The crowning plays of one of Ireland's most heralded artists Oscar Wilde was at once a family man and a homosexual outsider, a socialite, socialist, and Irish nationalist. His contradictions inspired him to ponder the roles and masks donned in conventional society, and his acute and wry insights are wonderfully displayed in this collection of his essential plays. Known not only for his brilliant, epigrammatic language, but also for his sense of theatrical...

Dorian Gray is an innocent young man who has his portrait painted by a close friend. Soon after he falls under the influence of amoral Lord Henry Wotton. Dorian soon jilts his fiancee, which leads to her suicide. This is the start of a life of increasing debauchery. Dorian realizes that the outward signs of this are apparent only in the portrait. Eventually the picture, secreted in his childhood playroom, becomes almost hideous to behold. But Dorian...