Riassunto
Trama e riassunto di The Picture of Dorian Gray
A chi è rivolto
For readers who love Gothic tales, sharp dialogue, and questions about art and conscience, with a supernatural portrait at the heart of a story about beauty, pleasure, and guilt.
Che cos’è questo libro
The Picture of Dorian Gray is a novel by Oscar Wilde, the Irish writer and playwright. It first appeared in a magazine in 1890, and Wilde added chapters and a preface for the book edition in 1891. Critics of the day attacked it as unhealthy and immoral, and Wilde defended it in print. It is his only novel, and it blends a drawing room comedy of manners with a dark tale of the supernatural.
The story is set in London in the late Victorian years. A painter, a witty lord and a strikingly beautiful young man meet in a studio, and one careless wish changes the young man's life. You will get the shape of the plot, the people who drive it, the ideas about beauty, pleasure and guilt that Wilde puts under pressure, and the way he tells it. The first key point begins in a garden full of roses, where a painter is trying to finish a portrait.
In questo riassunto
- 1A painter finds his perfect subjectFree
- 2Lord Henry plants a dangerous wish
- 3The portrait begins to change
- 4Pleasure takes the place of conscience
- 5What the story is really about
- 6How Wilde tells it
Punto chiave 1 di 6
A painter finds his perfect subject
The novel opens in the studio of Basil Hallward, a painter whose house is full of the scent of roses and lilac. His friend Lord Henry Wotton lies on a divan, smoking and watching Basil work on a tall portrait of a young man. The young man is Dorian Gray, and Basil admits that meeting him changed his art.
Basil explains that Dorian's face and manner gave him a new way of seeing. He says he has put too much of himself into the portrait, and for that reason he does not want to show it in public. This is an early sign that the painting is not just a likeness. It holds the painter's feeling, and that feeling will matter later.
Lord Henry is delighted by the idea of the young man and asks to meet him. Basil refuses at first. He does not want Dorian spoiled by Lord Henry's cynical talk, because he knows how easily that talk wins people over. Wilde sets up the first tension here, between a man who worships beauty with a pure heart and a man who plays with ideas for the pleasure of it.
Of course the meeting happens anyway. Dorian arrives to sit for the last time, and Basil can only watch as the two men begin to talk. Dorian is described as young, innocent and open, a person who has never been taught what his looks are worth. That is exactly what makes him easy to shape, and the next scene shows how quickly it begins.
That’s 1 of 6 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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Who’s who
- Dorian Gray
- A beautiful young man whose portrait Basil paints and whose views Lord Henry begins to shape.
- Basil Hallward
- A painter devoted to Dorian, Basil admires his beauty and worries about Lord Henry's influence.
- Lord Henry Wotton
- Basil's witty aristocratic friend, Lord Henry fascinates Dorian with provocative ideas about pleasure and living.
- Sibyl Vane
- A young actress performing Shakespeare in a modest London theatre, Sibyl falls in love with Dorian.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 80,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 5 h 20 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary; paperback, hardcover and large print at cost
- LanguagesEnglish and 14 other languages
Questions about The Picture of Dorian Gray
What is The Picture of Dorian Gray about?
It tells of a handsome young man in Victorian London who wishes that his portrait would age instead of him. The wish is granted, and the story follows what he does once his face no longer shows his actions.
Who is Lord Henry in The Picture of Dorian Gray?
Lord Henry Wotton is a witty aristocrat and friend of the painter Basil Hallward. He speaks in clever sayings about youth and pleasure, and his ideas strongly influence Dorian's choices.
When was The Picture of Dorian Gray written?
It first appeared in a magazine in 1890. Wilde expanded it and added a preface for the book edition in 1891. It is a work of fiction, set in his own time.
Is The Picture of Dorian Gray hard to read?
The plot moves clearly. The witty dialogue keeps the book lively.
What is the main message of The Picture of Dorian Gray?
Wilde shows what happens to a person who lives only for beauty and pleasure and escapes every consequence. Readers differ on the exact lesson, but most see a warning about vanity and a hidden conscience.