I believe in this girl. Any one you love must be marvellous, and any girl that has the effect you describe must be fine and noble. To spiritualize one’s age – that is something worth doing. If this girl can give a soul to those who have lived without one, if she can create the sense of beauty in people whose lives have been sordid and ugly, if she can strip them of their selfishness and lend them tears for sorrows that are not their own, she is worthy of all your adoration, worthy of the adoration of the world. This marriage is quite right. I did not think so at first, but I admit it now. The gods made Sibyl Vane for you. Without her you are incomplete.
– Oscar Wilde
The Picture of Dorian Gray, Chapter 7. Dorian, after describing his love for Sibyl and her talent as an actress, earns a ringing endorsement from Basil for the love match. Basil is in full agreement with Dorian, saying that a girl who can through her art "give a soul to those who have lived without one" and create beauty in people with ugly lives is worthy of Dorian’s and the world’s affection. Basil is a firm believer in the ability of art to transform people’s lives.