will grow old and lose his youthful beauty.

Having been influenced by Lord Henry, Dorian makes the wish that the painting would bear the toll of time and sin instead of him. In exchange, he offers his soul. Interestingly, Basil’s view is the opposite as Lord Henry. He embraces the outlook that beauty is so breath taking because it doesn’t last. 

It is not something to cling to. Next, Dorian meets Sibyl Vane whom he falls in love with. Due to his new found love, Dorian rejects Lord Henry’s philosophy of hedonism, or pleasure seeking. Then, Dorian, Henry and Basil all head to the theatre to watch a play in which Sibyl is acting. However, Sibyl’s performance is horrible and Henry and Basil end up leaving.

Because of her real love for Dorian, she has no interest in playing the characters of the plays. She decides to quit acting. Dorian promptly rejects her, believing that he had fallen in love not with her, but with her acting. He meanly tells Sibyl that he never wants to see her again. After a night of wandering, he goes home and sees that the portrait has developed an ugly sneer.

Repulsed by this, Dorian realizes he wants to apologize to Sibyl the next day. However, it’s too little too late as Sibyl committed suicide that night. The sadistic Lord Henry twists the meaning of Sibyl’s death.

 He convinces Dorian to view her suicide asan artistic expression of love and to not be sad about it. The portrait becomes more grotesque with every sin that Dorian commits which motivates him to hide the painting.

Next, Dorian becomes entranced when he starts reading a book about a young Parisian man who spends his life seeking out pleasure. He has the book bound in 12 different colours to match his varying moods. As he continues to see the painting age, hebe comes worried about someone breaking into his home and stealing it.

As he’s been living his scandalous lifestyle,he has acquired a lot of enemies who would like to expose Dorian if only they knew the truth. Years had passed when Basil sees Dorian on the street. Basil tries to bring him back to the proverbial light side. He begs Dorian to use his power and influence for good, as opposed to the evil that he’s been using it for.

Dorian states that he’d wish to show Basil his soul, and Dorian leads Basil to the area where he keeps the portrait barred up.

Shocked, Basil sees the disgusting and festering version of Dorian in the painting. Stricken with rage from the portrait Dorian murders Basil. The next morning Dorian asks for help in disposing of the body from Alan Campbell, who is a scientist and a former close friend. Campbell refuses at first, but eventually agrees to help Dorian when he is blackmailed.

In the next scene, Dorian attends a party which he finds rather boring. That night he decides to go to an opium den. Instead of facing his sins, he commits himself to forgetting them through drug abuse. After leaving the opium den, he is followedby a man who turns out to be Sibyl’s brother, James. James is seeking revenge.

However, Dorian tricks James into believing that he is not Dorian as he has the face of a 20 year old and roughly 18 years had passed since Dorian and Sibyl’s relationship. Later, James learns from a lady at the opium den that it was in fact Dorian and that he simply doesn’t age. Next, Dorian is entertaining guest at his country estate. However, he becomes ill when he sees the face of James outside.

Although at first he locks himself up in his house to avoid James, he eventually goes on a hunting trip. A man is accidentally shot, and it turns out to be James. Dorian is relieved. Dorian is then speaking with Lord Henry and hints that he had killed Basil. Speaking aloud, Dorian wonders whether he can change. He notes that earlier he had not taken advantage of a young innkeeper’s daughter.

However, when he goes to check the painting to see it had helped, the painting is even worse. Now it has grown a look of cunning and a wrinkle of a hypocrite. Frustrated, he stabs the heart of the painting. Dorian Gray becomes the grotesque and festering man from the painting, while the painting reverts to its original beauty. Dorian Gray lies dead on the floor, with the sword in his heart.

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