portrait of dorian gray essay

A Summary and Analysis of Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

The Picture of Dorian Gray is Oscar Wilde’s one novel, published originally in 1890 (as a serial) and then in book form the following year. The novel is at once an example of late Victorian Gothic horror and , in some ways, the greatest English-language novel about decadence and aestheticism, or ‘art for art’s sake’.

To show how these themes and movements find their way into the novel, it’s necessary to offer some words of analysis. But before we analyse The Picture of Dorian Gray , it might be worth summarising the plot of the novel.

The Picture of Dorian Gray : summary

The three main characters in The Picture of Dorian Gray are the title character (a beautiful young man), Basil Hallward (a painter), and Lord Henry Wotton (Basil Hallward’s friend).

The novel opens with Basil painting Dorian Gray’s portrait. Lord Henry Wotton takes a shine to the young man, and advises him to be constantly in search of new ‘sensations’ in life. He encourages Dorian to drink deep of life’s pleasures.

When the picture of Dorian is finished, Dorian marvels at how young and beautiful he looks, before wishing that he could always remain as young and attractive while his portrait is the one that ages and decays, rather than the other way around. When he proclaims that he would give his soul to have such a wish granted, it’s as if he has made a pact with the devil.

Basil’s finished portrait is sent to Dorian’s house, while Dorian himself goes out and follows Lord Henry’s advice. He falls head over heels in love with an actress, Sibyl Vane, but when she loses her ability to act well – because, she claims, now she has fallen in love for real she cannot imitate it on the stage – Dorian cruelly discards her. He had fallen in love with her art as an actress, and now she has lost that, she is meaningless to him.

Sibyl takes her own life before Dorian – who has observed a change in his portrait, which looks to have a slightly meaner expression than before – can apologise to her and beg her forgiveness. But Lord Henry consoles Dorian, arguing that Sibyl, in dying young, has given her last beautiful performance.

Dorian, shocked by the change in the portrait, locks it away at the top of his house, in his old schoolroom. Inspired by an immoral ‘yellow book’ which Lord Henry gives to him, Dorian continues to experience all manner of ‘sensations’, no matter how immoral they are. When he next takes a look at the portrait in his attic, he finds an old and evil face, disfigured by sin, staring out at him.

The novel moves forward some thirteen years. Dorian, of course, is still young and fresh-faced, but his portrait looks meaner and older than ever. When Dorian shows the portrait to Basil, who painted it, the artist – who had worshipped Dorian’s beauty when he painted the picture – is shocked and appalled. Dorian stabs Basil to death, before enlisting the help of someone to dispose of the body (this man, horrified by what he has done, will later take his own life).

Dorian slides further into sin and evil, until one day, the brother of the dead actress, Sibyl Vane, bumps into Dorian Gray and intends to exact revenge for his sister’s mistreatment at the hands of Dorian. But when he follows Dorian to the latter’s country estate, he is accidentally shot by one of Dorian’s shooting party.

Dorian becomes intent on reforming his character, hoping that the portrait will start to improve if he behaves better. But when he goes up to look at the painting, he finds that it shows the face of a hypocrite, because even his abstinence from vice was, in its own way, a quest for a new sensation to experience.

Horrified and angered, Dorian plunges a knife into the canvas, but when the servants walk in on him, they find the portrait as it was originally painted, showing Dorian Gray as a youthful man. Meanwhile, on the floor, there is the body of a wrinkled old man with a ‘loathsome’ face.

The Picture of Dorian Gray : analysis

The Picture of Dorian Gray has been analysed as an example of the Gothic horror novel, as a variation on the theme of the ‘double’, and as a narrative embodying some of the key aspects of late nineteenth-century aestheticism and decadence.

Wilde’s skill lies in how he manages to weave these various elements together, creating a modern take on the old Faust story (the German figure Faust sold his soul to the devil, via Mephistopheles) which also, in its depictions of late Victorian sin and vice, may remind readers of another work of fiction published just four years earlier: Robert Louis Stevenson’s Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (which we’ve analysed here ).

Indeed, the discovery of the body of Dorian Gray as a wrinkled and horrifically ugly corpse at the end of the novel recalls the discovery of Jekyll/Hyde in Stevenson’s novella.

To find the novel’s value as a book of the aesthetic movement, we need look no further than Wilde’s preface to The Picture of Dorian Gray , in which he states, for instance, that ‘there is no such thing as a moral or immoral book’ (what matters is whether the book is written well or not) and ‘all art is quite useless’ (art shouldn’t change the world: art exists as, and for, itself, and no more).

Lord Henry Wotton is very much the voice of the aesthetic movement in the novel, and many of his pronouncements echo those made by the prominent art critic (under whom Wilde had studied at Oxford), Walter Pater. But whereas Pater talked of ‘new impressions’, Lord Henry (or Wilde, in his novel) took this up a notch, calling for new ‘sensations’.

We tend to speak conveniently of ‘periods’ or ‘movements’ or ‘eras’ in literary history, but these labels aren’t always useful. Both Oscar Wilde and Elizabeth Gaskell, the author of Mary Barton and North and South , were ‘Victorian’ in that they were both writing and publishing their work in Britain during the reign of Queen Victoria (1837-1901).

But whereas Gaskell, writing in the 1840s, 1850s, and 1860s, wrote ‘realist’ novels about the plight of factory workers in northern England, Wilde wrote a fantastical horror story about upper-class men who are able to stay forever young and spotless while their portraits decay in their attic. They’re a world away from each other.

Wilde’s novel is a good example of how later Victorian fiction often turned against the values and approaches favourited by earlier Victorian writers. It was Wilde who, famously, said of the sad ending of Dickens’s The Old Curiosity Shop , which Dickens’s original readers in the 1840s wept buckets over, ‘one must have a heart of stone to read the death of Little Nell without’ – what, crying?

No. Wilde’s word was ‘laughing’. The overly sentimental style favoured by mid-century novelists like Dickens had given way to a more casual, poised, nonchalant, and detached mode of storytelling.

At the same time, we can overstate the extent to which Wilde’s novel turns its back on earlier Victorian attitudes and values. Despite his statement that there is no such thing as a moral or immoral book, The Picture of Dorian Gray is a highly moral work, as the tale of Faust was. Dorian’s life is destroyed by his commitment to a life of pleasure, even though it entails the destruction of other lives – most notably, Sibyl Vane’s.

Far from being a book that would be denounced from the pulpits by Anglican clergymen for being ‘immoral’, The Picture of Dorian Gray could make for a pretty good moral sermon in itself, albeit one that’s more witty and entertaining than most Christian sermons.

The Picture of Dorian Gray is, at bottom, a novel of surfaces and appearance. We say ‘at bottom’, but that is precisely the point: the novel is, as many critics have commented, all surface. Lord Henry is so taken by the beauty of Dorian Gray that he sets about being a bad influence on him.

Dorian is so taken by the painting of him – a two-dimensional representation of his outward appearance – that he makes his deal with the devil, trading his soul, that thing which represents inner meaning and inner depth, in exchange for remaining youthful on the outside.

Then, when Dorian falls in love, it’s with an actress, not because he loves her but because he loves her performance. When she loses her ability to act, he abandons her. Her name, Sibyl Vane, points up the vanity of acting and the pursuit of skin-deep appearance at the cost if something more substantial, but her first name also acts as a warning: in Greek mythology, the Sibyls made cryptic statements about future events.

