Hello and welcome to our video summarizing all you need to know about the picture of Doreen Gray by Oscar Wilde. My name is Barbara and in this video, we'll begin by looking at the novel itself. We'll start by examining a little bit about context, especially relating to the author Oscar Wilde himself and also the reviews and the reception of this novel when it was first published in the 1800s. We'll then examine the novel, firstly examining the plot on the whole before examining the summary of each chapter of the novel and we will end by looking at themes that are really important and you need to be aware of if you're studying this novel for your exams or your coursework. So let's get started. Now the picture of Doreen Gray is a philosophical fantasy novel by Oscar Wilde and it was first published in 1890 by Lippincott's monthly magazine. However, the editors feared the story was indecent. So the magazine's editor deleted roughly 500 words before publishing it without Wilde's knowledge and despite this censorship, this book still offended the moral sensibilities of a lot of British book reviewers at the time and some even said that Oscar Wilde merited prosecution for violating laws regarding public morality. Although Wilde did defend his novel as well as his art, he did make some excisions, which means he also censored some parts before revising and lengthening the story for publication in the following year, which is 1891. Now of course to understand this book, you need to understand a little bit about the author himself. So Oscar Wilde was born in Dublin in 1854 and he was very flamboyant and he was seen as very witty. He was of course a playwright, a poet and a critic. He went to Trinity College in Oxford and he then became a famous proponent of asceticism, which is a controversial theory of art which we'll look at in some detail and of course his best known book is the picture of Dorian Gray. He published this Faustian novel in 1890 and this was when he fell in love with a much younger man called Lord Alfred Douglas and of course this really colours our perception of Dorian Gray himself and of course his relationship with Basil Horwood and Lord Henry. Oscar Wilde himself began a double life and he won lots of fame and fortune with his three huge, full successful comedies, Lady Windermere's fan, an ideal husband and an importance of being earnest. However, he led a double life and he secretly spent time in Mel Brothel's. In his famous letter to Lord Alfred Douglas, he said that the danger was half of the excitement of leading the secret life. Now in 1895, Douglas's father, the Marquis of Queensbury, accused Wilde of being a sodomite. Wilde sued him for libel, however he lost and he was subsequently seen as guilty of gross indecency. This led him to spend two years in prison and when he was released he then ended up going to Paris and he spent his final years there and he died in 1900 and he was aged 46 so he had ultimately a tragic ending due to sexuality. Now, broadly speaking, when you think about Dorian Gray, the story begins in the art studio of Basil Horwood who's discussing a current painting with his witty, amoral friend, Lord Henry Watton. Henry thinks that the painting, a portrait of a very extraordinarily beautiful young man, should be displayed. However, Basil disagrees and he fears that his obsession with the portrait subject, Dorian Gray, can be seen in this work so he doesn't want to reveal this because this potentially could reveal his own soul. Dorian then arrives and he's fascinated as Henry explains his belief that one should live life to the fullest by indulging in one's impulses, in other words living a very hedonistic life. Henry also points out that beauty and youth are fleeting and Dorian declares that he would really give his soul if his portrait were to grow old and wrinkled whilst he remained young and handsome. Basil then gives the painting to Dorian as a gift. Henry decides to take on rather the project of moulding Dorian's personality and a few weeks later Dorian tells Henry that he's fallen in love with an actress called Sybil Vane because of her great beauty and acting talent. He invites Henry and Basil to go with him to a very dingy theatre to see Sybil perform, however her performance is terrible. Sybil then explains to Dorian that now she knows what royal love is, she can't pretend to be on love on stage and of course this is what robs her of her acting talent.  However the next day he finds out that Sybil has committed suicide and Lord Henry convinces Dorian that there's no reason that Dorian should feel badly about this. Dorian then feeling guilty and somehow inculcated in this removes the portrait and places it in his attic which he shuts. Henry then sends Dorian a book that he finds poisonous and fascinating.  Dorian does frequently visit this portrait which is hidden away noting the signs of aging and corruption that appear on the portrait however he himself remains unblemished he seems perfect and beautiful. One evening Dorian does run into Basil several years later and Basil tells him that there are rumours that he's destroyed the lives and reputations of very many people. Dorian however refuses to accept any blame and Basil declares that he really doesn't know Dorian who responds by taking him to the attic to see this portrait that Basil had created. The painting has become horrifying and Basil tells Dorian that if this is a reflection of his soul he must repent and pray for forgiveness and a very suddenly enraged Dorian murders Basil. Dorian then blackmails another friend into disposing his body. Later Dorian then goes into an opium den where Sybil's vengeful brother James finds him however the fact that Dorian still appears quite young dissuades him from acting on his anger. However somebody else who works in the den later tells James Dorian's age and James realises that he's been misled. At a subsequent hunting party Dorian's country estate one of the hunters accidentally shoots and kills James who is hiding in a thicket. Some weeks later Dorian tells Henry that he's decided to become virtuous and recently decided against taking advantage of another young girl who is smitten with him. Dorian goes to see if the portrait has been improved because of his honourable act but he sees it's acquired a look of cunning. He ultimately decides to destroy this portrait and he stabs it with a knife. His servants hear a scream and when they arrive they see a loathsome old man who's done on the floor with a knife in his chest and now in place the portrait has a beautiful young man who he once was. Now to go into a chapter by chapter summary of this novel because of course it's really important to understand what happens in each chapter. So let's begin with chapter one. So this chapter of course as mentioned before opens in the London studio of Basil Horwood who's an artist. Reclining with him and smoking a cigarette is Lord Henry who he also refers to as Harry. Basil is finishing a portrait of a young man of extraordinary personal beauty and Henry praises this portrait as Basil's best work. To Henry's surprise however Basil states that he won't show it anywhere and the novel says I've put too much of myself into it of course there are hermetic erotic themes and undertones underneath this. Basil tries to keep the painting subject a secret from Lord Henry however he accidentally discloses that the beautiful young man's name is Dorian Gray. Basil admits that he prefers to keep favourite people to himself not even telling others their names because he feels he might lose part of them. Even when Basil takes a trip he keeps the destination private and this is a revelation that becomes important much later in the story. Basil does have some secrecy to him. Lord Basil rather Lord Henry acts as he understands however he seems more interested in Basil's reason for not exhibiting the portrait and Basil responds that any painting done with true feeling for his muse reveals more of the artist than he does the subject and he fears this painting will reveal the secret of his own soul. Basil explains how he met Dorian at Lady Brandon's home. He felt terror upon first seeing Dorian because he sensed that the young man's personality was so powerful and electric that it could absorb Basil himself and of course he was correct. More important Dorian inspires a fresh approach in art in Basil and it allows him to produce the best work of his professional life because Basil worries that the public will detect his personal and artistic idolatry of Gray he refuses to exhibit the portrait and this echoes a basic tenet of aestheticism that an artist should create beautiful work for its own sake and art really shouldn't mean anything. When Lord Henry expresses his desire to meet Gray Basil explains that he wants to keep Dorian and the painting hidden away so that Lord Henry doesn't corrupt them however at that moment a butler enters and announces the arrival of Dorian and Lord Henry laughs that they must meet now. Before entering the studio where Dorian is waiting Basil asks and in some ways pleads for Lord Henry not to influence or take away the person who inspires him as an artist. In chapter two this chapter begins as Basil and Lord Henry enter the studio. When Lord Henry meets Dorian he notices Dorian is so handsome and the novel says all the candor of youth was there as well as youth's passionate purity. Dorian is intrigued by Lord Henry and he's intrigued that he might be a bad influence despite Basil's own wishes that he has nothing to do with him. Lord Henry responds prophetically with one of his aphorisms as the novel says there's no such thing as a good influence Mr Gray all influence is immoral that is to influence someone is to alter their view and indelibly corrupt them with your own view. Dorian senses as the novel says entirely fresh influences which work within him and whilst Basil asks Lord Henry to go Dorian himself begs him to stay. Dorian wants to try not to think however but Lord Henry influences him. He then manages to convince Lord Henry to stay in spite of Basil's refusal and we