The Picture of Dorian Gray

Sep 03, 2012 Paula rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book reminded me why I hate classics.

Like Frankenstein, it starts out with a great premise: what if a portrait bore the brunt of age and sin, while the person remained in the flush of youth? How would that person feel as they watched a constant reminder of their true nature develop? And like Frankenstein, it gets completely bogged down in uninteresting details and takes forever to get to the interesting bits. Seriously, in a 230-page novel, the portrait doesn't even start to change until 10...more

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Jul 20, 2011 Stephen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: easton-press, audiobook, horror-classic, classics, literature, horror, love-those-words, rogues-and-scoundrels, classics-european

Arguably literature's greatest study of shallowness, vanity, casual cruelty and hedonistic selfishness, Wilde lays it down here with ABSOLUTE PERFECTION!! This was my first experience in reading Oscar Wilde and the man’s gift for prose and dialogue is magical. This story read somewhat like a dark, corrupted Jane Austen in that the writing was snappy and pleasant on the ear, but the feeling it left you with was one of hopelessness and despair.

The level of cynicism and societal disregard that Wi...more

Arguably literature's greatest study of shallowness, vanity, casual cruelty and hedonistic selfishness, Wilde lays it down here with ABSOLUTE PERFECTION!! This was my first experience in reading Oscar Wilde and the man’s gift for prose and dialogue is magical. This story read somewhat like a dark, corrupted Jane Austen in that the writing was snappy and pleasant on the ear, but the feeling it left you with was one of hopelessness and despair.

The level of cynicism and societal disregard that Wilde’s characters display towards humanity is simply staggering. Despite the dark (or more likely because of it) this is one of the most engaging, compelling and lyrical pieces of literature I have read. The quality of the prose is nothing short masterful.

I assume most people know the basic outline of the plot, but I will give you a few sentences on it. The three main characters are Basil Hallward, Lord Henry Wotton and Dorian Gray. Basil Hallward is an artist who after painting a picture of Dorian Gray becomes obsessed with him because of his beauty (the homosexual vs. art object love Basil feels towards Dorian are left vague, likely because of the time it was written). Dorian then meets a friend Basil’s, Lord Henry, and becomes enthralled with Lord Henry’s world view, which is a form of extreme hedonism that posits the only worthwhile life is one spent pursuing beauty and satisfaction for the senses.

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. Resist it, and your soul grows sick with longing for the things it has forbidden to itself, with desire for what its monstrous laws have made monstrous and unlawful.

Well at one point, Dorian utters the famous words quoted at the beginning of my review and the “Faustian” bargain is struck.

While this story is often mentioned among the classics of the Horror genre (which I do have a problem with) this is much more a study of the human monster than it is some boogeyman. My favorite parts of the story were the extensive dialogues between the characters, usually Dorian and Lord Henry. They were wonderfully perverse and display a level of casual cruelty and vileness towards humanity that make it hard to breathe while reading. Oh, and Lord Henry reserves particular offense for the female of the species, to wit:

My dear boy, no woman is a genius. Women are a decorative sex. They never have anything to say, but they say it charmingly. Women represent the triumph of matter over mind, just as men represent the triumph of mind over morals.

.

YES folks...he absolutely did.

One of the most intriguing quotes I have seen from Oscar Wilde regarding this book is his comparison of himself to the three main characters. He said that he wrote the three main characters as reflections of himself. Wilde said, “Basil Hallward is what I think I am: Lord Henry is what the world thinks me: Dorian is what I would like to be—in other ages, perhaps.”

I was somewhat floored by this as I found Dorian to be a truly stark representation of evil and could not see how Wilde could find an idealized form within the character. When I say evil, I don't mean just misguided or weak-minded, someone bamboozled by the clever lectures of Lord Henry. I found Gray to be selfish, vain, inhumanly callous and sadistically cruel. I intend to try and learn more about Wilde’s outlook on this character as it truly escapes me.

Regardless, this is a towering piece of literature. Beautifully written and filled with memorable characters and a deeply moving story. A novel deserving of its status as a classic of English Literature. 5.0 stars. HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATION!!!!

P.S. For of audiobooks. I listened to the audio version of this read by Michael Page who has become one of my favorite narrators. His performance here was amazing.
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Mar 28, 2013 Manny rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: well-i-think-its-funny, parody-homage, blame-jordan-if-you-like, story-review, the-goodreads-experience, pooh-dante

"My dear Jordan!" said Lord Rayner expansively, as the butler discreetly closed the door behind his young visitor. "Really, it is too good to see you again! And what brings you to Cambridge?"

"Oh, this and that," said the lad, flinging himself casually onto a priceless Ikea divan. "By the way, has there been some mistake in the casting? I thought I was female?"