But there’s probably a particular Sibyl that Wilde had in mind: the Sibyl at Cumae, who, in Petronius’ scurrilous Roman novel Satyricon (which Wilde would surely have known) and in other stories, was destined to live forever but to age and wither away. She had eternal life, but not eternal youth. Dorian’s own eternal youth comes at a horrible cost: without a soul, all he can do is go in pursuit of new sensations, forever chasing desire yet never attaining true fulfilment.

It will, in the end, destroy him: in lashing out and trying to destroy the truth that stares back at him from his portrait, much as he had destroyed the artist who held up a mirror to his corrupt self, Dorian Gray destroys himself. In the last analysis, as he and his portrait do not exist separately from each other, he must live with himself – and with his conscience – or must die in his vain attempt to close his eyes to who he has really become.

About Oscar Wilde

The life of the Irish novelist, poet, essayist, and playwright Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) is as famous as – perhaps even more famous than – his work. But in a career spanning some twenty years, Wilde created a body of work which continues to be read an enjoyed by people around the world: a novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray ; short stories and fairy tales such as ‘ The Happy Prince ’ and ‘ The Selfish Giant ’; poems including The Ballad of Reading Gaol ; and essay-dialogues which were witty revivals of the Platonic philosophical dialogue.

But above all, it is Wilde’s plays that he continues to be known for, and these include witty drawing-room comedies such as Lady Windermere’s Fan , A Woman of No Importance , and The Importance of Being Earnest , as well as a Biblical drama, Salome (which was banned from performance in the UK and had to be staged abroad). Wilde is also often remembered for his witty quips and paradoxes and his conversational one-liners, which are legion.

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‘Genius lasts longer than beauty’ – a very appropriate quote from Chapter 1

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The “yellow book”, referred to is probably Huysmans’s A Rebours, which was sold in a yellow jacket. It is not the Yellow Book quarterly (a publication featuring poetry, prose and illustrations from followers of the Aesthetic movement), which came later, and which probably took its title from the reference in Wilde’s novel.

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The Picture of Dorian Gray

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The Picture of Dorian Gray , moral fantasy novel by Irish writer Oscar Wilde , published in an early form in Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine in 1890. The novel, the only one written by Wilde, had six additional chapters when it was released as a book in 1891. The work, an archetypal tale of a young man who purchases eternal youth at the expense of his soul, was a romantic exposition of Wilde’s own Aestheticism .

The story begins in the art studio of Basil Hallward, who is discussing a current painting with his witty and amoral friend Lord Henry Wotton. Henry thinks that the painting, a portrait of an extraordinarily beautiful young man, should be displayed, but Basil disagrees, fearing that his obsession with the portrait’s subject, Dorian Gray , can be seen in the work. Dorian then arrives, and he is fascinated as Henry explains his belief that one should live life to the fullest by indulging one’s impulses. Henry also points out that beauty and youth are fleeting, and Dorian declares that he would give his soul if the portrait were to grow old and wrinkled while he remained young and handsome. Basil gives the painting to Dorian.

Henry decides to take on the project of molding Dorian’s personality. A few weeks later, Dorian tells Henry that he has fallen in love with an actress, Sibyl Vane, because of her great beauty and acting talent. Henry and Basil go with him to a dingy theatre to see Sibyl, but her performance is terrible. Sibyl explains to Dorian that now that she knows what real love is, she can no longer pretend to be in love on stage. Dorian is repulsed and wants nothing further to do with her. When he returns home, he sees a cruel expression on the face of his portrait, and he decides to seek Sibyl’s forgiveness. Henry arrives the next day, however, with news that Sibyl committed suicide the previous night, and he convinces Dorian that there is no reason for him to feel badly about it.

Dorian has the portrait removed to his attic. Henry sends Dorian a book that he finds poisonous and fascinating (critics have suggested that it might be Against the Grain by Joris-Karl Huysmans ). Under the book’s influence, Dorian spends the next 18 years in the pursuit of capricious and sybaritic excess, and he becomes increasingly drawn to evil. He frequently visits the portrait, noting the signs of aging and of corruption that appear, though he himself remains unblemished.

One evening he runs into Basil, who tells him that there are rumours that he has destroyed the lives and reputations of many people. Dorian, however, refuses to accept blame. Basil declares that he clearly does not know Dorian, who responds by taking him to the attic to see the portrait. The painting has become horrifying. Basil tells Dorian that if this is a reflection of his soul, he must repent and pray for forgiveness, and a suddenly enraged Dorian murders Basil. He blackmails another former friend into disposing of the body.

Dorian goes to an opium den, where Sibyl’s vengeful brother, James, finds him, but the fact that Dorian still appears quite young dissuades him from acting. However, another patron of the den later divulges Dorian’s age. At a subsequent hunting party at Dorian’s country estate, one of the hunters accidentally shoots and kills James, who was hiding in a thicket.

Some weeks later Dorian tells Henry that he has decided to become virtuous and recently decided against taking advantage of a young girl who was smitten with him. Dorian goes to see if the portrait has improved because of his honourable act, but he sees rather that it has acquired a look of cunning. He decides to destroy the portrait and stabs it with a knife. His servants hear a scream, and, when they arrive, they see a loathsome old man dead on the floor with a knife in his chest and a portrait of the beautiful young man he once was.

“There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book,” wrote Wilde. “Book are well written, or badly written. That is all.” The aphorisms that make up the “Preface” of Wilde’s novel were his response to those critics who had denounced the immorality and unhealthiness of this story after its scandalous first appearance in Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine . However, for all its transgressive delights, The Picture of Dorian Gray could easily be read as a profoundly moral book, even a cautionary tale against the dangers of vice. Dorian’s descent into moral squalor is neither admirable nor enviable. Indeed, the beautiful boy is the least interesting character in the book that bears his name. To be sure, it is the epigrammatic wit of Lord Henry Wotton that encourages Dorian on his quest for sensuality and sensation, but Dorian’s values pervert the deeply serious Wildean ethic that they superficially resemble. Whereas Wilde’s essays advocated individualism and self-realization as a route to a richer life and a more just society, Dorian follows a path of hedonism, self-indulgence, and the objectification of others. It is nonetheless a story that poignantly reflects Wilde’s own double life and anticipates his own fall. Dorian’s negation, “Ugliness was the one reality,” neatly summarizes Wilde’s Aestheticism, both his love of the beautiful and his fascination with the profane.

Publication of the novel scandalized Victorian England, and The Picture of Dorian Gray was used as evidence against Wilde when he was tried and convicted in 1895 on charges related to homosexuality . The novel became a classic of English literature and was adapted into a number of films, most notably a 1945 version that was directed by Albert Lewin and received three Academy Award nominations .

The Picture of Dorian Gray Summary and Analysis

Home » Literature Explained – Literary Synopses and Book Summaries » The Picture of Dorian Gray » The Picture of Dorian Gray Summary and Analysis

Dorian Gray Introduction

The Picture of Dorian Gray is a novel written by Oscar Wilde and published in 1890. Having been no stranger to scandal in his personal life, Wilde’s novel brought the philosophy of aestheticism to the public eye.

Dorian Gray is in part gothic fiction, but it is also a comedy of errors, following a young and attractive socialite as he trades his soul for eternal youth and beauty. His descent into sin and hedonism lead him to question where one finds the real source of beauty in life.

Dorian Gray Literary Elements

Type of Work: Novel

Genres : Gothic; comedy of manners

Published Date: 1890

Setting: Late nineteenth century in London, England.