find that Lord Henry starts to really heavily influence Dorian through his discussion. He tells the man that the only senses that can cure the soul just as the soul is the only random memory for the senses. Speaking at length from the virtues of youth and beauty Lord Henry claims that beauty is a form of genius and he urges Dorian to be selfish with his youth while he is while he has it and seek what he calls a new hedonism elevating the pursuit of pleasure and dominate to a dominating level. For Lord Henry youth and beauty are the finest of treasures and they should be cherished. Dorian is frightened however he's also stirred by Lord Henry's speech and of course this speech is a turning point which starts to infect Dorian himself and with his mindset it starts taking away his innocence. Basil interrupts and asks the two to rejoin him in the studio so that he can finish the portrait of Dorian and once Dorian looks at this painting he's quite moved as he sees himself for the first time and he recognizes his beauty. He envies the figure in the painting this painting that will forever remain beautiful while he grows old and we find that Dorian becomes quite terrified of aging and he hopes and he repeats his wish that the portrait might age while he remains young so of course this is when a supernatural element is infused. Basil accuses Lord Henry of causing all this turmoil within Dorian however Lord Henry says that he's merely brought forth the true Dorian from within. Basil then decides to destroy the portrait rather than have it upset the lives of the men however Dorian stops him and after a sense of calm is restored Henry invites Dorian to join him at the theater in the evening and of course Basil ends up giving Dorian the portrait as a gift. Now in chapter three it's half pastening the next day Lord Henry calls on his uncle Lord Firmah to learn more a little bit about Dorian's heritage. His uncle is a delightful old curmudgeon he's wealthy cynical and very knowledgeable about everyone else's business especially in high society and he and Lord Henry divulge into Dorian's past. We learn that Dorian is a grandson of Lord Kelso and Kelso's daughter Margaret Devereux and Lady Margaret was an extremely beautiful woman who was displeased who displeased her father rather by marrying beneath her as she married a penniless low-level soldier as Lord Firmah records. Kelso his her father also hired some Belgian brute to insult her husband and lure him into a duel for which he was killed and Lady Margaret however was pregnant with Dorian she died within a year or so of the duel and Kelso also ultimately died and left his fortune to Dorian. The mother also had money of her own so we learned that Dorian is very well off financially. Dorian then attends a luncheon and he meets Lord Henry again and whilst Lord Henry dominates the conversation delighting the audience he says I can sympathize with everything except suffering. We learn of course that Lord Henry is a devout aesthetic he wants people to sympathize with beauty the use of color in the joy of life and nothing else. To an aging duchess at the party Lord Henry suggests to get to back to one's youth one has merely to repeat one's follies and he launches into a triumphant monologue in praise of folly which echoes his speech to Dorian the day before Basil's gout garden and after the luncheon Lord Henry and Dorian leave together. Now in chapter four a month later Dorian waits for Lord Henry in Henry's library at Mayfair. His soul keen annoyed until someone at the door interrupts his mood and it's not Lord Henry but his wife. Lady Henry is familiar with Dorian having seen Lord Henry's photographs of the young men and having noticed Dorian with Lord Henry recently at the opera. In her brief appearance Lady Henry seems as witty as a husband and equally indifferent towards convention. Lord Henry then enters complaining about the hours he spent trying to bargain for a piece of elegant fabric and after Lady Henry leaves he comments lightly on the disappointments of marriage and Dorian volunteers that he doubts he'll ever marry because he's too much in love with an actress named Sybil Vane. He recounts his discovery of Sybil in an absurd little theatre in the east end of London which of course at the time was seen as a very rundown area that gentlemen were not supposed to frequent. Dorian said that he'd gone out one evening to seek adventure recalling Henry's advice in search of beauty and in front of the theatre he recalls that there was as the novel says a hideous Jew named Mr Isaac. Dorian was so amused with this man that he paid an entire guinea which is currency for a private theatre box where he witnessed Sybil Vane replay Romeo and Juliet and he was so entranced by her magnificent performance that he was immediately smitten. Lord Henry then after hearing this offers a few skeptical remarks about Dorian's dramatic description of his newfound love however he doesn't oppose his young friend's choice to love the actress. Dorian is concerned that Lord Henry will assume that all actresses are horrid people and he invites him to go and watch Sybil perform. The love-struck Dorian again continues talking about his meeting with Sybil Vane who's immediately dubbed him Prince Charming because he then goes backstage and we learn that he meets this actress. As Dorian grayed our vultures of his love for Sybil Vane we find that Lord Henry observes this in a very detached way. He seems quite detached about Dorian's romance however he agrees to meet Dorian and Basil for dinner and to go later to see Sybil Vane in a play. Dorian then leaves to the theatre and Lord Henry muses in this situation. We learn as the novel says that he feels not the slightest pang of annoyance or jealousy that Sybil may intervene in their growing friendship but rather these new developments make his protege a more interesting study. In the evening he goes off to find Dorian and we also learn at the end of this chapter that Dorian has announced to him that he is engaged to be married and he announces this through a telegram. Now in chapter five we learn a little bit more about Sybil Vane. We'll find her and her mother discussing the girl's relationship with this Prince Charming and Sybil seems really elated and wants her mother to share her joy as she's in love. However we find that Mrs Vane her mother is far more realistic and cynical and somewhat down to earth. She wants her daughter to think of her career. The situation is complicated by the fact that the veins owe Mr Isaacs the Jewish man 50 pounds which is a great deal of money and Miss Vane wishes for Sybil to pay off this debt. It seems that Sybil has the enthusiasm of an innocent 17 year old and one of Wild's more effective metaphors he says that the joy of a caged bird was within her voice. Sybil doesn't care anymore about Mr Isaacs or money all she cares about is her Prince Charming. We'll also meet Sybil's 16 year old brother James who's set to sell for Australia and he enters a room and he's really angry towards London, towards England's class system and towards the life that they live. Mrs Vane feels ill and to ease around her son fearing that he might suspect some secret that she keeps. However Sybil is more girlish, sweet and innocent and she seems that he's delighted that he's still around and they go off for a walk where she divulges to him about the person who she loves. We find that during the walk in the parkway after they've left the mother James is still very brooding and angry while Sybil tells him about her Prince Charming and she fantasizes out loud somewhat in a childlike manner about the great success that her brother will be after going to Australia. James who cares about this Prince Charming hates him and he hates them the more because he's a gentleman from the upper class. James then warns his sister that the man wants to enslave her and he repeatedly threatens that he will kill him if anything bad comes to Sybil as a result and of course this foreshadows what will eventually happen. We find that James is especially angry that Dorian suddenly passes through the park in an open carriage but only Sybil actually sees him. He's also angered his mother and at the theatre one night months before he'd heard a whispered snare about her. After James and Sybil return from the walk James confronts his mother. He wants to know that if he of she and his father were actually married. There's then a very melodramatic scene and Mrs. Vane essentially tells him that they didn't marry. James accuses their father of being a scoundrel however his mother defends the man. She knew that he wasn't free when she got involved with him. He was a gentleman. James uses this to insist that Sybil should not be with this suitor her gentleman and he continues to repeat that he will track down this gentleman caller and kill him like a dog if he wrongs Sybil. Now in chapter six this is a transitional chapter and it's one of the shortest in the books. The setting for this chapter is a small private dining room at Bristol and Lord Henry Greeks Basil as he enters and then immediately asks as Vane's heard that Dorian is engaged to be married. Basil is really stunned at this information and Lord Henry tells him that he will be marrying an actress. Basil seems genuinely upset at this news. He seems quite incredulous firstly because this woman that he's supposedly marrying is from a different class to him. However of course we find that he's unhappy because Dorian hadn't told him. However Lord Henry seems to be somewhat more passive about it and he explains to Basil that life is not for really making such judgments. Every experience is of some worth he suggests and maybe Dorian might be even more interesting if he marries. For Lord Henry the problem with marriage is more often than not it makes people unselfish and unselfish people lose their individuality. For Lord Henry the purpose of life is to know oneself in a very selfish way. Dorian then arrives and we find that he's giddy with love. He's looking forward to this performance with Sybil. He talks about the previous night