"Well, since we're doing Dorian Gray, I hoped you would have no objection to reversing your gender," said his host. "And besides, is there...more

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Nov 03, 2012 Jonathan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: classic readers, those who enjoy morals

Shelves: classic-literature, personal-favourites, 1001-books-to-read-before-you-die, gothic

The Picture of Dorian Gray could also be titled A Portrait of the Human Soul, for in his dark and tragic commentary Oscar Wilde spares no liberties in discussing morality, religion, society and the depths of the human condition. It is a deeply moving and inspired novel centering around the defining power of art. It is not an easy novel to read with its dark elements. For in paying heed to Dorian Gray's demise one is drawn into a reflection of their own spiritual condition.

For those who have no i...more
The Picture of Dorian Gray could also be titled A Portrait of the Human Soul, for in his dark and tragic commentary Oscar Wilde spares no liberties in discussing morality, religion, society and the depths of the human condition. It is a deeply moving and inspired novel centering around the defining power of art. It is not an easy novel to read with its dark elements. For in paying heed to Dorian Gray's demise one is drawn into a reflection of their own spiritual condition.

For those who have no idea what The Picture of Dorian Gray is about I shall endeavour to describe. As a novel I would class it among the classics of the Gothic tradition, a horror novel with a didactic aim. The story itself focuses around a young man, Dorian Gray, who through the influence of others around him becomes led into moral disillusionment. He becomes obsessed with a picture of his young, vibrant body that reflects his mortal perfection while at the same time living a decadent and corrupt lifestyle. By some unknown curse his image begins to grow old but he physically stays as young as ever. And all this leads to a fascinating climactic moment!

Corruption spreads like wildfire, Wilde suggests. For it is the assertive influence of Lord Henry which transforms the naivety and innocence of Dorian into the semblance of a vile creature. A being who in turn afflicts other men and women causing them to lose hope and to die both figuratively and literally. No one exists who truly chastises or cares about Dorian enough to correct his vices and thus Wilde reveals how human flaws when unchecked become grave evil - a phrase which here becomes a double entente as Dorian in his evil maniacal rage slays a supposed best friend.

(view spoiler)

I fully recommend this classic as both Oscar Wilde's only novel and as a moral warning. For Wilde recognized the truth of humanity and portrayed it in his artistic way: that nothing is ever as it seems. And as such he warns avoidance of all sorts of hedonistic and shallow lifestyles. (less)

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Jul 21, 2008 Scoobs rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Oh Dorian. Oh Dorian.

When I first read this book in the fruitless years of my youth I was excited, overwhelmed and a blank slate (as Dorian is, upon his first encounter with Lord Henry) easily molded, persuaded, influenced, etc.

Certain Wildisms (Wildeisms?) would take my breath away. Would become my mottos to believe in. To follow. To live.

Lines like:

"It is silly of you, for there is only one thing in the world worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about."

"But beauty, real...more

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Sep 01, 2012 Emily May rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, 1001-read, 2012, fave-classics

"The sitter is merely the accident, the occasion. It is not he who is revealed by the painter; it is rather the painter who, on the coloured canvas, reveals himself. The reason I will not exhibit this picture is that I am afraid that I have shown in it the secret of my own soul."

And so begins this tale of art and sin. I would highly recommend first watching the movie Wilde starring the wonderful Stephen Fry, it is a film which takes the audience on a journey through the life of the tormented wr...more "The sitter is merely the accident, the occasion. It is not he who is revealed by the painter; it is rather the painter who, on the coloured canvas, reveals himself. The reason I will not exhibit this picture is that I am afraid that I have shown in it the secret of my own soul."

And so begins this tale of art and sin. I would highly recommend first watching the movie Wilde starring the wonderful Stephen Fry, it is a film which takes the audience on a journey through the life of the tormented writer, from the beginnings of his fame to his later incarceration for "gross indecency" - a charge used to imprison individuals when it was impossible to prove sodomy. Wilde was sentenced to two years hard labour and died not long after being freed due to health problems gained during those two years. Looking at Wilde's story from a twenty-first century perspective, it is sad and horrifying to realise this man was indirectly sentenced to death for being gay. The "hard labour" prescribed was carried out in various ways but one of the most common was the treadmill:

This machine made prisoners walk continuously uphill for hours on end and had many long-term effects on people's health.

Why do I think it's important to know this? Because, as Wilde claims, in every piece of art there is more of the artist than anything else. And I believe this is especially true of The Picture of Dorian Gray more than perhaps any other fictional work I've read. In this novel, Wilde explores the nature of sin, of morality and immorality. The homoerotic undertones between Dorian Gray, Basil Hallward and Lord Henry Wotton are, I think, the author's little expression of his own secret "sins" within his work. Rarely does a work of fiction so deeply seem to mirror elements of the author's life.

