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GOTHIC CONFESSIONS: CORRUPTION IN THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY AND OSCAR WILDE’S INTENTIONS
- Date Issued:
- 2023
- Abstract/Description:
- In 1890 The Picture of Dorian Gray was published in Lippincott’s Magazine, and the fate of late-nineteenth century Victorian Britain was forever changed. While over a century's worth of studies have been conducted on aestheticism, the novel’s moral story, and whether or not Dorian Gray and Oscar Wilde are both gay figures, this thesis examines the possible intentions behind the writing of Wilde’s novel. Wilde lived during the time of the 1885 Labouchere Amendment, –under which he himself would be prosecuted for “gross indecency”– making the novel's contents risky. Alongside this amendment, there were already existing instances of criminalized homosexuality such as the Cleveland Street Scandal, making the novel’s publication all the more dangerous for Wilde. After publication, Wilde received numerous negative reviews attacking his novel and himself; even today, reviewers and critics have not fully understood why Wilde produced a novel with such an apparent and perilous homoerotic theme.
Title: | GOTHIC CONFESSIONS: CORRUPTION IN THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY AND OSCAR WILDE’S INTENTIONS. |
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Name(s): |
Prochak, Kennedy R. , author Buckton, Oliver , Thesis advisor Florida Atlantic University, Degree grantor Department of English Dorothy F. Schmidt College of Arts and Letters |
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Type of Resource: | text | |
Genre: | Electronic Thesis Or Dissertation | |
Date Created: | 2023 | |
Date Issued: | 2023 | |
Publisher: | Florida Atlantic University | |
Place of Publication: | Boca Raton, Fla. | |
Physical Form: | application/pdf | |
Extent: | 71 p. | |
Language(s): | English | |
Abstract/Description: | In 1890 The Picture of Dorian Gray was published in Lippincott’s Magazine, and the fate of late-nineteenth century Victorian Britain was forever changed. While over a century's worth of studies have been conducted on aestheticism, the novel’s moral story, and whether or not Dorian Gray and Oscar Wilde are both gay figures, this thesis examines the possible intentions behind the writing of Wilde’s novel. Wilde lived during the time of the 1885 Labouchere Amendment, –under which he himself would be prosecuted for “gross indecency”– making the novel's contents risky. Alongside this amendment, there were already existing instances of criminalized homosexuality such as the Cleveland Street Scandal, making the novel’s publication all the more dangerous for Wilde. After publication, Wilde received numerous negative reviews attacking his novel and himself; even today, reviewers and critics have not fully understood why Wilde produced a novel with such an apparent and perilous homoerotic theme. | |
Identifier: | FA00014153 (IID) | |
Degree granted: | Thesis (MA)--Florida Atlantic University, 2023. | |
Collection: | FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection | |
Note(s): | Includes bibliography. | |
Subject(s): |
Wilde, Oscar, 1854-1900 Wilde, Oscar, 1854-1900. Picture of Dorian Gray |
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Persistent Link to This Record: | http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00014153 | |
Use and Reproduction: | Copyright © is held by the author with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder. | |
Use and Reproduction: | http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ | |
Host Institution: | FAU | |
Is Part of Series: | Florida Atlantic University Digital Library Collections. |