when Sybil played Rosalind in Shakespeare's As You Like It and how mesmerised he was and backstage after the performance he says that the lovers unexpectedly kiss. Sybil trembling and she felt her knees and kissed Dorian's hands. He's delighted that they're engaged. However Dorian ends his recollection by stating almost boasting that he had embraced Rosalind and kissed Juliet on the mouth both characters whom Sybil played and we find that perhaps he's in love with the ideal that Sybil represents rather than Sybil the woman herself. Basil seems overwhelmed at all of this information however Lord Henry behaves like a shrewd lawyer. He asks specific things about marriage however subtly he doesn't seem to be too invested in Dorian's story. Dorian is upset at the insinuation that perhaps Lord Henry doesn't necessarily believe that the marriage will work. Even if there hasn't been a formal proposal he seems to believe that him and Sybil were destined to be together. They then leave for the theatre. Now in chapter seven both or rather all three men arrive in the theatre and the theatre is crowded with Dorian, Basil and Lord Henry as well as other guests. When Sybil appears on stage she's performing as Juliet however her performance is lacklustre. Even if Lord Henry believes her to be a beautiful creature all three men find that her performance is listless and artificial in fact her performance is awful. We also see that Dorian appears really disgusted and somewhat embarrassed by Sybil's acting and Lord Henry and Basil leave as does half of the audience however Dorian sits through the entire play. Once the play is finished Sybil seems overjoyed at her dismal performance and expects Dorian to understand that she can no longer act because she's actually found true love in her real life. She intended to be outstanding but because Dorian has taught her what love really is she can no longer fake love in her stories.  The novel says he says you've killed my love.  Sybil is distraught by his sudden shift even if she apologizes and pleads with Dorian to give her another chance Dorian doesn't listen to her he storms out and leaves her crying hysterically. Dorian is annoyed with Sybil and he wanders the streets till near dawn then returns home. Once he gets in he passes through his library towards his bedroom however he notices and becomes disturbed by the fact that the portrait of that basil painted of him has shifted. It's slightly changed and what we learn is that the portrait has a look of cruelty around the mouth. He suddenly feels some remorse and he recalls the wish he made earlier at Basil Studio that the portrait might change and he might not. He wasn't sure that this wish could ever be fulfilled however we find that he has indeed unwittingly entered into Faustian pact. These cruel lines around the mouth show Dorian that perhaps he might have been cruel to Sybil. However he convinces himself that he's not to blame for the situation. Sybil is to blame because she disappointed him with her terrible performance. Eventually however he convinces himself that Sybil hadn't really loved him and he concludes that he doesn't need to be concerned about her at all and then he goes to sleep. We also learn that Dorian is more concerned about the change portrait than Sybil herself and than Sybil's own feelings. It occurs to Dorian that every sin he commits will be reflected in the face of the canvas. He vows never to sin again so that the painting like himself will never change. Thus he vows not to change not because of the morality of the action but more because he doesn't want to see the shift in the painting. So we find that as the novel progresses of course he becomes increasingly narcissistic. Now in chapter eight that afternoon Dorian wakes up very late and we find that he's received a letter from Lord Henry however he sets it aside without opening it. Later Dorian wonders if his portrait has really changed or if he was seeing things because of how late he was. He fills up the courage and finds his portrait which he had hidden behind his screen and he realises the portrait has changed and he remembers the events of the night before. This altered portrait forces Dorian to acknowledge his cruelty to Sybil Vane and he decides that he is going to beg her for forgiveness. He writes a letter to her and as he finishes writing the letter he feels absorbed of any cruelty to Sybil. Later on Lord Henry knocks at the library door and insists on speaking to Dorian. He seems unusually consoling but advises Dorian not to dwell on the situation concerning Sybil which is dreadful. Dorian hasn't yet read this letter and he's very confused. He then tells Lord Henry of his plans to make amends and marry Sybil. Lord Henry then is quite agitated and asks that Dorian has received his letter. Dorian admits he did but he hasn't read it and Lord Henry breaks the news to him that Sybil Vane is dead. Dorian is in shock and he learns that at about half past midnight the previous night Sybil and her mother were leaving theatre. She excused herself saying she'd left something however she didn't return. People curious went back to find where she was and they find that she was dead from ingesting poison. Lord Henry epists concerned however he's not so much concerned about Sybil Vane's own suicide but with keeping Dorian out of the scandal and he asks Dorian to spend the evening with him at the opera so that the unpleasantness of this suicide doesn't get into Dorian's nerves. Lord Henry need not be concerned about Dorian's nerves as Dorian admits that he murdered Sybil. He appears to say in a very detached manner that the whole affair seems to as the novel says wonderful for tears. It's interesting that instead of feeling remorse over Sybil's death Dorian moves us that his first love letter was written to a dead girl. Within only a few seconds he concludes that Sybil's suicide was very selfish of her. It leaves him without the guidance that marriage to her might have provided. Lord Henry then offers several or several glib comments of marriage specifically on what a disaster marriage would have been. Dorian then wonders why he can't feel a tragedy as much as he thinks he should and wonders if he's heartless. To him the death of Sybil seems like as the novel says a wonderful ending to a wonderful play. Lord Henry then finds exquisite pleasure in playing on his unconscious egotism and he's pleased to extend a smile. He reassures Dorian that he isn't heartless. The experience has indeed been like a brilliant play and that's how Dorian should regard the matter. Dorian then confesses that he's felt everything that Lord Henry said that he was afraid to admit which is to do with indulging in his own pleasures and indulging in his own hedonistic desires. Assured by his mentor Lord Henry that his extraordinarily good looks will present him with a rich life Dorian thanks him and calls him his best friend. Lord Henry leaves and then Dorian checks the portrait which hasn't changed since early that day. The portrait registers the events that they happen. Dorian wishes he could actually observe it changing and for a moment he feels some remorse towards Sybil but he brushes the feeling away vowing to go on and seek as the novel says eternal youth, infinite passion and pleasures subtle and secret while joys and while descents. Now in chapter nine Basil the next day comes to offer his condolences to Dorian but it seems that Dorian is very callous and he's dismissed the memory of Sybil quite lightly in his remarks. What's done is done what is past is past. Basil is horrified at this change and he blames Lord Henry for Dorian's heartless attitude. Indeed in discussing Sybil's death Dorian uses so many of the same phrases and arguments that Lord Henry offers. When Dorian refuses to acknowledge any kind of remorse or any kind of responsibility Basil asks if he displays with this portrait which Basil wants to share with at an exhibition now. When Basil wishes to see this portrait and he goes on to remove the screen with which Dorian has covered it Dorian's composure cracks. He insists that the work can never appear in public and pledges never to speak to Basil again should he touch the screen. Remembering Basil's original refusing to draw to show the painting Dorian asks why he's changed his mind and Basil confesses that he was worried that the painting would reveal his obsession with Dorian. Now however Basil believes that the painting, like all art, conceals the artist far more completely than it ever reveals him. Basil asks Dorian to sit for him but Dorian again refuses and when Basil relieves Dorian decides to hide his portrait. Now in chapter 10 once Basil is gone Dorian orders his servant Victor to go to a nearby frame maker and bring back two men. He then causes House Keeper Mrs Leaf and asks for a key to an unused school room which is at the top of the house. Dorian covers the portrait with an ornate satin coverlet and when the two frame makers arrive they help him go and put it upstairs which he hides it. Dorian then locks the painting in the room and he returns to the study settles down to read a book that Lord Henry has sent him. This book is described as a yellow book and it's accompanied by a newspaper account of Sybil's death. Horrified by the ugliness of the report Dorian turns to the book which traces the life of a young Parisian who devotes his life to as the novel says, all the passions and modes of thought that belonged to every century except his own. After reading a few pages Dorian is entranced he finds the work to be a poisonous book one that confuses the boundaries between vice and virtue. When Dorian later meets Henry for dinner he pronounces that the work is fascinating. Now in chapter 11 under the influence of this yellow book that Lord Henry has sent him Dorian's character startles starts to begin to change. He orders nearly half a dozen copies of these first edition and has them bound in different colors to suit his shifting mood. Years pass and Dorian remains young and beautiful however he's trailed by rumors that he indulges in dark sordid behavior. Most