By 1891, when The Picture of Dorian Gray was published, Oscar Wilde had met and fallen in love with Lord Alfred Douglas and they had begun a semi-secret affair, by which I mean that many were suspicious of the relationship but didn't argue with Wilde's claims that they shared a Socrates/Plato love that is between a close teacher and student. The idolisation of Dorian Gray's youth and beauty, his tendency to be mean at random, these characteristics all fit with the description and personality of Lord Alfred Douglas. For me, there is no real question as to whether part of Dorian is meant to be Mr Wilde's lover.

I think if you familiarise yourself with Oscar Wilde, this becomes a very personal novel, much more than just a disturbing horror story where a man sells his soul. But even without any additional information, I think this is a sad and haunting book that tells of the joyful naivete of youth and the sad wisdom of maturity.(less)

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Mar 23, 2008 Trevor rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: literature

This is another of those books I’ve been meaning to read for ages and kept putting off. Although I’ve a particularly good reason for putting this one off, as a very good friend of mine, who died a couple of years ago, spoke to me about this book and I was worried that might make it hard to read for quite other reasons.

He said that when he read this book as a young man it made him certain that he was not homosexual. Now, that in itself was enough to make me curious about the book. This is a book...more This is another of those books I’ve been meaning to read for ages and kept putting off. Although I’ve a particularly good reason for putting this one off, as a very good friend of mine, who died a couple of years ago, spoke to me about this book and I was worried that might make it hard to read for quite other reasons.

He said that when he read this book as a young man it made him certain that he was not homosexual. Now, that in itself was enough to make me curious about the book. This is a book that could only have been written by a homosexual male and it is a book about homosexuality in very many ways. The obsession with youth and beauty is almost a cliché of homosexual obsessions – though the ‘dandy’, the vanity of men, is much more common now, I think. We are increasingly a culture obsessed with appearance. I wonder if reading the book and seeing this obsession was the thing that convinced my friend he was not homosexual, if that was the thing that made him say, ‘no, that’s not me’. Or rather if it was the expression of desire very early in the book for Dorian Gray by Basil, his painter and ardent admirer, that convinced him.

Lord Harry is one of those talking desk calendars, in fact, other than Hamlet, I think it would be hard to find a book with more quotable quotes per page. Some of them are deliciously funny and others are just the sort of illumination that a match struck in a dark room makes.

There were moments in this book, as there are in other works by Wilde, when one gets a feeling of premonition of his fate – it is hard to think of a sadder story than that of the last years of his life, or one that makes more plain how incredibly stupid are societies that punish people for their sexuality. There would be very little I could not forgive Wilde for, particularly after he wrote The Importance of Being Earnest – this book, his only novel, is nearly as good.

Our sins are not quite displayed as clearly on our faces as is assumed here, but our lives do mark us – it is a pity that in our obsession with youth that we forget how beautiful our scars can be and that love, real love, the love that touches us most deeply, is when another accepts our scars and loves us for them, rather than in spite of them.

One of the most quotable quotes in this book is an attack on realism in fiction – “That is the reason I hate vulgar realism in literature. The man who could call a spade a spade should be compelled to use one. It is the only thing he is fit for.” I understand this is hardly a ‘realistic’ story – I mean, it is really a myth and takes liberties with ‘reality’ so as to comment on the world through the form of a myth – but like all such stories centred on something that is clearly ‘over-the-top’ it is contained in a shell that struck me as remarkably realistic. There was no time when I felt Wilde was calling a spade an implement for cultivation or some such silly phrase. His writing is always clear and to the point. The most ‘flowery’ language is perhaps when he is describing the perfumes Gray becomes fascinated in and seeks to understand ‘what there was in frankincense that made one mystical, and in ambergris that stirred one’s passions’, but even this is hardly as romantic or less real than TS Eliot’s (that most ‘modern’ of writers) “In vails of ivory and coloured glass / Unstoppered, lurked her strange synthetic perfumes,” Even at his most flowery, Wilde is hardly ‘unrealistic’.

