Dorian Gray continues to be the object of Lord Henry's attentions, so much so, that Lord Henry's wife seeks him out in order to get a look at the man for herself. However, Dorian remains oblivious to the fact that Lord Henry may be a bit overly solicitous where he is concerned. This is partly due to his previously mentioned vapidness ( maybe Wilde intend it to be youthful naivete), and in part to his new love/infatuation with an equally beautiful young stage actress.
Lord Henry is amused and intrigued by this new development in Dorian's psyche. He views it as an outward sign of the social maturity he's been cultivating in the young man. The object of Dorian's affections, the aptly named Sibyl Vane, could be described as Dorian's equal opposite, dark to his fair, a stage dweller, where Dorian begins as a somewhat introverted frequenter of private salons.
During the next series of events, Dorian becomes engaged to Sibyl. Sibyl's brother, who is departing for Australia promises to kill Dorian, unbeknownst to him, if he should cause any harm to befall Sibyl. It's a right proper dose of melodrama and a foreshadowing of the darkness soon to enter young Dorian's life. To be honest, I'm still waiting for the horror to hit.
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