people however can't help but dismiss these stories since Dorian's face retains an unblemished look of purity and innocence which of course highlights Victorian hypocrisy. Whatever appears to be on the surface is what's accepted. Dorian delights in the ever-widening gulf between the beauty of his body and the corruption of his soul and he reflects that too much human experience has been sacrificed to asceticism and pledges to live a life devoted to discovering the true nature of his senses. Always intellectually curious he keeps up with the theories of the day from mysticism to Darwinianism however he never lets his theories dominate him or interfere with his experiences. Dorian also devotes himself to the study of beautiful things, perfumes and the psychological effects, music, jewelry, embroideries and tapestries. He also continues to watch the painted image of his himself age and deteriorate. Sometimes the sight of the portrait fills him with horror whilst at other times he reflects joyfully on the burdens that his body has been spared. However he increasingly fears that someone will break into his house and steal the painting. He knows many men whisper of a scandal behind his back and they would delight in his downfall. Now in chapter 12 on the evil's 38th birthday Dorian runs into a basil on a fog covered street. Some time has passed and the two men have not seen each other and Dorian tries to pass him unrecognized but Basil recognises him and calls him and accompanies him home. Basil mentions that he's about to leave for a six month stay in Paris but felt it necessary to stop by and warn Dorian that terrible rumors are being spread about his conduct. He reminds Dorian that there's no such thing as secret vices, sin he claims, rats himself across a man's face. Having said these words Basil demands to know why so many of Dorian's friendships have ended so disastrously. Basil then chastisises Dorian for his influence over these unfortunate people that he's been involved with and urges him to use his considerable power and his upper-class status for good rather than evil and he loudly wonders whether he knows Dorian at all and wishes he were able to see the man's soul. Dorian loves bitterly at this and tells the artist he shall have his wish. He invites him to show, he invites Basil rather to show him his life. In chapter 13 Dorian leads Basil to the room where he keeps the painting locked inside. Dorian then lights a candle as he takes him into where he's hidden his art and he tears back the curtain to reveal the portrait which is now hideous. Basil stares at it and he is horrified and Dorian stands back and watches Basil with, as the novel says, a flicker of triumph in his eyes. When Basil asks how such a thing is possible Dorian reminds him of the fateful day that he met Lord Henry whose cautionary words about the ephemeral nature of beauty caused him to pledge his soul for eternal unblemished use. Basil curses the painting as an awful lesson believing he worshipped his youth too much and is now being punished for it. He begs Dorian to kneel and pray for forgiveness but Dorian claims it's too late. Glancing at his picture, Dorian feels hatred welling up within him. He seizes a knife and stabs Basil repeatedly, killing him. He then hides his belongings and body in a secret compartment and then slips out quietly. After a few moments he returns home. He wakes the servant and creates an impression that he's been out all night and the servant reports back to him that Basil has been to visit, however Dorian pretends that he's sorry to have missed him so that he can have an alibi. Now in chapter 14 the next morning Dorian wakes up from a very restful sleep. Once the events of the previous night sink in he feels the return of all of his hatred for Basil. He decides not to brood on the things he, for fear of making himself ill or mad and after breakfast he sends for Alan Campbell who's a young scientist and a former friend from whom he's grown distance. While waiting for Campbell to arrive he passes a time with a book of poems to reflect on his one intimate relationship with a scientist. We learned that he and Alan Campbell were at one point inseparable. He also draws pictures and reflects on his drawing similarity to Basil's likeliness. Dorian then wonders if Campbell will come and is relieved when the servant announces his arrival. Alan Campbell however has come reluctantly having been summoned on a matter of life and death. Dorian confesses to him that there's a dead man locked in the uppermost room of his house. He refrains him discussing the circumstances of the man's death. However he asks Campbell to use his knowledge of chemistry to destroy the body. At first Campbell refuses and he reiterates that he has no interest in being involved. However Dorian blackmails him threatening to reveal a secret that will bring great disgrace on him. With no alternative Campbell agrees to dispose of the body and he sends the servant to his home for the necessary scientific equipment. Dorian goes upstairs to cover the portrait and notices that one of the hands on the painting is dripping with red and the novel says as though the canvas has sweated blood. Campbell then goes upstairs after the painting has been covered and he works until the evening and leaves. When Dorian returns to the room the body is gone and the odor of nitric acid fills the room. Now in chapter 15 that evening Dorian goes to dinner party where he flirts with bored noble women. Reflecting on his calm demeanor he feels keenly the terrible pleasure of the novel says a double life. Lady Nabra the hostess discusses the sad life of her daughter who leaves in the region of the countryside that has not witnessed the scandal since the time of Queen Elizabeth. Dorian finds the party tedious and brightens only when he learns Lord Henry will be in attendance. During dinner after Lord Henry has arrived Dorian finds it a possible to eat. Lord Henry asks him what the matter and Lady Nabra suggests that Dorian perhaps is in love however Dorian assures her that she is wrong. The party goes and talk wittily about marriage and Lord Henry and Dorian discuss a party to be held at Dorian's country estate. Lord Henry then casually asks about Dorian's whereabouts the night before and Dorian's calm facade cracks a little bit and he snaps out a strange defensive response. He then decides to go home early. Once Dorian arrives home he retrieves vassals belongings from the wall compartment and burns them. He goes to an ornate cabinet and opening one of its drawers drills out a canister of opium. At midnight he dresses in common clothes and hires a coach to bring him to a London neighbourhood where the city's opium dens are. Now in chapter 16 as the coach heads out towards the opium den Dorian recites to himself Lord Henry's credo to cure the soul by means of the senses and the senses by the means of the soul. He decides that if he can't be forgiven by sins he can at least forget them and herein lies the pill of the opium dens and the oblivion that they promise. The coach stops and Dorian exits. He enters a squalor den and finds someone called Adrian Singleton whom the rumour says Dorian corrupted. As Dorian prepares to leave a woman addresses him as the devil's bargain and Prince Charming. At these words a sailor leaps to his feet and follows Dorian to the street.  His meditation however is cut short when he sees from behind and held at gunpoint. He faces James Vane Sybil's brother who's been tracking him for years in hopes of avenging his sister's death. James doesn't know Dorian's name however the reference to Prince Charming makes him decide that he must be the man who wronged his sister. Dorian points out however that the man James speaks seeks was in love with Sybil 18 years ago. Since he Dorian has a face of a 20 year old man he possibly cannot be the man that wronged Sybil. James Ford releases him and makes his way back to the open den. The old woman when he returns tells James that Dorian had been coming there for 18 years and his face has never aged a day or his life. Furious at letting Dorian escape James resolves to hunt him down. Now going on to chapter 17 and 18. One week has passed and Dorian has retreated to his country estate Selby Royal. His guests include the beautiful Duchess of Monmouth called Gladys, her older boring and somewhat jaded husband Lady Marlborough who's old and flirtatious and Lord Henry. The conversation that takes place in this party is very light and superficial and Lord Henry wants to rechristen and rename some things especially flowers. Beautiful objects should have beautiful names he says. The Duchess asks what new name Lord Henry shall have and Dorian immediately announces appropriately Prince Paradox. The Duchess then tries to flirt with Dorian and he excuses himself to fetch her some of his orchids. Lord Henry lighted heartedly warns the Duchess about loving Dorian. Suddenly the group hears a muted groan and the sound of a heavy fall. Lord Henry rushes to find that Dorian has fainted. When Dorian wakes up he refuses to be alone. Despite his condition he joins the others at dinner and tries to act jolly. However every so every so often terror shoots through him as he recalls why he fainted. He saw James Vane observing him through a window. Dorian spends most of the next day in his room feeling haunted and stalked and sick with fear of death. He alternates between the certainty of punishment and an equal certainty that the weak could receive no such fate in the world. He can lose that the only morality is the success of the strong and the failure of the weak. On the third day Dorian finally goes out. He decided that he imagined James's face at the window. After breakfast he strolls in the garden with the Duchess for an hour. Then he joins her brother Sir Jeffrey Colston and others who are shooting birds. A hare bursts forth and Sir Jeffrey aims. But Dorian so admires the beauty and grace of the animal that he cries, let it live. Lord Jeffrey finds Dorian's police silly and fires at the hare as it jumps into a thicket. Two sounds come