Main Characters: Dorian Gray, Basil Hallward, Lord Henry Wotton, Sibyl Vane

Protagonist: Dorian Gray

Antagonist: Dorian Gray; James Vane

Major Thematic Elements: Art’s purpose; youth and beauty as vehicles of influence; superficiality of society; the dangers of social influence

Motifs: The picture of Dorian Gray; white colors; homoerotic relationships

Exposition: Celebrated artist Basil Hallward meets Dorian Gray and, enthralled by his beauty, asks Dorian to sit as a model for his paintings.

Plot: chronological, through the eyes of an anonymous third person omniscient narrator

Major Symbols: Opium dens, James Vane, the yellow book

Climax: Dorian kills Basil

Literary Significance of Dorian Gray

At this point in Victorian England, this sort of attitude towards art was unusual and somewhat revolutionary. Until this point, art was expected to uphold and reinforce morals and so stripping art of that responsibility was bold and uncomfortable. In many ways, aestheticism failed to really uphold its core purpose because it did influence a social and artistic movement.

One of the reasons why The Picture of Dorian Gray is so widely studied to this day is because it brings this puzzling aspect of aestheticism to light. The novel is partly gothic fiction, partly a comedy of manners, and partly a philosophical engagement. The is much to be picked apart from this novel and just as Victorian audiences felt confused, many literary scholars still find areas to continue to disagree about in terms of deeper meaning.

The Picture of Dorian Gray Summary

In chapter two, Dorian woos the guests of the party with his charm and beauty. Dorian is going to sit for another portrait for Basil and he invites Lord Henry to stay and keep him company while he models. Basil dislikes the idea, saying that Lord Henry will be a bad influence on him. While Dorian models and Basil paints, the three discuss their personal philosophies. After the portrait is finished, Lord Henry admires it, but Dorian feels sad looking at it, suddenly aware that his youth and beauty will not last forever.

In chapter three, Lord Henry does some sleuthing into Dorian’s background. He finds out that the young man has an unhappy past, coming from a family with a troublesome social background. Lord Henry realizes that he could probably have great influence over Dorian because of this. The two go on to develop a friendship and when, weeks later, Dorian falls in love with a beautiful young woman, he is eager to tell Lord Henry all about it. The young lady is named Sibyl Vane and she is an actress who does Shakespeare plays. Dorian and Sibyl waste no time before getting engaged.

As Sibyl continues her acting career, she finds that her acting is terrible now that she is in love. She feels that pretend emotions are no longer interesting to her now that she has the real thing. Despite her acting career taking a hit, she is still happy. Dorian is appalled and no longer feels that he is in love with Sibyl. Distressed, Dorian wanders the streets of London alone. At this point in chapter seven, Dorian returns home to find that the portrait that Basil painted of him has developed a faint sneer. Dorian feels ashamed of himself and goes to bed with plans to make amends with Sibyl the next day.

The next morning, Dorian finds that the face in the painting has started to look even crueler than before. Lord Henry arrives and informs Dorian that Sibyl committed suicide after Dorian left her the previous night. Dorian resolves to live a life of hedonistic values and that he will maintain his youth and beauty while his portrait bears the marks of age and experience instead. Basil is hurt to find that this change has come over Dorian and blames Lord Henry’s influence. Basil requests to show the portrait at an art show, but Dorian refuses to allow it, instead keeping it hidden for himself behind a screen. In chapter ten, Dorian’s madness starts to really show. He has some men help him move the portrait into an abandoned school room near his apartment so that it can be kept away from prying eyes.

As years pass, Dorian maintains his youth and beauty as he falls more and more down a rabbit hole of hedonism. Rumors develop that he engages in sinful and dark behaviors and has made a pact with the devil. In chapter eleven, Dorian notices with delight the growing contradiction between his dark and corrupted soul and his youthful and innocent appearance. Dorian becomes paranoid that someone will find and steal his portrait.

Chapter twelve sees Dorian about to turn 38. While he is out the evening before his birthday, he passes Basil on the street. Basil follows Dorian home and confronts him about his behaviors, warning him that nobody can escape their sins. Basil asks Dorian about the rumors that trail him and why all of his relationships end in disaster. It is revealed that one young man who Dorian befriended committed suicide and others had their entire careers ruined. Basil laments that he wishes he could see Dorian’s soul, which amuses Dorian. He takes Basil to the painting to show him how he has maintained his beauty. Basil begs Dorian to pray for forgiveness but instead Dorian murders Basil by stabbing him repeatedly.

Overwhelmed, Dorian begins to seek out solace in opium dens. He knows that he cannot be forgiven for his sins, so he opts to forget them instead. In chapter sixteen, James Vane, Sibyl’s brother, has tracked Dorian down and threatens him at gunpoint. Dorian tricks James into thinking that he is not the right person, since it has been eighteen years since Sibyl’s death, but Dorian is clearly not old enough to have been responsible all those years ago. James lets Dorian leave but soon discovers that he had the responsible person all along.

Over the next couple of chapters, Dorian falls more and more paranoid and miserable. Terrified that James will catch up with him and kill him, Dorian can hardly leave his house. When he finally does, he feels that he sees bad omens and realizes that he has lost any ability to love. He wishes that he could feel anything.

In chapter nineteen, Dorian has finally had enough. He wants to try and find a way to live a life of virtue. He tells Lord Henry that he murdered Basil, but Lord Henry laughs and says that Dorian is not a vulgar enough person to have committed a murder. Finally, utterly lost and feeling trapped by a life of sin, in the final chapter of the book, Dorian takes a knife to the painting. When noises are heard by servants, they enter the room finding the portrait showing a young a beautiful Dorian and an old, ugly man on the floor with a knife through his heart.

The Picture of Dorian Gray Oscar Wilde

The Picture of Dorian Gray essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde.

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The Victorian Society Image In The Picture Of Dorian Gray

“The Picture of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde stands as a quintessential piece of Victorian literature, providing a profound commentary on the societal norms and values prevalent during the Victorian era. Set in the backdrop of 19th-century England, Wilde’s novel delves into the intricacies of human nature, the moral constraints of society, and the pursuit of aestheticism.

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Understanding the Victorian Society

Victorian society was characterized by a strict adherence to moral standards and social conventions. It was an era marked by conservatism, where appearances held paramount importance, and individuals were expected to conform to predetermined roles dictated by society.

Rigid Social Norms

The Victorian era was governed by rigid social hierarchies, where one’s social status was predetermined by birth. Class distinctions were deeply entrenched, and individuals were expected to adhere to the behavioral expectations associated with their respective social strata.

The Concept of Reputation

Maintaining a respectable reputation was of utmost importance in Victorian society. Any deviation from societal norms could result in social ostracization and condemnation. Thus, individuals were often compelled to prioritize their public image over their personal desires.

The Duality of Human Nature

Wilde’s exploration of human nature in “The Picture of Dorian Gray” centers around the dichotomy between one’s public facade and private reality.

The Public vs. the Private Self

Dorian Gray, the protagonist of the novel, epitomizes this duality, presenting himself as a paragon of virtue to society while indulging in hedonistic pursuits in private. This dissonance between his outward appearance and internal corruption serves as a commentary on the hypocrisy prevalent in Victorian society.

The Mask of Decency

Wilde’s portrayal of Dorian Gray as a charming and aesthetically pleasing individual underscores the superficiality of societal judgments based solely on appearances. Dorian’s pristine facade conceals his moral decay, challenging the notion of outward beauty as a reflection of inner virtue.

Art and Aestheticism in Victorian England

The Victorian era witnessed the emergence of the Aesthetic Movement, which prioritized the pursuit of beauty and sensual pleasure over moral and social obligations.

