What did he tell Alan Campbell?

[Jason]

He blackmailed Campbell into disposing of the body. But why did he do it? WHY! OH, WHY, CAMPBY, WHY!?!?!?!?!?!!

[Scull17]

My guess is Campbell had no choice but to comply because Dorian threatened to expose him. Now the nature of Campbell's secret is indeed up to the reader to conjecture; but judging from some facts about Oscar Wilde's life, the history of the book, and the text itself, it's not much of a stretch to say that Dorian threatened to expose the fact that Campbell was a homosexual.

Reading the book in its historical context, you can imagine why Campbell would have reacted the way he did. Homosexuality was a crime punishable by law. A scandal like this could have thrown a man like Campbell in prison; he would've also faced social and financial ruin.

[Torie]

That part drove me insane. I wanted so badly to know what Dorian told Alan, but the book never explained it! I'm glad that you have a clue about Wilde's life and the possibility of what Dorian could have said. It makes sense enough to me.

[Cherylann]

Scull17 wrote: "My guess is Campbell had no choice but to comply because Dorian threatened to expose him. Now the nature of Campbell's secret is indeed up to the reader to conjecture; but judging from some facts ..."

I'm inclined to agree.

[Julia]

Scull17 wrote: "My guess is Campbell had no choice but to comply because Dorian threatened to expose him. Now the nature of Campbell's secret is indeed up to the reader to conjecture; but judging from some facts ..."

What a fantastic analysis! I never figured the secret out while I was reading and I just chalked it up to something heaps scandolous. But by this argument I'm very inclined to believe it was homosexuality indeed. Well done!

[Shiva]

Scull17 wrote: "My guess is Campbell had no choice but to comply because Dorian threatened to expose him. Now the nature of Campbell's secret is indeed up to the reader to conjecture; but judging from some facts ..."
Yes I must say this looks a plausible conclusion...I second that...!!

[Ezra]

But not revealing sins is something of a center piece for the entire book. He never really tells us what Dorian's crimes are either. Somehow by leaving evils up to conjecture, I think the reader is supposed to superimpose his own sins upon those of the protagonists.

[Torie]

^ Wow, yes, that makes the most sense. Nicely said.

[Ezra]

Alternatively, I found it curious that all of the crimes for which Dorian takes responsibility are committed by someone else. Basil created the painting; Sybil takes her own life; Sybil's brother is shot by another hunter; the women who fall to disrepute do so only by means of an ambiguous relationship to Dorian.

I often wonder if the monstrosity of the painting in some way represents Dorian's guilt for crimes that he did not commit.

[Julia]

Paul V. wrote: "Alternatively, I found it curious that all of the crimes for which Dorian takes responsibility are committed by someone else. Basil created the painting; Sybil takes her own life; Sybil's brother i..."

While Dorian didn't actually commit any of those crimes you listed, he was the catalyst for all of them.
Basil and Dorian both wanted to have his portrait done, he was absolutely cruel to Sybil, Sybil's brother was chasing him for breaking Sybil's heart and I have no doubt that he didn't exactly fend off the admiring women.
Dorian brought out the worst in people and he left spoilt reputations in his wake without any remorse. The blood on his hands represented Sybil and her brother's deaths but Dorian himself spent a while questioning whether he actually killed either of them. Sybil wouldn't have done it without Dorian and her brother wouldn't have been there without him either.
It's debatable and I do like the point you brought up but I certainly believe that Dorian was punishable not exactly for the crimes he didn't commit but for being the cause of all the ruined lives.

[Patrick]

I'm glad I didn't hit "post" because Julia said what I was going to only MUCH better regarding his crimes.

Also, while I think that Scully17's suggestion has merit, I think another book is useful here. Like 1984's room 101, whatever was written down was the WORST thing in the world. The shame and horror on that paper is fresh and offensive in any time that the reader picks up the book.

If Mr. Wilde had written "you are a secret homosexual" it wouldn't have anywhere near the bite today it might have had then. By leaving it blank it becomes room 101... the epitome of undeniable blackmail in the reader's mind per their own time and context.

[Torie]

Brilliant!

[Julia]

Patrick wrote: "I'm glad I didn't hit "post" because Julia said what I was going to only MUCH better regarding his crimes.

Also, while I think that Scully17's suggestion has merit, I think another book is useful ..."

Agreed, agreed, agreed.

[Alexey]

I think, Allan was involved in some kind of drug business. Campbell was talented chemist, and in addition, Dorian have noticed, that Allan was strangely pale and sometimes he have been in some kind of melancholia.

[Mejix]

This article provides great background to the novel:

http://www.newyorker.com/arts/critics...

[HJ]

Thank you, Meijix, for the link to the article in the New Yorker - it was fascinating.