from the bush, the cry of a hare and the cry of a man. We then learn that a dead body is pulled from the brush. Lord Henry recommends hauling off the hunt for the day. Dorian wants to cancel this hideous and cruel hunt for good. He fares that this death is a bad omen. Lord Henry however laughs at his concern saying that anything horrible in life is boredom. There are no omens. In his room Dorian lies in terror at the sofa. Later he calls a servant and tells him to pack. He will leave 8.30 to catch his night expressed to London. Thornton, Dorian's chief gamekeeper however, enters with startling news. The dead man can't be identified. He wasn't one of the beaters at all, the people who are supposed to be working there. In fact he seems to be a sailor who was armed with a gun. Dorian then rushes to where the body is and he identifies it as James Veins and he feels safe at last. Now in Chapter 19 several weeks have passed and Dorian visits Lord Henry. He claims he wants to reform himself and become virtuous. As evidence for his newfound resolve, he describes a recent trip he went to the country during which he passed up an opportunity to seduce and defile an innkeeper's innocent daughter. Lord Henry dismisses Dorian's intentions to reform and he turns the conversation to other subjects. For instance Alan Campbell's recent suicide, the man that had helped Dorian great dispose of Basil's body and also he discusses the continued mystery of Basil's hard words disappearance. Dorian asks if Lord Henry has ever considered that Basil might have been murdered. Lord Henry dismisses this idea noting that Basil lacked any enemies. The conversation then drifts away from Basil. Lord Henry asks Dorian, what is the Prophet a man if he gained the whole world and lose? How does the quotation run? His own soul? Dorian starts nervously however Lord Henry explains that he heard a street preacher posing this question to a crowd. He mocked this preacher in typical fashion and Dorian cuts him short insisting that the soul is very real. Lord Henry loves this suggestion wondering aloud how Dorian has managed to remain so young after all this years. He wishes a new Dorian's secret and praises Dorian's life as being exquisite. He commends Dorian's mode of living and begs him not to spoil it by trying to be virtuous. However Dorian is sober and his somberly asks his friend not to loan anyone else this yellow book which had a corrupting effect on his own character. Before leaving Lord Henry invites Dorian to visit him the next day. Now in chapter 20 that night Dorian goes to his locked room to look at his portrait. He hopes his decision to amend his life will have changed the painting and he considers that perhaps his decision not to ruin the innkeeper's daughter's reputation will be reflected in the painting in face. However when he looks at his portrait he sees as no change except as the novel states in the eyes there was a look of cunning and in the mouth the curved wrinkle of a hypocrite. Dorian realizes his pitiful attempt to be good was no more than hypocrisy an attempt to minimize the seriousness of his crimes which falls far short of atonement. He's furious so he seizes a knife the same weapon that he used to kill Basil and drives it into the portrait in an attempt to destroy it. From below Dorian hears Dorian's servants hear a cry and a clatter. The servants break into the room only to see a portrait unharmed showing Dorian Gray as a beautiful young man. On the floor however is the body of an old man horribly wrinkled and disfigured with a knife plunged into his heart. It's not until the servants examine the rings under old man's hands that they identify him as Dorian Gray. Now when it comes to the characters themselves of course the first is Dorian Gray. So at the opening he appears as something of an ideal he's the archetype of male youth and beauty and as such he captures the imagination of Basil Horwood who's a painter and Lord Henry Watten a noble man who imagines fashioning the impressionable young Dorian into an unremitting pleasure seeker in other words a hedonist. We learn that Dorian is exceptionally vain and he's convinced in the course of a brief conversation with Lord Henry in his most salient characteristics his youth and physical attractiveness and he's worried that they're waning. The thought of waking up one day without these attributes sends him into a panic he curses his fate and thus makes this fast young pact that in exchange his portrait should age and not he. Dorian leaves Basil's studio for Lord Henry's paler where he adopts the tenets of a new hedonism and resolves to live life as a pleasure seeker with no regard for conventional morality. His relationship with Sybil Vane tests his commitment to his philosophy. His love of the young actress nearly leads him to dispense with Lord Henry's teaching but his love proves to be as shallow as he is. When he breaks Sybil's heart and drives her to suicide Dorian notices the first change in his portrait evidence that his portrait is showing the effects of Asian experience while his body remains ever youthful. He experiences a moment of crisis as he weighs his guilt about his treatment of Sybil against the freedom from worry that Lord Henry's philosophy has espoused. When Dorian decides to view Sybil's death as an achievement of an artistic ideal rather than a needless tragedy for which he's responsible he starts down the sleep and slippery slope of his own demise. As his sins grow worse over the years his likeness to Basil's portrait grows more hideous. Despite the few beautiful things he surrounds himself he's unable to distract himself from the dispassion of his soul. His murder of Basil marks the beginning of his end although in the past he's been able to keep infamous from his mind he can't shake the thought that he's killed his friend. His guilt tortures him relentlessly until he's forced to deal with his portrait. In the end Dorian is punished for his ability to be influenced. If the new social order celebrates individualism as Lord Henry claims Dorian falters because he fails to establish and live by his own moral code. The next significant character is Lord Henry Watten. So Lord Henry is a man possessed of as a novel states wrong fascinating poisonous delightful theories. He's a charming talker and he has brilliant wit and intellect. Giving the alluring way in which he leads conversation it's unsurprising that Dorian falls under his spell completely. His theories are radical they aim to shock and purposefully attempt to topple the established conventional notions of truth however in the end they do prove naive. It's interesting that he's a relatively static character he doesn't undergo a significant change in the course of the narrative. He's cruelly composed, unshakable and possessed of the same dry wit and the final pages of the novel as he is upon the introduction. Because he doesn't change what Dorian and Basil do his philosophy seems amusing and enticing the first half of the book and then improbable and shallow in the second half. Although Lord Henry is a self-proclaimed hedonist who advocates equal pursuit of moral and immoral experiences it's interesting to note that he participates in polite London society, attends parties and theatre and dodson himself indulge in sordid behaviour unlike Dorian who he corrupts. The next character of course is Basil Horwood so he's a very talented painter and his love for Dorian Grey changes the way he sees art indeed it defines a new school for expression for him. Basil's portrait of Dorian marks a new phase in his career before he created this masterwork. He spent his time painting Dorian in the veils of antiquity dressed as an ancient soldier or as various romantic figures from mythology. Once he's painted Dorian as he truly is however he fears he's put too much of himself in his work and he worries that his love which he himself describes as idolatry is too apparent. Though he later turns his mind not to exhibit his portrait he still maintains a belief that art is always more abstract than one thing's and it's interesting that his belief changes from paintings revealing his soul to paintings betray nothing than the form and colour. However throughout the novel Basil Horwood's emotional investment in Dorian remains constant and he seeks to protect Dorian voicing his objection from Lord Henry's endurance over him. Now when it comes to important themes the first of course is youth and beauty. So youth and beauty are the first principle of asceticism and this is the philosophy of art by which Oscar Wilde himself lived and this is that art serves no other purpose than to offer beauty. Throughout this novel beauty reigns. It's a means to revitalize the weary senses as indicated by the effect that Basil's painting has on the cynical Lord Henry. Art is also a means of escaping the brutalities of the world. Dorian distances himself not to mention his consciousness from the horrors of his actions by devoting himself to the study of beautiful things including music, jewels and rare tapestries.  