Showing results for "The Picture of Dorian Gray" in Arts & Entertainment

Enthralled by his own exquisite portrait, Dorian Gray exchanges his soul for eternal youth and beauty. Influenced by his friend Lord Henry Wotton, he is drawn into a corrupt double life, indulging his desires in secret while remaining a gentleman in the eyes of polite society. Only his portrait bears the traces of his decadence. The Picture of Dorian Gray was a succès de scandal. Early readers were shocked by its hints of unspeakable sins, and the book was later used as evidence against Wilde at his trial at the Old Bailey in 1895.

LibriVox recording of The Picture of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde.Source: https://archive.org/details/dorian_gray_librivox Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"The Picture of Dorian Gray" by Oscar Wilde is a mesmerizing tale of vanity, corruption, and the consequences of indulgence. Set in Victorian London, it follows the story of Dorian Gray, a young man whose portrait ages while he remains eternally youthful due to a Faustian bargain. As Dorian descends into a life of hedonism and moral decay, the portrait becomes a haunting reflection of his inner darkness, leading to a chilling climax that explores the limits of beauty, morality, and the pursuit of pleasure.

Dorian Gray, a young man of wealth and stature in late 1800's London, meets Lord Henry Wotton while posing for a portrait by his friend Basil Hallward. Once the painting is complete, Dorian realizes that it will always be young and attractive, while he will be forced to age and wither with the years. Carelessly, he wishes the opposite were true. What happens is a treatise on morals, self-indulgence and how crucial personal responsibility is towards one's self. (Summary by John Gonzalez)

The novel tells of a young man named Dorian Gray, the subject of a painting by artist Basil Hallward. Basil is impressed by Dorian's beauty and becomes infatuated with him, believing his beauty is responsible for a new mode in his art. Dorian meets Lord Henry Wotton, a friend of Basil's, and becomes enthralled by Lord Henry's world view. Espousing a new hedonism, Lord Henry suggests the only things worth pursuing in life are beauty and fulfillment of the senses. Realizing that one day his beauty will fade, Dorian expresses his desire to sell his soul to ensure the portrait Basil has painted ...