“My dear Gladys!” cried Lord Henry. “How can you say that? Romance lives by repetition, and repetition converts an appetite into an art. Besides, each time that one loves is the only time one has ever loved. Difference of object does not alter singleness of passion. It merely intensifies it. We can have in life but one great experience at best, and the secret of life is to reproduce that experience as often as possible.”
“Even when one has been wounded by it, Harry?” asked the duchess after a pause.
“Especially when one has been wounded by it,” answered Lord Henry.
The duchess turned and looked at Dorian Gray with a curious expression in her eyes. “What do you say to that, Mr. Gray?” she inquired.
Dorian hesitated for a moment. Then he threw his head back and laughed. “I always agree with Harry, Duchess.”
“Even when he is wrong?”
“Harry is never wrong, Duchess.”
“And does his philosophy make you happy?”
“I have never searched for happiness. Who wants happiness? I have searched for pleasure.”
“And found it, Mr. Gray?”
“Often. Too often.”
The duchess sighed. “I am searching for peace,” she said, “and if I don’t go and dress, I shall have none this evening.”
“Let me get you some orchids, Duchess,” cried Dorian, starting to his feet and walking down the conservatory.