Oscar Wilde

a cura di D.P. Madrigali
 
 It is the only novel written by Oscar Wilde. Dorian Gray expresses the wish that his portrait could get older and he, instead, stay young, charming and handsome forever. His wish comes true and the more he lives a life of pleasure, the uglier and older his portrait becomes, while Dorian himself never changes. However, the wish for eternal youth will lead him to a tragic end.
 Stimulating inserts on Victorianism and other themes related to that period enrich the book. 
 
 Teacher's Resources available online: Answer Key - Audioscripts - Summing-up Activities
 
 The Picture of Dorian Gray è l’unico romanzo di Oscar Wilde. Dorian esprime il desiderio che il suo ritratto invecchi e che lui, invece, rimanga giovane e bello. Il suo desiderio viene esaudito e più persegue una vita di piaceri, più brutto e vecchio diventa il ritratto, mentre Dorian rimane sempre lo stesso. Tuttavia, il desiderio dell’eterna giovinezza condurrà il protagonista ad un tragico epilogo.

Chapter 1 – At Basil’s studio

&nbsp &nbsp &nbsp Extension: Victorianism

Chapter 2 – A wonderful picture

Chapter 3 – Lord Henry Wotton and Sibyl Vane

&nbsp &nbsp &nbsp Extension: The Aesthetic Movement

Chapter 4 – In love

Chapter 5 – Tragedy

&nbsp &nbsp &nbsp Extension: Dandysm

Chapter 6 – The portrait and the yellow book

Chapter 7 – Murder

&nbsp &nbsp &nbsp Extension: The theme of the double

Chapter 8 – Alan Campbell

Chapter 9 – James Vane

Chapter 10 – Death

&nbsp &nbsp &nbsp Extension: Dorian Gray revisited

Summing-up activities

Glossary

E X T E N S I O N DANDYSM At the beginning of Chapter 3 Lord Fermor says to his nephew, Lord Henry:  I thought you dandies never got up till two, and were not visible till five.  The word dandy has a French origin, referring to a  silly foolish person . The  dandy  is a refined bourgeois1 artist who dresses elegantly and very often, in an eccentric way; a dandy refuses the vulgarity of the modern world. This term was used by the decadent aesthetes. In particular, the French writer Huysmans used it to describe Des Esseints, the hero of his novel A rebours. His character became the model for Wilde s dandysm. In fact Oscar Wilde became famous for his shocking behaviour and extravagant way of dressing. In particular he used to wear flowers English dandy (A. Zon, 1887). in his buttonhole2, such as sunflowers3 or carnations4. The upper classes always invited him to their fashionable parties because of his wit, that is  the ability to say things which are both clever and amusing at the same time . Anyway the prototype of the English dandy is Lord  Beau  Brummel (1778-1840), who was famous for his elegance, but also for his sharp tongue5. The Prince of Wales, who later became King George IV, was his friend. Brummel represented the symbol of the bourgeois who wanted to be accepted by the aristocratic upper classes. For this reason the dandy is different from the French bohèmien who allied himself with6 the urban proletariat. Another difference is in their attitude: the dandy is refined and eccentric, while the bohèmien is careless and debauched7. A bohèmien lived at night in the salons and cafés and on the boulevards of the city, while a dandy lived in the fashionable clubs of the city during the day or in the evening at parties. The  qualities  of a dandy   besides elegance, his main interest   were a certain air of superiority, inactivity and a degree of irresponsibility. 1. bourgeois: of middle-class people. 2. buttonhole: small hole in a jacket through which you push a button. 3. sunflower: very tall plant that has large yellow flowers. 4. carnation: type of flower used as a decoration on formal occasions. 5. sharp tongue: a comment that shows that someone is unfriendly or annoyed. 6. ally oneself with: join someone and support them. 7. debauched: behaving immorally. 58 

The portrait and the yellow book BEFORE READING 6  Chapter story so far. Listen to the summary of Chapters 3, 4 and 5 and mThe take notes in order to report it to your partner. 1 Lord Henry Wotton paid a ..................... to his Uncle George to get some ......................... about Dorian Gray s background: his ..................... story was a real modern romance and Harry liked influencing him so much. A ..................... later Dorian paid him a visit and told him he had fallen in ..................... with an unknown actress whose ..................... was Sibyl Vane. He had met her in a horrid and vulgar ..................... in the East End but she had a great talent. Sibyl loved Dorian very much too but her ..................... James, who was leaving for Australia, was worried about her ..................... . One evening Dorian, ..................... and Basil went to see her act. Her ..................... was horrible and the young boy decided to ..................... her. The following day Lord Henry paid him a visit and informed Dorian that ..................... had committed suicide. 2 Make predictions. Tick ( ) as appropriate: Sibyl has drunk prussic acid on purpose. Dorian will be involved in the inquest. The picture will get worse. Dorian forgets Sibyl. Basil goes to Dorian s house to comfort him. YES NO c c c c c c c c c c mListen to this character speaking to Dorian and answer the questions. 3 Who is he? ................................................................................................................................. Why is he worried? .............................................................................................................. In what way did Harry influence him?...................................................................... The Royal Opera House. 

Narrativa inglese, livello B1 pre-intermedio. Classico di Wilde: Dorian Gray chiede l'eterna giovinezza, ma il ritratto rivela il suo oscuro destino.

The Picture of Dorian Gray - Collana RAINBOWS

Level B1 • Pre-Intermediate - Collana RAINBOWS

The Picture of Dorian Gray

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