Lord Henry describes Dorian of as much upon the meeting as when he laments that Dorian will soon enough lose these precious attributes. In chapter 17 the Duchess of Monmouth suggests to Lord Henry that he places too much value on these things. Indeed Dorian's eventual demise confirms his suspicions. Although beauty and youth remain of utmost importance in the end of the novel the portrait is returned to its original form and the novel appears to suggest that the price one must pay for beauty and youth is exceedingly high. Indeed Dorian gives nothing less in his soul. The next theme of course is superficiality so it's no surprise that a society which prizes beauty above all else is a society founded on a love of surfaces. What matters most to Dorian Lord Henry and the polite company that they keep is not whether a man is good at heart but rather if he's handsome. As Dorian evolves into the realization of a type the perfect blend of scholar and socialite he experiences the freedom to abandon his morals without censure. Indeed even though his vassal worn society's elite question his name and reputation he's actually never ostracized. On the contrary despite his mode of life he remains at the heart of London's social scenes because of the innocence and purity of his beauty and face. Of course another important theme is the purpose of art. So when this book was first published it was decried as immoral. In a revising text the following year Wilde included a preface which serves as a useful explanation for his philosophy of art. The purpose of art according to a series of epigrams is to have no purpose. In order to understand this claim fully one needs to consider the moral climate of Wilde's time and the Victorian sensibility regarding art and morality. Victorians believe that art could be used as a tool for social education and moral enlightenment as illustrated in the works of writers such as Charles Dickens and George Gissin. The aestheticism movement of which Wilde was a major proponent sought to free art from his responsibility. If this philosophy informed Wilde's life however we must then consider whether this is this novel only bears it out. The two works of art that dominate this novel, Basil's painting and the mysterious yellow book that Lord Henry gives Dorian but we never quite know who it's by are presented in the vein of more Victorian sensibilities than of aesthetics ones. That is to say both the portrait and the French novel serve a purpose. The first acts as a type of mysterious mirror that shows Dorian the physical dissipation of his own body has been spared. While the second acts are something of a roadmap leading the young man further along the path toward infamy. While we know nothing of the circumstances of the yellow book's composition Basil's state of mind or painting Dorian's portrait is clear. Later in the novel he advocates that all art be as the novel states unconscious, ideal and remote. His portrait of Dorian however is anything but. Thus Basil's initial refusal to exhibit the work results from his belief that it betrays his idolatry of his subject. Of course one might consider that these breaches of aesthetic philosophy mould the picture of Dorian Gray in his something that's of cautionary tale. These are the prices that must be paid for instilling art which reveals the artist's or a moral lesson. But this warning is in itself a moral lesson which betrays the impossibility of Wilde's project. If as Dorian observes later in the novel the imagination orders the chaos of life and invests it with meaning then art as a fruit of imagination can't help but mean something. Wilde may have succeeded in freeing his art from the confines of Victorian morality but as he has replaced it with a doctrine that is in his own way restrictive. So that's all if you enjoyed this video do subscribe to our channel and give this video a thumbs up but also do make sure you visit our website www.firstreadtutors.com where you'll find useful revision guides, model answers written at an a grade level and exam papers you can use to practice this novel or many other novels as well as compare them for that matter. Thank you so much for listening.


I'm with the coalition for networked information. And I'm really delighted that you were able to join us here today. I'm so pleased to welcome Nancy Maron, who will be giving our webinar today as part of CNI's spring 2020 virtual membership meeting. Nancy is going to be talking to us today on the gateway project gateway focus week kickstarting digital projects with an intensive sustainability. And I think she's going to have some really interesting things to say about pivoting to a virtual environment, which many of us are very familiar with at this point. Before I hand it over to Nancy, I just want to call your attention to a few features of the webinar environment. We have a Q&A box. If you click on the button at the bottom of your screen that says Q&A, a little box will pop up and you are welcome to type your questions into that box at any time. And Nancy will answer those after her presentation. I'll come back on and moderate the Q&A. We also have a chat box, which will be sharing out some information to you some links to other information during the talk, and you're also welcome to share your questions or comments in that box. So without further ado, I want to welcome everyone again for joining us and thank Nancy for coming in presenting at CNI. And I'm going to hand it over to Nancy now. Take it away, Nancy. Thank you, Diane. And hello, everybody.  And obviously it'll be way more fun to be doing this in person with everybody. But here we are. So my name is Nancy Marin. Some of you know me and we have met at this meeting in other years. And I have my own farm, which is called Blue Scotted Blueprint, but today I'm here representing the SGCI, the Science Gateways Community Institute, and talking about a wonderful, wonderful program that we are able to run with generous funding from the NSF. So Science Gateways. First of all, I think we have had some presentations at CNI in the past, but not that many. And it occurs to me that it might be a good place to start by kind of talking a little bit about what Science Gateways are in the first place. Because I see a ton of bridges in between the things we often think of as Science Gateways, or people may assume are Science Gateways, and the entire range of digital initiatives that I know people present on at CNI twice a year. So the most simple and direct way to think about a Science Gateway is maybe the original conception, where we're thinking about how to connect high performance computing power, expensive resources, things normal people can't really get a hold of on their own, or at least not easily. We're thinking about what researchers do when they develop computations, simulations, they have a lot of data intensive work and computationally intensive work to perform. And then you'll have audiences and people who want to use them, whether it's for their own research, whether it's students doing it, or just people who are not particularly comfortable rolling up their sleeves and digging into the cyber infrastructure world themselves. So Science Gateways are really invented as a bridge for people who need to do the work to get to that compute capacity without having to do all the work themselves. So that all sounds very technological and you might be led to think that a Science Gateway is just for folks working in STEM disciplines. So I thought I'd show a couple of slides that give you a sense of the breadth of what we actually are talking about when we're thinking about gateways because the definition has morphed over time in a way that is much, much broader than perhaps it used to be. So this is something like, so what example is the protein data bank? Now, something like the protein data, the actual protein data bank, which is a massive repository. And again, this is this has been actually around for a very, very long time in digital form and been online now for a very long time. And essentially a place for depositing protein structures used both by the people who are making the discoveries and also people who need to go and find them. There are other elements that are educational in addition, but this is used by researchers in the field. Here's another example. This is called CERA, the Coastal Emergency Risk Assessment Platform. And this is powered by teams of oceanographers and folks who have developed a model to predict storm surge. So this is another digital initiative developed by researchers, but with very, very immediate and important uses by a wide range of audiences, none of whom could think about doing that. Those computations themselves, for example, both academic researchers and even emergency responders. You'll notice in the upper left corner the name of some of the major funders of these projects. So these are coming out of a range of different funding environments. Another example NSF funded is Nano Hub, which permits people to do simulations and run models using again these HPC clusters located around the country to run them. But if you're coming into this environment to use it, you actually may not even need to know that you just know that you can do the work in this environment. But not everything is a pure research computation or an experiment or a model that's being run. Some things are just spaces to share information. And so here's where the definition begins to get a little broader. Planting science is a way to connect with the community to connect students with professional mentors who can coach them in doing experiments. CUBE is an interesting model as well. It's actually a platform for other projects where if you've invented something that could itself be a website that permits community to meet and share information, you can actually host your community in this bigger environment with other people doing the same thing. So whether or not there's a major computation in the background, it's just a platform that provides broader access. And just because I know there are plenty of friends and family of the humanities and other funders, for example, NEH and IMLS who are likely to be affiliated with CNI. In recent years, the group working on science gateways has been very willing to think about this more broadly and not just think about things that have to do with STEM disciplines, but projects that more broadly address the mission of bringing information and the ability to do research to people who don't necessarily have to be developing the website or savvy in cyber infrastructure themselves. So this example is the slave voyages database, for example. So that's just to give you a sense of the breadth of the kinds of things we're thinking of when we say science gateways. We've even, this is interesting, another type of example, we've seen folks come into the SGCI to get support in various ways that aren't even necessarily funded through a major federal or private funder. They're self-funded, and this is an example called Chem Compute developed by an instructor, by chemistry professor who wanted to develop a way for his students