Hi everyone, and welcome to this podcast, coming to you from the Canary Islands and reaching listeners across the globe.
This series is a journey through literature without borders. In each episode, I dive into a book, an author, or a literary movement from different parts of the world. Because books are passports too, and every story carries us closer to new cultures, languages, and ways of seeing life.
Today I travel to Victorian England at the end of the 19th century, to dive into one of the most provocative novels of its time: The Picture of Dorian Gray, written by Oscar Wilde.
Historical Context and Author
Oscar Wilde, an Irish playwright, poet, and essayist, stood out for his wit, irony, and for challenging the moral and social norms of his time.
His only novel, published in 1890, sparked great controversy. It was criticized for being considered immoral and too daring in a society marked by Victorian rigidity.
Wilde himself defended that art should not be judged by moral standards, but rather by its beauty.
The Work and Its Plot
The story follows Dorian Gray, a young man of extraordinary beauty who, after being painted by the artist Basil Hallward, wishes to remain forever young while the portrait ages in his place.
Under the influence of the hedonistic Lord Henry Wotton, Dorian plunges into a life of pleasures, excess, and selfishness, while his portrait progressively reflects the corruption and decay of his soul.
The central focus is the tension between appearance and essence, external beauty and inner decay.
Main Themes
The cult of youth and beauty: a reflection of superficiality and the fear of the passing of time.
Morality and corruption: how the absence of boundaries destroys personal integrity.
Art and aesthetics: Wilde was a representative of the aesthetic movement, defending "art for art’s sake."
The double and the hidden self: the portrait as a symbol of the dark side that individuals conceal behind a social mask.
Sometimes we forget that behind every story there is a life, a face, and a heart beating with the same hopes as ours. To listen, acknowledge, and respect those realities is the first step toward building a more just and humane world. If we manage to look with empathy, we are already transforming the present and sowing the future.
If you have any comments or suggestions for future episodes, I’d be delighted to hear from you.
Patricia López Muñoz
Higher Technician in Sociocultural Dynamisation
Specialist Technician in Immigration
Higher Technician in Social Integration
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario