It was frowned upon to marry outside of your class (AngelPig). Dorian the protagonist in The Picture of Dorian Grey falls in love with Sibyl after discovering her in the slums. The Importance of Being Earnest is all about marriage. Algernon meet Cecily and the same day they meet he asks for her hand in marriage. The Picture of Dorian Grey also tells of quick engagements. Dorian proposes to Sibyl quickly after seeing her act in plays at the theater. In today's society engagements happen after a year or two of dating. Why does Wilde write of marriage like this? He's mocking the social norms around him. In his day, it wasn't right to marry someone a class under you. What does Wilde do? He writes of a man proposing to a woman from the slums. .
The Picture of Dorian Grey is a novel written by Wilde in 1890 (Shuman). It's a dark story about deception, beauty and love. Wilde breaks social norms with this book. He writes about the main character Dorian having many love affairs with young men ending in their suicide. Dorian turns evil and gets wrapped up in lies. He ends up murdering an old friend. These examples of homosexuality in Wilde's writing only gave more proof to the courts when the convicted him of sodomy. One of the book's characters, Lord Henry Wotton, is similar to Wilde's lover, Lord Alfred Douglas. Dorian was warned of Lord Henry Wotton being a bad influence on him. Lord Wotton gifted Dorian with a "yellow book" (Wilde, 127). Dorian's character began to change after reading this book. Dorian proceeded to associate himself with the Lord eventually turning evil. One can't help but find a connection between Dorian and Wilde. Maybe Wilde was influenced by his lover Lord Alfred Douglas to do dark things. Wilde's behavior eventually leaded to his exposure as a "sodomite" and his imprisonment. During Wilde's imprisonment he wrote a letter. The letter was titled De Profundis and was sent for his lover Lord Alfred Douglas.