to learn material. So there's all kinds of ways that something can come to be thought of as a science gateway. So the team that developed this, and this is an NSF funded project, which I believe is going into its fifth year of funding. And the notion was project like this, and I've just hopefully shared a little bit of the diversity of what like this actually means, needs support. They need to talk to other people about how they get built. They may need developer support to actually build them. They want to get the word out and let people know they're there so they can be well used. And then my favorite topic of all, they need a path for sustainability. And here's where the worlds of like high performance computing, STEM resources and digital humanity start to come very, very close together. Because the challenges that these science gateways face when it comes to sustainability, to my eyes look extremely similar to the challenges that almost any digital initiative coming out of academia or cultural heritage is going to face. So with that in mind, several years ago, the SGCI was created. Today it has a few of these different branches that address different aspects of this. There's an education and training piece. There's a piece focused on network and community building, and that's where you'll see annual conferences taking place. And there's actually developer support attached to this as well. So if you were working on something and needed help building some element of it out. There are teams that can actually provide that support to you and to your team. Over the last several years, here's just the metrics slide. I will not read through it, but suffice it to say there's been a wide range of kinds of impacts that you can see of the things that the group has been able to do. And a lot of people have been engaged, whether it's having software built by our partners, whether it's participating in our workshops or showing up at our conferences. So in short, the sustainability is a way to give all these projects and the project leaders what they need to actually build things that are quite valuable without having to do everything themselves. So the topic of today's talk is really this gateway focus week, which as I mentioned, I'll tell you a little bit about and then I'll tell you what this year it will actually look like, which will not involve the word week at all. But for the last several years, twice a year, we have been running a five day intensive workshop that is geared to leaders of digital initiatives. I'm going to start calling it that instead of just science gateways, because it is really broad. And we bring them together. We're on site. We've been at various locations around the country. And over the course of that time, we actually take participants through a full curriculum that is geared to help them think about the key issues related to sustaining their project. And say a little bit more about what that looks like and and also the fact that because this is under the umbrella of this current NSF grant. This program is entirely at awkward at no cost to participants. In fact, the only cost that a participant has is getting themselves there and possibly packing in a meal or two that we may not provide. But otherwise, they have access to the curriculum to the instructors and the team of instructors and the wonderful company of their peers over the course of five days. So the teams come together. There's a structured series of exercises that we undertake. And the main motion is that these ideas build from simple ideas and a very exploratory sense of what's my project and what am I here for to how would I write a budget for it and what's my hypothesis about the funding sources that are going to actually support it going forward. And so you'll see people are constantly out of their chairs. It's an extremely dynamic environment with a lot of hands on exercises. Teams work together. We encourage people to come in teams because there's huge value, not just in sending your, your lead or your PI there, but often in having the disciplinary lead of the, you know, the, the, the researcher there alongside the tech lead often a marketing lead joins. Because it's often the only time that these people have had work face to face for such an intense amount of time. In addition, the other value people consistently report to us isn't meeting the other teams, because they find connections they didn't realize they had and they're able to find a lot of supportive peers to work with. So the flow of the information or the flow of the, of the coaching follows a certain path. We first encourage people to just articulate in a very basic way what they think the value is of what they've done for their users. And over the course of the week, we continue to refine this and refine this with them. And we do it through structured exercises that take them through understanding who their audience is. Being very specific about how finely tuned they can talk about a segmentation of who the different users and stakeholders are and the roles that they play. We set them up to do an additional piece of research when they go out so that they also understand the landscape that they operate in and some of these takes a form of these elaborate drawings and these schematics that they then explain to each other and to the instructor. We do a terrific session where a colleague comes in and leads a session on user-centered design, which everyone loves doing because it involves making fun of very famous other websites and how hard they are to navigate. And then we get into the nitty-gritty. So we start with this really kind of big picture, where should I live in the world? And then we say, right, now that you've figured that out, how are you going to pay for what is it cost to run? And how will you find all of the resources needed? And that takes over the second half of the program where we actually walk people through the steps of building up what we call an activity-based budget. Which, you know, is very different from saying, I would just like a large amount of money and we'll get as far as it allows us to get by the end of the grant. Not that anyone's budget looks like that, but we talked very specifically about now that you've identified some goals and things, very specific things you'd like to achieve. Who do you need to get that done? So it's a very different kind of exercise that people find more surprising than they would have imagined. We talked to folks through a range of different funding options. And often when people come in, they've had one funding option, which has been a grant. And we encourage people to explore things, not to go off in some crazy direction, but to take a measured way to investigate alternatives. And sometimes those alternatives involve simply unlocking additional sources of in-kind support. But the point of the exercise is not to assume that something is not possible until you've had a look. And finally, we actually use the word sales. And we certainly use the word marketing because we encourage people to think about how they're going to make the case for funding, whether it is financial or non-financial. What that support looks like, whether it's cash exchanging hands or not, is still going to involve some degree of selling. And we encourage people to practice their skills of persuasion while they're with us. Finally, we've added a new piece, which people love, which involves actually allowing other members of the participants' teams to get together and to work together to solve a specific problem that you come in with. And it could be a really, really specific situational problem to solve. Everyone sits around and there's a rapid fire process that takes place that generates a lot of ideas, prioritizes them, and then gets the rest of us on the hook for helping people going forward. And so that's called the brain trust. And every single day we have one so that every team participating gets a chance to be on the hot seat. So this is what a typical agenda looks like. People would come in, we'd have a half day together doing some great, you know, blue sky kind of drawings on the boards, talking about our project, working through the subject that I've just mentioned. And by the last day, the project or the week culminates in sharing what we call a pitch deck, which essentially outlines your sustainability hypothesis. Here's what I've been thinking about all week. Here's where I think I am on thinking about my users, where my project lives in the environment, how I'm going to fund it, and what comes next for me. And this is done with the entire group all in a circle. And again, it gives people a sense of pulling together what has been a lot of very creative thinking over the course of the week. We also encourage them, we require them to establish three months and six months goals, and we check back. So the notion of a community is a very real one. We're together in the real space in real time. And then afterwards we continue to check in with people at regular intervals over the first six months to see how they're progressing. So so far, we've had 240 people come through the program, and different engagements, some of them are this course, and actually some have been customized versions, because we've found that often people hear about this, and they say, Well, this would be nice, but I'd actually like it at my institution or my project has more people couldn't you come on site. And so we have all different flavors of this that we also customize. So there's us, but there's actually even more people than this. So, Julianne and I do most of the business strategy piece, Mike Netner is the lead PI of the entire SGCI and he's located at University California San Diego. And then my other colleagues on the slide and off the slide participate in a range of ways we bring in experts all the time to give special lectures on other topics. And people who have come through the program have loved it. In one case, it provided a way to get fully funded on a very, very early stage project. In another case, a much smaller project is formed