Wrote Oscar Wilde of his novel it contains much of me in it. Basil Hallward is what I think I am: Lord Henry what the world thinks me: Dorian what I would like to be - in other ages perhaps. Michael Gillespie uses Wilde’s personal commentary to ignite the discussion of the novel. Gillespie follows an articulation of three primary viewpoints - historical (the novel as a product of 19th century British society), modern and post-modern - and then manages an analysis of the novel’s ethical nature, its aesthetic positions, and it’s cultural and political commentary.