Aesthetic Movement

Led by figures such as Oscar Wilde, the Aesthetic Movement rebelled against the prevailing Victorian morality, advocating for the liberation of art from moral constraints. It celebrated beauty for its own sake and encouraged the pursuit of sensual experiences.

Wilde’s Aesthetic Ideals

Wilde’s own beliefs in the supremacy of art and beauty are reflected in “The Picture of Dorian Gray,” where he critiques the restrictive moral standards of Victorian society. Through Dorian’s pursuit of aesthetic perfection, Wilde challenges conventional notions of morality and explores the consequences of unrestrained hedonism.

Corruption and Decadence

Central to the narrative of “The Picture of Dorian Gray” is the theme of corruption and decadence, as Dorian descends into a life of debauchery and moral decay.

Influence of Society on Dorian

Dorian’s transformation from an innocent and virtuous youth into a morally bankrupt individual is influenced by the corrupting forces of society. His association with morally dubious characters and his immersion in the hedonistic pleasures of high society contribute to his downward spiral.

Consequences of Hedonism

Wilde uses Dorian’s eventual demise as a cautionary tale, highlighting the destructive consequences of unchecked hedonism and moral corruption. Dorian’s inability to reconcile his outward facade with his inner depravity ultimately leads to his tragic downfall.

The Portrait as a Mirror

Central to the narrative of “The Picture of Dorian Gray” is the eponymous portrait, which serves as a symbolic representation of Dorian’s soul.

Symbolism of the Portrait

The portrait functions as a mirror, reflecting the true nature of Dorian’s soul and serving as a visual representation of his moral decay. As Dorian indulges in increasingly immoral behavior, the portrait becomes increasingly grotesque, mirroring his inner corruption.

Reflection of Dorian’s Soul

Wilde utilizes the portrait as a literary device to explore the theme of moral conscience. The juxtaposition between Dorian’s outward appearance and the deteriorating state of the portrait underscores the incongruity between societal expectations and individual morality.

The Impact of Dorian Gray on Victorian Society

“The Picture of Dorian Gray” elicited considerable controversy upon its publication, challenging the moral sensibilities of Victorian society.

Critique on Hypocrisy

Wilde’s scathing critique of Victorian hypocrisy and double standards sparked public outcry, with many condemning the novel as immoral and decadent. The juxtaposition of Dorian’s outward charm with his inner corruption forced readers to confront the moral ambiguities inherent in Victorian society.

Challenging Conventional Morality

By subverting traditional notions of morality and virtue, Wilde forced readers to question the validity of societal norms and conventions. “The Picture of Dorian Gray” served as a catalyst for discussions surrounding the role of art in society and the boundaries of moral acceptability.

Legacy of The Picture of Dorian Gray

Wilde’s masterpiece continues to resonate with audiences to this day, leaving an indelible mark on literature and popular culture.

Literary Influence

“The Picture of Dorian Gray” remains a seminal work in the canon of English literature, admired for its wit, sophistication, and incisive social commentary. Its exploration of timeless themes such as beauty, morality, and the human condition ensures its enduring relevance.

Continued Relevance

Wilde’s exploration of the duality of human nature and the conflict between morality and desire remains as relevant today as it was during the Victorian era. The novel’s enduring popularity speaks to its universal themes and its ability to provoke thought and discussion across generations.

READ MORE : 

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“The Picture of Dorian Gray” stands as a timeless masterpiece that transcends the confines of its Victorian origins. Through its exploration of themes such as morality, aestheticism, and the duality of human nature, Wilde’s novel continues to captivate audiences and challenge societal norms.

Why is “The Picture of Dorian Gray” considered controversial?

The novel’s exploration of themes such as moral corruption, hedonism, and the duality of human nature challenged the prevailing moral sensibilities of Victorian society, leading to its controversial reception.

What role does the portrait play in “The Picture of Dorian Gray”?

The portrait serves as a symbolic representation of Dorian’s soul, reflecting his moral decay as he indulges in increasingly immoral behavior.

How does Wilde critique Victorian society in “The Picture of Dorian Gray”?

Wilde critiques Victorian society by exposing its hypocrisy and double standards, challenging conventional notions of morality and virtue.

What is the significance of aestheticism in the novel?

Aestheticism represents a rebellion against Victorian moral constraints, advocating for the pursuit of beauty and sensual pleasure for their own sake.

Why does “The Picture of Dorian Gray” continue to resonate with audiences today?

The novel’s exploration of timeless themes such as the conflict between morality and desire, the duality of human nature, and the pursuit of aestheticism ensures its continued relevance and popularity.

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The Picture of Dorian Gray

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The Mortality of Beauty and Youth

The trouble starts when Henry warns Dorian that his extraordinary beauty and youth will fade, and tells him to make the most of it. Dorian’s beauty is such that people are astonished by it and all of his advantages seem to come from it, even if he has got an interesting personality and wealth. With Henry’s words ringing in his ears, Dorian immediately views Basil ’s portrait of him in a new light. Rather than…

Surfaces, Objects and Appearances

Beauty is skin-deep in Dorian ’s circle of friends. He is welcomed and adored because of his beautiful appearance and even when his sins ruin lives, he always has a certain power because of his attractiveness. Dorian is at his peak when he is unaware of his own beauty, but when conscious of it, his life becomes about surface and appearance. His taste for fashion grows; he loves tapestries and jewels, very flat, decorative objects.

Art and the Imitation of Life

The novel opens with a theory of the purpose of art, which Wilde reasons out until he reaches that “all art is quite useless”. Whether or not this is some kind of warning from the narrator, we as readers don’t know, but what follows certainly seems to illustrate his point. It presents art in many forms and the danger of it when it is taken too literally or believed too deeply. It starts with a…

The power of one to affect another is a theme that pervades the novel. At first, Basil is influenced by his model Dorian . On a personal level, he is confused and changed by his romantic feelings, but Dorian’s influence is also more far-reaching, actually seeming to change Basil's ability for painting, and to change the painting itself in an almost supernatural way. Influence here describes an almost chemical change that one can assign to…

Women and Men

Lord Henry ’s philosophies frequently criticize women and marriage, and the era of Dorian Gray ’s London society, and indeed Oscar Wilde’s, becomes vivid to us in his dialogue. He says that women are a “decorative sex”, and that there are always only a few worth talking to. We see his marriage with Lady Victoria Wotton as a very separate affair, both parties leading distinct lives and meeting the other occasionally. When Victoria leaves him…

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Home — Essay Samples — Literature — The Picture of Dorian Gray — Depiction Of The Victorian Society In The Picture Of Dorian Gray

Depiction of The Victorian Society in The Picture of Dorian Gray

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Published: Dec 16, 2021

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Immorality in “The Portrait of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde Essay

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The issue of immortality as portrayed in the novel ‘The Portrait of Dorian Gray’ is one of the main themes, which the novel unveils throughout its plot. In this novel, the writer tries to bring out the issue of immortality in which various happenings seem to portray an aspect of immorality; as various events unfold from one scenario to another (Kohl, 1989: 138-145).

One situation where immortality is well reflected is when Lord Henry tells Dorian to seek to preserve her beauty and seek pleasurable activities. Dorian on learning this seems to think his beauty is ‘long-lasting’; thus his portrait that Basil was painting seemed to be the one which was mortal on his behalf (Gillespie, 1995: 24-54).

This character of Dorian expressing both good outward appearance and bad inner self is shown when Lord Henry says, “Crime belongs exclusively to the lower orders… I should fancy that crime was to them as art is to us, simply a method of procuring extraordinary sensations” on explaining the character of Dorian. As Dorian sins refusing Sybil’s hand in love affairs; compelling her not to stop acting, he notices she is not interested anymore in the art of acting. Sybil’s act of showing Dorian true love and not interested in acting anymore reveals the immortality of love in Sybil for Dorian, but not the pretended love in acting (Kohl, 1989: 138-145).

