Homosexuality in The Picture of Dorian Gray The Picture of Dorian Gray is a well-known book written by Oscar Wilde. When first published in July 1880, the novel was edited and many passages removed by the British magazine Lippincott's Monthly Magazine. These passages that were removed included an explicit homosexual relationship between two of the three main characters, Basil Hallward and Dorian Gray. During the 1880s, the subject of the book was not acceptable by society's standards. At the time, only men and women married and even the idea of ​​same-sex marriage was abhorrent. Not only was this behavior frowned upon, it was illegal and could result in your arrest. For this reason, most homosexuals remained silent and Wilde later moved to France and married a woman named Constance, with whom he later had two sons. The marriage may have simply been intended to conceal his homosexuality, because even though he was married, Wilde had a long list of male lovers who essentially worshiped the ground he walked on. Throughout The Picture of Dorian Gray, Wilde makes several allusions to his view of marriage that may be linked to his marriage to Constance. There is a scene in chapter 4 between Lord Henry and Dorian where the subject of marriage comes up. Lord Henry warns Dorian to “never marry at all.” . . Men marry because they are tired, women because they are curious: both are disappointed” (49). Wilde may have grown tired in his own marriage, leaving his wife disappointed. If the only reason Wilde married Constance was to get him off the radar, that would obviously leave the couple disappointed. To have a happy marriage there must be a loving relationship and since Wilde was not attracted to the opposite sex there were problems. On the other hand, Wilde wrote other pieces like poems and stories that contradicted his homosexuality. In 1895, Wilde was involved in an affair with the Marquess of Queensberry. The Marquess of Queensberry denounced Wilde as homosexual. Why did he accuse him of being homosexual? It was known that Wilde had been having an affair with the son of the Marquess of Queensbury since 1891. This was a huge shock to the public. Many were disgusted. Once exposed, he then turned around and filed a defamation suit. According to Merriam-Webster, the definition of defamation is “the act of publishing a false statement that causes people to have a low opinion of someone.” While in the stands, Wilde was asked to explain one of his most famous quotes: “The love that dares not speak its name.” Wilde's response explained