The Picture of Dorian Gray
1890
The most dangerous book Oscar Wilde ever wrote begins with a question: What would you trade for eternal youth? Young Dorian Gray sees his portrait for the first time and wishes desperately that it might age instead of him. His wish is granted, and so begins a devil's bargain that lets Dorian pursue every indulgence, every sin, every cruelty, while his face remains perfect and the painting becomes a grotesque record of his moral decay. Wilde weaves a Gothic tale of suspense with the sharpest wit in Victorian England. Through Lord Henry Wotton, he delivers a seductive philosophy that beauty is the only truth, that morality is a lie invented by the ugly. Dorian falls under this spell, and we watch as he destroys everyone who loves him while remaining devastatingly beautiful. The novel endures because it asks what we all secretly want: to live without consequences, to stay young forever, to take what we desire. It remains as unsettling as it was when Wilde was prosecuted for writing it.
