Oscar Wilde

The Picture of Dorian Gray (eBook, ePUB)

• Format: ePub

Produktbeschreibung

The novel that scandalized Victorian England In a London studio, two men contemplate the portrait of another-younger and more beautiful-man. Despite Lord Henry Wotton's urging, Basil Hallward refuses to show his painting in public-there is too much of his true feeling for the subject in it. "I will not bare my soul to their shallow, prying eyes," he declares. "My heart shall never be put under their microscope." Instead, it is Dorian Gray's soul put under the microscope of this unforgettable novel. Influenced by the cynical, hedonistic Lord Henry, Dorian becomes infatuated with his own youth and beauty and wishes that his portrait would grow old instead of him. His wish comes true, but it is not just the passage of time that mars the painting-the wages of sin are recorded there as well. Freed from the physical toll of his debauchery, Dorian devotes himself to the pursuit of pleasure above all else. He turns on his friends, drives his lover to suicide, and engages in every vice known to man. To society, he remains as handsome and youthful as Prince Charming. In the painting, he is hideous. Too late, Dorian realizes that only one of these two images can be real, and a reckoning deferred is not a reckoning absolved. This ebook has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.

Produktdetails

• Verlag: Open Road Media
• Seitenzahl: 287
• Erscheinungstermin: 22. April 2014
• Englisch
• ISBN-13: 9781480483804
• Artikelnr.: 44627765

Autorenporträt

Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) was an Irish playwright, novelist, essayist, and poet. Celebrated on both sides of the Atlantic for his wit, he is rumored to have informed a customs agent upon his arrival in America, "I have nothing to declare but my genius." Wilde's health and reputation were destroyed by his imprisonment for "gross indecency" in 1895, and he died in poverty a few years after his release. Today, his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, and his play, The Importance of Being Earnest, are recognized as masterpieces of English literature.