Oscar Wilde’s "The Picture of Dorian Gray" is a philosophical novel and a masterpiece of Gothic horror that explores the nature of beauty, sin, and the soul. The story begins with the stunningly handsome young man, Dorian Gray, having his portrait painted by the artist Basil Hallward. In the studio, he meets Lord Henry Wotton, a decadent and witty aristocrat who espouses a new hedonism, convincing Dorian that beauty and sensual pleasure are the only things in life worth pursuing. Distraught at the thought that his youth and looks will fade while the portrait remains forever young, Dorian thoughtlessly wishes that the painting would bear the marks of age and sin instead of his own body. To his horror, his wish is granted. As Dorian plunges into a life of increasingly debauched and cruel acts, his face remains unlined and innocent, while the portrait hidden in his attic becomes a grotesque and aged record of his every sin. Oscar Wilde uses this supernatural premise to craft a sharp critique of Victorian society’s hypocrisy, where appearance is everything and corruption lies beneath a polished surface. The novel is a chilling meditation on the cost of vanity and the pursuit of pleasure, asking whether a man can sever his soul from his physical being and what remains when he succeeds.

Table of Contents:

• The Picture of Dorian Gray. Part 1

• The Picture of Dorian Gray. Part 2

• The Picture of Dorian Gray. Part 3

• The Picture of Dorian Gray. Part 4