The portrait of Dorian is unveiling the untold immortality in it; when Dorian is killed by James and his portrait left lying by his side showing his beauty yet, he as the living had died. Further, it is ironic that Dorian previously was referring to his image as mortal while he was describing himself as the mortal one. This novel ends up by showing how the mortal beauty can still be preserved in portraits while our human body can never be immortal; as shown by the killing of Dorian by James, Sybil’s brother (Gillespie, 1995: 24-54).

The separation of the body from the character is well explicated by Dorian who to a great extent is very handsome physically, but his character does not reflect his physical appearance. As Dorian’s body is very beautiful his personality on the other hand is portrayed as quite daring, and this is shown when he kills Basil just because he focused on the sneering of his portrait once he sins. The portrait of Dorian is showing the shadow of Dorian’s beauty; which is the controversy with Dorian’s personality (Kohl, 1989: 138-145).

For instance, as it happens to Sybil who falls deeply in love with Dorian explains how she was easily carried away by Dorian’s beauty; when she explains of him as ‘the charming Prince’. He falls in love with Dorian so deeply that she even extends to leave her career of acting to show her real love to Dorian, instead of the pretended love she showed in acting. This to a great extent shows the immortality of the love in Sybil for Dorian; which she finds it hard to mix with the temporary and pretended love in her acting (Gillespie, 1995: 24-54).

Generally, the theme of immortality as it is revealed throughout the plot of the book seems to constitute the writer’s main focus on writing this novel. To a great extent, the author succeeds to bring into focus the issue of symbolism and how various happenings or objects reflect immortality in this book to a greater insight of the book.

Works cited

Gillespie, Michael. “The Picture of Dorian Gray: What the World Thinks Me.” Twayne: Twayne Publishers, 1995: 24-54.

Kohl, Norbert. “Oscar Wilde: The Works of a Conformist Rebel.” Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 1989: 138-145.

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IvyPanda. (2021, December 22). Immorality in “The Portrait of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde. https://ivypanda.com/essays/immorality-in-the-portrait-of-dorian-gray-by-oscar-wilde/

"Immorality in “The Portrait of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde." IvyPanda , 22 Dec. 2021, ivypanda.com/essays/immorality-in-the-portrait-of-dorian-gray-by-oscar-wilde/.

IvyPanda . (2021) 'Immorality in “The Portrait of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde'. 22 December.

IvyPanda . 2021. "Immorality in “The Portrait of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde." December 22, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/immorality-in-the-portrait-of-dorian-gray-by-oscar-wilde/.

1. IvyPanda . "Immorality in “The Portrait of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde." December 22, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/immorality-in-the-portrait-of-dorian-gray-by-oscar-wilde/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "Immorality in “The Portrait of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde." December 22, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/immorality-in-the-portrait-of-dorian-gray-by-oscar-wilde/.

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Narrative Summary of The Picture of Dorian Gray

Overview:  

I’m reading the classic novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, by Oscar Wilde. It’s a story about a man named Dorian Gray who makes a pact with the devil to maintain his youthful beauty while a portrait of him ages to reflect his sins. It’s a chilling exploration of the pursuit of eternal youth, the corrupting power of hedonism, and the consequences of moral decay.

Main parts:

• The Introduction:  The story starts with artist Basil Hallward revealing his portrait of Dorian Gray to his friend Lord Henry Wotton. Lord Henry, with his cynical and hedonistic views, starts to influence Dorian.
• Dorian’s Transformation:  Lord Henry’s influence on Dorian is profound. He awakens Dorian’s desires and convinces him that beauty and youth are the only things worth pursuing. Dorian makes a wish to remain young forever, and the portrait bears the burden of his sins.
• Dorian’s Descent:  Dorian indulges in a life of pleasure and sin, while the portrait reflects the consequences. This descent into hedonism leads him to a life of corruption, isolation, and self-destruction.
• The Consequences of Sin:  The portrait becomes a constant reminder of Dorian’s moral decay. He becomes increasingly obsessed with his own beauty and tries to hide the portrait from the world.
• Dorian’s Regret and Basil’s Death:  Dorian experiences a brief moment of remorse and tries to change his ways but ultimately succumbs to his desires. He accidentally kills Basil, who had confronted him about his lifestyle, and becomes consumed by fear and guilt.
• The Final Confrontation:  Dorian’s soul is finally revealed in the portrait, which becomes a monstrous reflection of his true nature. He attempts to destroy the portrait but is ultimately confronted by his own reflection, leading to his final demise.

View on Life:

• Lord Henry’s Hedonism:  Lord Henry advocates for a life of pleasure, believing that self-indulgence and the pursuit of sensations are the only things worth living for. He rejects conventional morality and values the pursuit of pleasure above all else. This view is based on a cynical outlook on life and a belief that happiness lies in satisfying one’s desires.
• Basil’s Traditional Morality:  Basil represents a more traditional view of morality. He believes in the importance of a good life, based on love, friendship, and artistic integrity. He is horrified by Dorian’s hedonism and the destructive path he chooses. His values stem from a belief in the inherent goodness of the soul and the importance of living a life of purpose.
• Dorian’s Transformation:  Initially, Dorian is drawn to the beauty of life and the power of youth. He embraces Lord Henry’s hedonism but ultimately experiences regret and a desire for redemption. However, his hedonistic desires and fear of losing his beauty ultimately lead him to a life of sin and self-destruction.
• The Artist’s Studio:  Basil Hallward unveils the portrait of Dorian Gray to Lord Henry, who begins to influence Dorian with his philosophy of pleasure. This sets the stage for Dorian’s transformation.
• The Theatre:  Dorian’s passionate love for actress Sibyl Vane becomes his obsession. He sees her as the embodiment of beauty and artistry, unaware that her talent lies in her ability to portray fictional characters.
• Sibyl’s Death:  The shocking death of Sibyl Vane, driven by her disillusionment with life and love, is a turning point in Dorian’s journey. It reveals the shallowness of his love and the fragility of human life.
• The Locked Room:  Dorian hides the portrait of himself in a locked room, hoping to conceal the consequences of his actions and maintain his youthful beauty. It becomes a symbolic prison, trapping him in his self-deception and isolation.
• The Confrontation:  Basil confronts Dorian about his life, causing a terrifying encounter that culminates in Basil’s accidental death. This act further pushes Dorian down a path of darkness and reveals the true extent of his corruption.

