From Waldszenen to Wagner: The Degeneration of Dorian Gray as Orchestrated by the War of the Romantics

Abstract
This paper explores the way in which Oscar Wilde employed musical references from the German musical canon in The Picture of Dorian Gray to portray his protagonist's original innocence and subsequent descent into hedonism. Wilde uses aesthetic tensions from the nineteenth century's "War of the Romantics" to illustrate subversive themes in the story.
Presenter Biography
Natalie Bartels is an independent scholar based in Seattle, WA. She is this year’s presiding officer at PAMLA’s panel for Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender Literature and Culture. Nat has a Masters of Music in Organ Performance (2019) from the University of Washington, a BA in English (2017) and BA in Sacred Music (2017) from Concordia University Irvine. nhbartels@gmail.com