The Carlton House. What exactly is this place? Well as far as the reader knows from what is given to us in the story, is that it is a place of many an orgy lead by Lord Beckenham. So was it just a small house that is filled with countless people having sex together? Well it may be but it has stronger significance in the story. In chapter eleven Dorian is doing a lot of looking back and thinking about things and events that have been playing out around him. He has been spending more time with the painting, seeing how it changes even though he does not. Watching it grow old and horrid as he stays clean. At some points, Dorian can’t even stand to look at his painting, other times he rejoices that it is the one growing old and ragged and he stays young and perfect.

So again what does the Carlton house have to do with Dorian or the story? It’s simple, the Carlton House wasn’t just some house. It was a palace. A palace in the north western part of London, which as we have learned is the most rich and wealthy parts of London. This is where royalty lived. On the Charles booth map you can’t really tell because for some reason it isn’t highlighted, but the picture next to it is the Carlton House. It is huge. It is a palace, hard pressed to have any blemishes. This plays a huge part in Dorian Gray. So while a reader may read over this mention of the Carlton House, a member of this class should not. We should be able to tell that this is Oscar Wilde making a direct shot at Dorian. Yes, Dorian is beautiful on the outside, not a blemish or mark to be found on him, but take a look on the inside and it is horrid and scandalous. According to this time periods rules I could only imagine how dishonorable and shunned orgies could be.

Oscar Wilde does an amazing job of throwing in subtle references to make points throughout The Picture of Dorian Gray. By adding in little snip bits of locations and references, he helps define and drive home just how terrible Dorian is. Along with that point though he proves just how powerful Dorian’s wish was in the beginning, being able to mask all of Dorian’s sins and flaws and only show them upon Basil’s painting of young Dorian. The Carlton House is just one of many likenesses to Dorian’s character. By again, it being such a wonderful highly thought of location that, behind closed doors, is filthy and riddled with guilt and sin.