Challenges:

• Dorian’s Internal Conflict:  Dorian grapples with the consequences of his choices, torn between his desire for pleasure and his desire for redemption. His pursuit of beauty leads him to a constant struggle with his own conscience.
• Lord Henry’s Influence:  Dorian struggles to resist the corrupting influence of Lord Henry’s hedonistic philosophy, which undermines his moral compass and encourages him to prioritize pleasure above all else.
• The Portrait’s Revelation:  The changing portrait serves as a constant reminder of Dorian’s moral decline and becomes a source of fear and self-loathing. He tries to escape from it, but it ultimately haunts him until his final reckoning.
• Dorian’s Struggle with Morality:  Dorian’s internal conflict between his desire for pleasure and his conscience is the central conflict of the novel. He seeks to satisfy his desires without facing the consequences, but his sins ultimately catch up with him.
• Dorian vs. Basil:  Dorian’s friendship with Basil represents his longing for a moral life. However, his hedonism and Basil’s insistence on a more traditional way of life lead to a conflict that ends in Basil’s tragic demise.
• Dorian vs. Himself:  The ultimate conflict lies within Dorian himself, between his desire for beauty and his fear of the consequences of his actions. He tries to suppress his conscience and escape responsibility, but the portrait serves as a constant reminder of his true nature.
• Dorian’s Introduction:  Dorian Gray is a young man of extraordinary beauty who is introduced to Lord Henry Wotton.
• Lord Henry’s Influence:  Lord Henry instills in Dorian a belief that beauty and youth are the only things worth pursuing and that pleasure is the key to happiness.
• Dorian’s Wish:  Dorian makes a wish to remain eternally young, transferring the burden of his sins to the portrait.
• Dorian’s Hedonistic Lifestyle:  Dorian indulges in a life of pleasure, committing various sins.
• The Portrait’s Transformation:  The portrait gradually changes to reflect Dorian’s corruption, serving as a constant reminder of his moral decay.
• Basil’s Confrontation:  Basil confronts Dorian about his life, leading to a confrontation that ends in Basil’s death.
• Dorian’s Guilt and Regret:  Dorian experiences a brief moment of remorse but ultimately returns to his hedonistic ways.
• The Final Confrontation:  Dorian attempts to destroy the portrait but is ultimately confronted by his own reflection and chooses to end his life.

Point of view:

• Third-person narrative:  The story is told from an objective third-person perspective, allowing the reader to see the events and characters from a detached viewpoint. This perspective provides a balanced view of the characters’ actions and allows for greater insight into their motivations.
• Dorian’s Internal Monologue:  The novel often delves into Dorian’s thoughts and feelings, revealing his internal struggles and his shifting moral compass. This provides a more intimate and complex understanding of his character.
• Lord Henry’s Philosophical Perspective:  The novel also explores the story through Lord Henry’s cynical and hedonistic lens, offering a contrasting view of life and morality. This perspective provides a counterpoint to the more traditional values held by Basil and highlights the themes of corruption and self-destruction.

How it’s written:

• Elegant prose:  Wilde uses a highly ornate and descriptive style, filled with vivid imagery and lyrical language. This style contributes to the novel’s aesthetic quality and emphasizes the importance of beauty and style in Wilde’s philosophy.
• Example:  “He had a wonderfully beautiful face, Mr. Gray. Don’t frown. You have. And beauty is a form of genius—is higher, indeed, than genius, as it needs no explanation. It is of the great facts of the world, like sunlight, or spring-time, or the reflection in dark waters of that silver shell we call the moon. It cannot be questioned. It has its divine right of sovereignty. It makes princes of those who have it.”
• Cynical and Pessimistic:  The novel adopts a cynical and pessimistic tone, particularly through Lord Henry’s philosophy. It explores the dark side of human nature and the destructive consequences of unchecked desire.
• Gothic and Romantic:  The novel features elements of gothic horror and romanticism, creating a sense of suspense, intrigue, and psychological tension. The supernatural element of the portrait adds a sense of the uncanny and the macabre to the story.
• Aesthetic and Philosophical:  The novel is infused with aesthetic and philosophical themes, exploring the nature of beauty, morality, and the human condition. Wilde’s use of language and imagery emphasizes the importance of artistic expression and the power of ideas.

Life choices:

• Dorian’s pursuit of beauty and pleasure:  Dorian chooses to prioritize his own physical beauty and hedonistic desires above all else. He makes a pact with the devil to maintain his youth, ignoring the consequences of his actions.
• Dorian’s rejection of love and responsibility:  He rejects the love and responsibility of a traditional relationship with Sibyl Vane. He prioritizes his own desires and ultimately pushes Sibyl to a tragic end.
• Dorian’s attempt at redemption:  Dorian experiences a brief moment of remorse and tries to change his ways but ultimately fails to break free from his hedonistic patterns.
• The dangers of unchecked desire:  The novel warns against the dangers of unchecked desires and the pursuit of pleasure above all else. Dorian’s story is a cautionary tale about the corrupting influence of hedonism and the consequences of moral decay.
• The importance of authenticity and integrity:  The novel highlights the importance of authenticity and integrity in one’s life. Dorian’s downfall is rooted in his inability to be true to himself and his fear of facing the consequences of his actions.
• The power of beauty and its transience:  The novel explores the allure and power of beauty, but it also emphasizes its fleeting nature. Dorian’s obsession with his own beauty becomes a source of both pleasure and torment, ultimately leading to his downfall.

Characters:

• Dorian Gray:  A beautiful and initially innocent young man who becomes consumed by the pursuit of beauty and pleasure. His vanity and hedonism ultimately lead him to a life of corruption and self-destruction.
• Lord Henry Wotton:  A charismatic and cynical aristocrat who introduces Dorian to a life of pleasure and corrupting philosophies. His hedonistic views and intellectual prowess make him a dangerous influence on Dorian.
• Basil Hallward:  An artist who is devoted to Dorian and paints a portrait of him that becomes a symbol of his transformation. He represents traditional morality and is horrified by Dorian’s descent into corruption.
• Sibyl Vane:  A talented young actress who falls deeply in love with Dorian. Her love for him leads her to a tragic end when she is disillusioned by his shallow affections.
• Beauty and Decay:  The novel explores the nature of beauty and its inherent transience. Dorian’s obsession with his own beauty leads him to make a Faustian bargain, resulting in his soul becoming corrupted and his true nature revealed in the aging portrait.
• The Corrupting Influence of Hedonism:  The novel warns against the dangers of unchecked hedonism and the pursuit of pleasure as the sole purpose of life. Dorian’s descent into a life of sin is a direct result of Lord Henry’s influence.
• The Nature of Sin:  The novel explores the complex nature of sin and its impact on the human soul. Dorian’s sins are not only outward acts but also internal corruptions, manifested in his changing character and reflected in the portrait.
• The Power of the Past:  The novel highlights the importance of the past and its influence on the present. Dorian’s actions are shaped by his family history, his relationship with Sibyl, and the influence of Lord Henry.
• The Importance of Morality:  The novel ultimately underscores the importance of morality and living a life of integrity. Dorian’s quest for eternal youth and pleasure ultimately leads to his ruin, demonstrating the consequences of ignoring one’s conscience.

Principles:

• The importance of self-control:  Dorian’s downfall is a consequence of his inability to control his desires and impulses. The novel suggests that true happiness and fulfillment come from inner balance and self-discipline.
• The value of traditional morality:  The novel ultimately affirms the importance of traditional moral values, exemplified by Basil’s character and his belief in the inherent goodness of the soul.
• The power of art as a reflection of life:  Art plays a crucial role in the story, serving as a mirror to Dorian’s true nature and a symbol of his moral decay. The portrait is a constant reminder of the consequences of his choices and the fragility of beauty.

Intentions:

• Dorian Gray’s Intentions:  Dorian initially seeks to preserve his youth and experience life’s pleasures without consequence. However, his intentions become increasingly self-serving and ultimately lead to his downfall.
• Lord Henry’s Intentions:  Lord Henry seeks to influence and corrupt Dorian, finding amusement and fascination in his transformation. His intentions are rooted in a cynical view of life and a belief in the power of pleasure.
• Basil’s Intentions:  Basil seeks to guide and protect Dorian, but he also seeks to capture his friend’s beauty on canvas. His intentions are driven by a desire for artistic expression but also a deep concern for his friend’s well-being.

