VDM Verlag Dr. Müller, Saarbrücken (Ger.) 2008 · ISBN
978-3-639-09131-1
Volume: 64 pages · Language: English
International Prices: ¤ 49,00*) · ca. 83 CHF · ca. US$ 64
· ca. CDN$ 77.83 **)
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*) standardised German book price · **) informative,
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The central element of O. Wilde’s novel, Dorian’s portrait, has
itself received little critical attention, although the concept of the
body as the ‘canvas of conduct’ implicit in its magic is culturally
problematic: it presupposes a profound moral framework and a,
potentially discriminating, corporal symbolism. Moreover, the motif of
the fading portrait characteristically binds eccentric personal
development to a segregative notion of ‘decline’.
How can moral failure engrave itself in a face previously “unspotted from the world” ? This study examines how the novel interrelates between physicality and personality, inquires into the historical backgrounds of this perspective and discusses its social and ethical consequences.
It offers additional insights for scholars interested in O. Wilde’s
work, the cultural landscape of the late nineteenth century and
anti-discrimination or
gender debates.