[Laura]

Scull17 wrote: "My guess is Campbell had no choice but to comply because Dorian threatened to expose him. Now the nature of Campbell's secret is indeed up to the reader to conjecture; but judging from some facts ..."

For those of you who found this analysis to be a surprise, you may want to re-think the rest of the book taking into account when it was written and who wrote it. One of the reasons Wilde's literature can be so intriguing is, in fact, the nature of his own life and how he lived it.

[Mejix]

Hj, glad you liked it. Alex Ross is great.

[[deleted user]]

Paul V. wrote: "But not revealing sins is something of a center piece for the entire book. He never really tells us what Dorian's crimes are either. Somehow by leaving evils up to conjecture, I think the reader is..."

nice... i like that idea heaps better than the whole homoerotocism we were taught when we studied it. we all just assumed he was gay. but i think thats a much better interpretation and so much more Wilde-ish

[Solenoid]

Paul V. wrote: "But not revealing sins is something of a center piece for the entire book. He never really tells us what Dorian's crimes are either. Somehow by leaving evils up to conjecture, I think the reader is..."

I think this is a really good point, and that this is something that the novel definitely achieves, but I think, realistically, there's a high probability that Wilde took this route because actually writing about homosexuality would have been illegal--or at least aroused suspicion.

[Lissette]

Scull17 wrote: "My guess is Campbell had no choice but to comply because Dorian threatened to expose him. Now the nature of Campbell's secret is indeed up to the reader to conjecture; but judging from some facts ..."
Excellent point of view. I ask myself the same question, but now that I've read your argument I strongly agree, since part of this book its a reflection of Oscar Wilde life style

[Mark]

There really is no answer. It is entirely up to the reader. It could have been his homosexual lifestyle or a past secret or a threat... it could have been any of those things. There simply is no answer. Oscar Wilde is brilliant with this technique. It leaves the reader completely perplexed and in wonder with the need to ask for others opinion. If it's not written it could be anything. There is no wrong answer.

[Mandy]

Mejix - great New Yorker article!
Dorian's vices are not described but presumably if they had been he would never have got it published. The indirect references make his behaviour seem all the more sinister - whether intentionally or not.
And the mystery surrounding his blackmail of Campbell - it seemed more as if DG was threatening to expose him for one particular action rather than just being gay. But we will never know what that thing was.

[rahul]

Well, I the history of Oscar Wilde leads me to believe that the answer was homosexuality. One curious thing that Dorian said was, "I have a letter written already. Here it is. You see the address."
Why would the address be so important/ Thus, I think Dorian was going to out him.

[Shane]

So I wasn't the only one wanting to know what Dorian had on Campbell!

[Bridge]

I also felt like it was homosexuality. It was a crucial part of Wilde's life and the irony of it being present is unique. I didn't even think about it, just assumed it.

[ciara]

Jason wrote: "He blackmailed Campbell into disposing of the body. But why did he do it? WHY! OH, WHY, CAMPBY, WHY!?!?!?!?!?!!"

Within the context of an Oscar Wilde novel, that piece of paper almost certainly stated that Alan was a homosexual. The only information we have about him is that he's a scientist and that he and Dorian used to be extremely close friends (lovers). It's unlikely that it was some atrocity that he had committed in the past because if he was such an evil person, why wouldn't he have just agreed to depose of the body in the first place? The vague nature of the scene and the fact that Oscar Wilde wrote it very much points to homosexuality.

[Sara]

I thought from the moment of reading this, it for sure had to be his homosexuallity, Right?

[[deleted user]]

I assume Dorian and Alan had romantic relations I thought it was kind of implied

[Tarini]

Mark wrote: "There really is no answer. It is entirely up to the reader. It could have been his homosexual lifestyle or a past secret or a threat... it could have been any of those things. There simply is no an..."

Despite wanting to lean towards the "scandalous" homosexuality reasoning because of all the conjecture surrounding Wilde's own experiences & suggestive narratives, I also believe that art is eternal if it is extracted from the artist's personal experiences & shared with all the admirers of the said art. In this way, assuming the homosexuality of Alan Campbell & Dorian Gray's speculative relations with him or the author's own personal predicaments kind of reduces the book to Oscar Wilde's personal life experiences. I believe if he wanted the readers to believe this, he would've out right stated what was written in the letter. I feel he purposely left it for the readers to decide their own reasons & build their own monsters & dictate the kind of debauchery Alan & Dorian were involved it. By leaving it up to our imagine, Wilde has transformed the nature of the narrative. It almost makes us reflective in our understanding of "bad", "evil" & "shame", themes are otherwise also heavily centring this brilliant piece of work.

Whatever the reason might have been, I'm glad this timeless classic has still got generations of people talking about it.