Unique Vocabulary:

• “Unpardonable mannerism of style”:  This phrase highlights Wilde’s critique of moralizing in art, suggesting that it detracts from the aesthetic quality of the work.
• “la consolation des arts”:  This French phrase, used by Dorian, refers to the solace that art can provide in times of sorrow and hardship. It reflects his growing appreciation for aesthetic experiences as a means of escaping from life’s complexities.
• “The visible world existed”:  This quote from Gautier, adopted by Dorian, expresses his passionate embrace of the sensual world and the importance he places on the visible world over abstract ideals.
• The Story of the Philanthropist:  Lord Henry tells Dorian the story of a philanthropist who dedicates his life to a cause and experiences profound disappointment when he succeeds, as he has nothing left to strive for. This anecdote underscores the theme of the futility of trying to change the world and emphasizes the importance of finding meaning in life’s experiences.
• The Story of Sibyl’s Death:  Sibyl’s tragic death serves as a turning point in the narrative. It highlights Dorian’s shallowness and lack of empathy, and it foreshadows his own future descent into darkness. This anecdote is crucial to the plot and emphasizes the consequences of Dorian’s actions.
• The Pursuit of Eternal Youth:  The novel explores the human desire for eternal youth and its consequences. Dorian’s pact with the devil to maintain his beauty reflects the allure and the dangers of this pursuit.
• The Nature of Beauty:  Wilde presents a complex and multifaceted view of beauty, exploring its power, its fragility, and its relationship to morality.
• The Limits of Morality:  The novel challenges conventional notions of morality and suggests that human nature is inherently complex and flawed. Dorian’s journey demonstrates the difficulty of navigating the gray areas of morality and the consequences of ignoring one’s conscience.
• The Power of Influence:  The novel explores the power of influence, particularly through the relationships between Dorian, Lord Henry, and Basil.

Facts and findings:

• The “scientific” view of influence:  Lord Henry proposes that all influence is “immoral” from a scientific point of view, as it involves giving one’s soul to another person. This idea reflects a deterministic perspective on human behavior and challenges conventional morality.
• The “modern” ideal of the well-informed man:  Lord Henry criticizes the emphasis on knowledge and information as a means of achieving respectability, arguing that it leads to intellectual stagnation and a lack of depth.

Statistics:

• The number of portraits Lord Henry’s wife owns of Dorian Gray (eighteen):  This detail highlights Dorian’s popularity and the extent to which he is admired by others.
• The five women in London worth talking to:  This observation by Lord Henry emphasizes his cynicism and the limitations he sees in the intellectual capacity of women.
• The price of Lord Henry’s sister’s box at the opera (twenty-seven):  This detail highlights the world of wealth and privilege that surrounds Dorian and his friends.

Points of view:

• The third-person narrative:  This allows for multiple perspectives and insights into the characters’ thoughts, actions, and motivations.

Perspective:

• The pursuit of aesthetic pleasure:  The novel is told from the perspective of a society obsessed with beauty and pleasure. This perspective highlights the dangers of this pursuit and the potential for corruption that it holds.
• The societal consequences of sin:  The novel also explores the social ramifications of Dorian’s actions, revealing the judgment and hypocrisy of the world he inhabits. This perspective emphasizes the pressure to conform to societal expectations and the consequences of deviating from those norms.

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Inside the ‘big, gay’ story the ballet has been scared to tell

In a bold break with fairytale traditions, The Australian Ballet celebrates one of history’s most famous gay men.

By Kerrie OBrien

Callum Linnane (seated) as Oscar Wilde and Benjamin Garrett as Lord Alfred Bruce Douglas in the Australian Ballet’s Oscar. Photographed at Villa Alba in Kew. Credit: Simon Schluter

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Ballet audiences know how the story goes. The prince meets his princess and they either live happily ever after or are plunged into despair when love goes awry. All very beautiful, and all very expected. But when the Australian Ballet unleashes its latest work this month – about the witty, openly gay writer Oscar Wilde – audiences will see something far less predictable.

For the company’s artistic director, David Hallberg – who performed the prince who meets his princess countless times during his dancing career – it’s a proud moment.

“Ballet has always told heteronormative stories,” he says. “I’m proud that we’re boldly telling a story that actually isn’t told so often, and maybe ballet has actually been scared to tell. When I think about it, I think embarrassingly, ballet as an art form hasn’t had the courage to tell a story like this.”

For the man commissioned by Hallberg to create Oscar – acclaimed British choreographer Christopher Wheeldon – such a move was long overdue.

Callum Linnane, photographed at the Regent Theatre, stars in Oscar for The Australian Ballet. Credit: Jason South

“I’ve wanted to do a real ballet that represents queer culture, just because it doesn’t – in a major storytelling way, anyway – really exist,” he says during a break in rehearsals at the company’s Melbourne headquarters.

“There have, of course, been ballets with suggestions of and underlying themes. For example, there’s a moment in Woolf Works , with Virginia Woolf in Wayne [McGregor’s] wonderful piece that he made for the Royal Ballet – in [the act inspired by] Mrs. Dalloway , two women kiss but in a much more abstract, non-linear way. For me, as a gay man, I just thought it’s time we had a big, gay, full-length-story ballet.”

Oscar is a huge leap from the fairytale scenarios of the world’s most popular ballets – think Swan Lake , Sleeping Beauty , The Nutcracker and Cinderella – in which boys and girls take their traditional places.

Hallberg wanted a new narrative for Oscar , his first full-length commission for the company.

When he first spoke to Wheeldon about creating a work for the Australian Ballet, it didn’t take long for them to land on the brilliant, charming, hilarious, occasionally caustic Irish-born author. The pair had known each other for more than 20 years, Hallberg says, but this was new territory.

Choreographer Christopher Wheeldon during rehearsals with dancers Joseph Caley and Adam Elmes. Credit: Christopher Rodgers-Wilson

Unlike other art forms, such as film and visual art, this is a story that isn’t normally told in classical ballet, Hallberg says.

“ Moonlight was a fabulous film about repressed homosexuality,” he says, also mentioning Call Me by Your Name and Ang Lee’s Brokeback Mountain . “Those are genres that have done better about telling or addressing modern topics, whether that be sexuality, whether that be political, whether that be racism, but ballet has always been a very … ” His voice trails off. “It’s a classical art form.”

Making a ballet about Wilde is inspired and audacious, but given his brilliance with words, how viable was the idea? Could dance possibly do justice to the great writer? If anyone can devise a show that works, it’s Wheeldon. Having trained at Britain’s Royal Ballet School, he danced there before heading to the US to join the New York City Ballet, becoming its first resident choreographer.

Since the end of his dancing career he has carved out a niche as a major choreographer, notably for MJ The Musical , loosely based on Michael Jackson’s life (and heading to Sydney next year) and the one-act ballet An American in Paris , for which he won four Tonys. His acclaimed 2011 ballet Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland returned to Melbourne earlier this year. He also continues in his role as artistic director of the Royal Ballet.

During rehearsals for the final scene, Wheeldon is hands-on, illustrating what he wants to see by creating the poses. Six dancers practice their respective moves, while others sit and or stand around the edges, taking in the choreographer’s commentary.

“I hadn’t sort of finished all the material in the second act leading up to that moment, but I needed to know that my idea for the ending could work, which is why I jumped to it. Sometimes it’s good to know you’ve got your beginning, your middle and your end, and then the rest can kind of fill in,” he says.

It’s all evidence of Wheeldon’s skill as a storyteller.

