Oscar Wilde

Wilde: The Picture of Dorian Gray

In this course, Professor Nick Groom (University of Exeter) explores Oscar Wilde's 1890 novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray. The course begins with a brief introduction to Wilde himself, his life and times, as well as some of the key influences on his writing of the novel. After that, in the second module, we think about the presentation of art in the novel, before moving on in the third module to explore to 'morality' of the book. In the fourth module, we think about the presentation of crime and the law in the novel, before turning in the fifth and final module to consider the extent to which The Picture of Dorian Gray might be described as a Gothic novel.

Oscar Wilde

In this module, we provide a brief introduction to Oscar Wilde's life and times, as well as some of his influences for his 1890 novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray. In particular, we focus on the writings of the essayist and critic Walter Pater, the Pre-Raphaelites, and the book that Dorian Gray himself is found reading throughout the novel: Joris-Karl Huysmans' À rebours.