internally, for example, at the federal agency NOAA was able to simply take the work they done with us and go back and make an argument for getting additional staff and the argument works. So we've seen all kinds of different results that come out of participating with us. I'll just mention that we have now had to go into a very different space. So our original hope was to be on site at Columbia at the first week in June. We will not be doing that. I'm following the lead of CNI and other creative thinkers in this space. We have totally reconfigured what it will look like, but we didn't want just to call it off altogether. So instead, Focus Week is going to be a virtual offering this year. And in the middle of June, the 16th through the 18th, we've actually come up with a way to offer a fairly painless way to get a taste of what the full program might look like. And as you can see on this slide, we're still holding out hope that we will have a chance to bring everyone back together. And so there will still be a formal application for Focus Week in its regular full format for later this year. So I'll tell you a tiny bit about what the short course looks like. First, like everything else is totally free, totally open. Instead of having, you know, you saw a full curriculum spread out over practically a week. We're doing it on just three days and we're doing it in bite-sized pieces. So every day for those three days, the first session is going to just be a fundamental. We're going to offer a nice short one-hour, you know, primer on the topic of the day with some food for thought, maybe some exercises to take away. And there will be a thread running through those lunchtime lectures. So if you go to all three, you're going to get a pretty good sense of what the scope of topics would be and you'll get the flavor of the kinds of things you might do in the fuller course. The special topics in the afternoon are going to be a little bit different. One might be cybersecurity. I think we'll probably do something on user experience. And again, you're free to come in for the noon sessions or just take a taste of a topic in the afternoon that you enjoy. But the benefit of registering and coming to the daytime sessions is that we are also, my colleague and I will make ourselves available in between those for office hours. Because we know they're often the sustainability questions folks have tend to be very specific and there's only so much that a webinar can offer. And so if folks are interested, we're going to be setting up 20-minute slots each of those days. And so those folks who have registered will have the opportunity to just fly up for time with us and we're more than happy to talk with folks about anything that can help them, even though it's a really short amount of time, but we'll try. So this is what it looks like. The first day we're going to start with an overview and we're going to share a little bit about our philosophy of what it means to be sustainable and the different directions that you can take and the different strategies that work. At this point, we have a lot of case studies to draw from both ones that are in the humanities and a whole bunch now that are in STEM and sciences, a project of all different shapes and sizes. And so we're going to share a bit of that with you in the first lecture. The second day is going to delve more into the external environment that you find your project in, who's using it, how to think about that.  And then on the last day, we're going to talk about finance and budgeting. Sorry for the shift. Welcome to the New World. So we're not even calling this a full application process. We just want people to register. So if you're interested, bring as many people as you'd like. Please join us. Please consider registering and please dip into as many of the sessions as you would like. And obviously I'm happy to take any questions you have and and anything else. I think that takes us to the end of the presentation. Thank you so much. I was just trying to type in the your URL there into the chat box for folks in case they wanted to check that out. Thank you so much for that really interesting overview of the science gateways. First of all, which I think is such a fascinating and wonderful project.  And with that, I would like to invite our attendees to share with us any questions or comments that you might have for Nancy. Are you familiar with the science gateways? Have you attended any of these sessions? Are you thinking of running anything similar? Are any questions about the process or the program? Please just click on the Q&A box or use the chat box and ask your question of Nancy now. I was wondering Nancy while we're waiting for folks to come in with their questions. If is there any process or program in place now to continue to foster these connections that people form when they're participating in the workshops, but between. In other words, after they go away sort of communities of practice. So what's so interesting is that people come from all different disciplines. So the community of practice ends up being about the fact that they're building a gateway. So it's almost like the software sustainability institute kind of community of practice. It's like people who are doing the building, but then also their partners who live in the academic disciplines they're from. In addition to staying with us because through the group I work with, we really do stay in touch. There are presentations at all kinds of conferences and these people become a network of people who show up at these same meetings and continue to do this research and talk to each other. But the SGCI does run an annual meeting and I think the call may still be open and may have just closed, but the meeting is slated for the fall. And it's an interesting meeting to keep to keep your eye on because that again is what they're hoping to continue to build into a real community talking specifically about the cyber infrastructure issues related to these sites. And again, for anyone on the call, the most important message is really that these things with the word science is in there, but it's almost science more in the sense of research than it is them. Because there's really, there's no reason that any discipline really wouldn't be relevant for the kinds of things we're talking about. It's more about the structure of the support. Right, right, sure. Yeah, and you mentioned that at the outset that the sustainability questions for the science gateways projects are very similar to just about any other digital project you might think of. I was actually wondering, are there ways in which the sustainability questions are unique to these projects. Yeah, I mean, I, I said. It's interesting, maybe. So, because there's something about because there is so much effort in the technical element that has to do in many of these cases with these complex kind of computational methods. And the fact that originally this comes out of working with the supercomputer center. People coming into the program can sometimes start with a little bit too much focus on the technology needed to run these. And not that that's not an important aspect of sustainability because certainly it is, but the focus in this particular program tends to be on the strategic choices you need to make about those things. So there's another group that can talk specifically about exactly how to build it. We talk about why you would choose to build something versus borrowing or making use of something that exists already. We might talk about the strategy of who are you building it for. Do you really need to build something that elaborate, given now what we know about the audience who will be using it. So we actually try to tie it back to the strategy that underlies it and the mission that underlies it before people set off on the building project. Right. Because you know people like to build things like to build really complicated things because that's fun to do, but not always the right way not always the right approach for something like it. So true. That's great. Well, and speaking about your plans for the coming conference.  I mean, do you, how do you, what's your feeling of how that's going to go and what might be enhanced what might be lost with what sorts of challenges you're likely to face. Doing it in the virtual version. Yeah. Well, I mean, as with everyone that you could have met. It's hard to turn these things around very quickly as quickly as I think we've all had to know. So the good and the bad is that we have to have to be a little kind with ourselves and have a slightly lower bar for how intense the collaborations can be. But the flip, the flip side of it is we're opening things wide open. So again, there's not really a restrictive application process. There's no limit. So our goal is really to get as many people to come as would like to come with no, no bar to entry, whether it's, you know, you're at a very early stage, you're just thinking about it. You once heard the word sustainability, you know, whatever the interest level is. At this point, we would just love everyone to come when people commit to coming for a week. The bar is much higher because our invest our investment is much higher in them. We spend a tremendous amount of time with every person and every team. So it's really important that the team be far enough along to have something that they're, you know, that we can all dig into. Yeah. Yeah. But this is our arms wide open. We hope everyone just comes in and get something out of it this time. So maybe, maybe a lot of opportunities there that wouldn't have been there otherwise for people who couldn't have, couldn't have made the time or the trip. Yeah. That's right. And you know, maybe it gives us a model for hybrid delivery down the road gives us a way to explore that a bit more too. Right. That's great. Well, good luck with with the event and we hope you'll come back and share with us how it went. And thank you again so much for agreeing to pivot this talk and speaking at CNI virtually we really appreciate it. And thank you to all of our attendees.