“The amazing thing about Chris Wheeldon is that he’s a seasoned storyteller and choreographer,” says Hallberg. “He has the ability to tell a story with quality and with a subject that could maybe be a little uneasy for audiences. There won’t be any denying, in my opinion, the fact that he can tell a quality story of something that might be a little bit of a – quote unquote – risk.

“He’s not afraid of entertaining: he will entertain the audience through movement, through the choreography, through the beauty of his patterns and the set design.”

Wheeldon, 51, remembers his grandfather having a book of Oscar Wilde’s fairytales, which they loved to read together. The Happy Prince and The Selfish Giant are often referred to as the standouts, but for Wheeldon, it is The Nightingale and the Rose . He once created a one-act version of the story for the New York City Ballet, but it disappeared from the repertoire.

When Hallberg asked Wheeldon what he wanted to do for the Australian Ballet, his mind returned to his childhood favourite. “It has always really stuck with me. Just the sacrifice and tragedy and beauty and loving nature of the nightingale, it’s just always been so appealing. It’s such a dramatic tale, somebody who is willing to actually die for someone else’s love.”

In the ballet, the writer’s life story is interwoven with this overlooked fairytale. Female dancers become the nightingale, their movements remarkably bird-like, as key moments in Wilde’s life are brought to life. During rehearsals, there’s an aching tenderness between the men playing the great writer and the women who seem to morph into the loving bird. It’s already poignant and powerful, even without the addition of costume and set.

Benjamin Garrett and Callum Linnane during rehearsals.  Credit: Christopher Rodgers-Wilson

Fevered dream sequences and characters from some of the author’s best-known works – notably The Picture of Dorian Gray – are interspersed through the show; just two voiceovers feature, one early in the first act and the other at the end.

According to Wheeldon, this is not about biographical ballet. It’s a collage of Wilde’s life and moments, of his relationships with men, his wife and his family. “It’s exploring elements of his life, combined with the parallels of Oscar’s personality, his ideals and his relationships that he wrote into his stories, because he wrote himself into everything, and that was also something I was excited to explore.”

Oscar is the company’s first work to be staged at the Regent Theatre, while its traditional home, the State Theatre at Arts Centre Melbourne, is renovated. The more intimate setting brings its staging challenges, but also provides a fittingly lush backdrop for this tale of forbidden love. Sharing the role of Oscar will be Joseph Caley, Callum Linnane and Jarryd Madden, while the nightingale will be danced by Jill Ogai, Ako Kondo and Benedicte Bemet. Music is composed by Joby Talbot, and set and costume design is by Jean-Marc Puissant; the score will be played by Orchestra Victoria in Melbourne.

Wheeldon recalls seeing Wilde , the 1997 film starring Stephen Fry in the title role, based on Richard Ellmann’s 1987 biography. “It introduced me to a whole lot of the history of Oscar and his relationships with his family and, of course, the trial. And I just got really fascinated in him as a personality.”

Stephen Fry as Oscar Wilde in the 1997 film Wilde.

Wilde, whose lover, Lord Alfred Douglas, is also depicted in the ballet, was prosecuted for “gross indecency” and spent two years in jail, from May 25, 1895 to May 18, 1897.

While he was a literary genius, his colourful life lent itself to theatre. “When I’m making commissions like this with Chris, I want to tell stories that resonate with audiences,” says Hallberg. “I think it tells a story that people talk about even today, [not] just a minority population or repressed emotion and feeling.”

David Hallberg is proud to be telling the story of Oscar Wilde. Credit: Justin McManus

Historical accuracy was an important part of making the show. Timothy Jones, a historian of sexuality and religion at La Trobe University, met with the dancers to provide an overview of what life and sexual norms were like in Wilde’s day.

The notion that the Victorians were repressed might be longstanding, but they were obsessed with sex, mad for it, says Jones. “They might have had a conservative culture, but they were talking about sex all of the time. By saying what you must not do, you’re talking about what people are doing.”

While there were people who were attracted to others of the same sex, there was barely a language for it. The term homosexual was only invented in 1869 – by Hungarian journalist Karl Maria Kurtbeny – but it didn’t come into common usage until the early 20th century.

People didn’t think of themselves as what we would now describe as gay – you were “a good man” or “a good woman”, explains Jones. “Sexual acts were understood differently to identity: there was a disconnect between what you did with your sex bits and how you understood yourself.”

Same-sex-attracted men of means, like Wilde, gravitated towards the thriving underground scene, meeting like-minded people in “molly houses”, a term used for pubs and other places they could gather – and brothels. Paying for sex at the time was common.

In a famous speech during one of his trials, Wilde coined the idea of “the love that dare not speak its name”, and explained himself in relation to the love between Jonathan and David described in the bible, classical Greek love between men, and European Renaissance poetry.

Wilde is treated like an icon and martyr today, but it took a long time for the writer’s reputation to be rehabilitated, according to Jones. The scandal of the trials had a powerful impact on his legacy.

Oscar Wilde has inspired the Australian Ballet’s latest production. Credit: Roger Viollet via Getty Images

It wasn’t until the 1950s and ’60s when the gay rights movement galvanised that people began to celebrate Wilde. Sex between men wasn’t decriminalised in the UK until 1967. He was granted a posthumous pardon in 2017.

Now, Wilde’s star shines brightly. His works have been having an extended moment for several years in Australia, including in Kip Williams’ celebrated play The Picture of Dorian Gray .

For gay communities the world over, he is important for many reasons. “Most queer people grow up in a family that isn’t a queer family,” Jones says. “He’s really valuable as someone you can see in the past.”

For someone who died at 46, Wilde achieved an awful lot. A polymath, he wrote essays, plays and stories, and his breakthrough came with The Importance of Being Earnest in 1895 . He is one of the most prominent figures in dandyism, an aesthetic movement characterised by a love of beauty.

In 1884, Wilde married Constance Lloyd and within a few years, the couple had two boys. It was only in his early 40s that Wilde started having affairs with men, Jones says, by which time he was a famous literary and cultural figure.

Does Wheeldonthink audiences are ready for this ballet?

“I care and don’t care in equal measures. Of course, I don’t want to offend anyone, but this is now the life we’re living. We’re a much more accepting culture, thankfully, [though] not accepting enough – it takes leaders in the arts, or leaders just in general, to be reinforcing this incredible cultural shift that we’re experiencing through their work. Heterosexual, heteronormative relationships have been accepted for years.

“As someone who very much believes that you are born as you are – and I’ve lived the life of a gay man and have fought and struggled to get to this place in culture – I think it’s our responsibility as artists to be bringing even our classical art forms forwards into the 21st century, and, even if it’s confronting, to embrace this as a normal way of life.”

Hallberg and Wheeldon believe Oscar adds a significant new chapter to the history of ballet.

“Of course, I hope the work is embraced by audiences,” says Hallberg. “I hope the work can last years and years, but I think the legacy for me is to bring in someone like Chris – of the calibre he is – to the Australian Ballet. I honestly don’t think about legacy very often, but what’s important to me is that Australian audiences [and] Australian dancers are given the opportunity to witness art and commissions.

“I’m looking through the lens of the artistic director of the Australian Ballet, [thinking] where do I want this company to go, how do we want to move forward and not stay in the same place. We are creating this piece of art, not just buying it from a company around the world.

“Someone said to me recently, ‘it’s a shame that dance is a silent art form because Wilde had the quippiest one-liners, how do you interpret that?’ And I actually have total faith that Chris – although we’re not speaking the words for the most part – can embody through his choreography the kind of wit that Oscar Wilde was so famous for.”

Oscar is at Melbourne’s Regent Theatre from September 13 to 24 and the Sydney Opera House from November 8-23.

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