I came to this book expecting it to be much ‘sillier’ than it turned out to be. I’ve no idea why I thought this – perhaps because I knew that the central idea of the book was that a man has an odd relationship with a painting in that he stays young while the painting gets old. But the book wasn’t nearly as silly as I thought it would be. I really did enjoy it.
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Jan 12, 2013 Paul rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: novels

I don't know what I was quite expecting here. It's a psychological horror story with a lot of comic relief, in the form of the endless witty paradoxes. After page 30 you are thinking that if Lord Henry makes just one more crack you're going to knock his monocle off his family crest and grind it underfoot. Oscar often clearly thinks he's being hilarious with his wit with a capital W – and maybe it's me, but Oscar Wilde often sounds like a parody of Oscar Wilde, like in the Monty Python sketch

WHIS...more

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Aug 03, 2011 Lora rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, g-horror, lib-audiobooks, lib-read

Originally I wasn't going to review this (if you're observant then you've probably noticed that I read this back in early April), but I recently decided to watch the latest movie adaptation despite the fact that the book was rather meh for me. What can I say, ~~Ben Barnes naked~~ the movie inspired me.

At the start of the novel Dorian Gray is young and just as gullible as you can imagine. But he's got his whole life ahead of him and the good looks and charm to insure him at least some messure of happ...more Originally I wasn't going to review this (if you're observant then you've probably noticed that I read this back in early April), but I recently decided to watch the latest movie adaptation despite the fact that the book was rather meh for me. What can I say, ~~Ben Barnes naked~~ the movie inspired me.

At the start of the novel Dorian Gray is young and just as gullible as you can imagine. But he's got his whole life ahead of him and the good looks and charm to insure him at least some messure of happiness.
But soon, thanks to Lord Henry Wotton, a portrait, and a wish that should never have been made, his life is turned upside down. All of a sudden his life — and his soul — are in a downwards spiral.

I think that, for me, this book's downfall was Lord Henry Wotton. He's so philosophical and opinionated and corrupting that I found him downright dreadful.
Lord Henry is kind of like life personified. Just as life can take us from an innocent baby and turn us into something vile and sinful, Lord Henry has much the same affect on Dorian Gray. Even though it is Basil's portrait that initiates everything, it is Lord Henry that sets the terrible events into motion with his corruption and his horribly depressing and pessimistic theories. While many may see Dorian Gray as the villain in this, I see Lord Henry as such.

But if Dorian would've just grown a spine and made his own decisions, not listened to Lord Henry . . . things wouldn't have ended up so terrible for him.
That's one of the few things I hate about historical novels. It seems that there are two types of people: role models and protégés. Why? Why couldn't everyone have done their own thing? It's like in Emma when Emma steers Harriet in the entirely wrong direction. If Harriet would've just been her own person, made her own choices, things wouldn't have gotten so out of sorts for her.

I must say that if I hadn't listened to the audio I probably wouldn't have been able to finish this. But the ending Wilde writes is this book's saving grace IMO. It is stunning and unexpected and gave it just enough for me to make this three stars.

All in all this book isn't bad — it is written well, naturally — but if you're interested I'd have to suggest skipping the book and watching the most recent film adaptation. Although I must warn you: it is vastly different from the book — especially when it comes to Dorian's lecherous adventures, and it is rated R for a reason. Delicate people shouldn't hasten to watch it.(less)

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Oct 06, 2010 Lady Danielle aka The Book Huntress rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Readers who enjoy well-crafted, psychologically-chilling stories

Shelves: classic-horror, owned-copy, oct-scare-fest-2010, moral-decadence, unsympathetic-main-characters, victorian, psychological-horror, faustian-bargain, immortality, gothic-fiction

The Picture of Dorian Gray is a hard book to review. After reading such eloquent, beautiful, and rich writing, I am at a loss for how to command my comparatively paltry ability to use words to express how I felt about this book.

Forgive me as I go back to AP English for a few moments. I asked myself what were the themes of this novel. Here is my list:

Identity
Experience
Beauty
The triumph on senses over reason
Accountability

I will attempt to build my review, in part, around the discussion of these t...more

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Aug 05, 2007 Nurkastelia A. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: eveyone!!

Shelves: must-read

What more can be said about The Picture of Dorian Gray than the fact it is a marvelous book? Although this is the only novel Oscar Wilde had ever written, I think by far this is one of the finest and most enchanting classic novels there are. I was completely in awe after reading it the first time and still too in awe to even start a review now.

The Picture of Dorian Gray begins with an unusual look of a man –from another man’s eyes (Basil Hallward). I’ve never thought homosexual issues could be l...more What more can be said about The Picture of Dorian Gray than the fact it is a marvelous book? Although this is the only novel Oscar Wilde had ever written, I think by far this is one of the finest and most enchanting classic novels there are. I was completely in awe after reading it the first time and still too in awe to even start a review now.

The Picture of Dorian Gray begins with an unusual look of a man –from another man’s eyes (Basil Hallward). I’ve never thought homosexual issues could be let out so openly into the world like how Oscar Wilde let it out. The fighting over Dorian between Basil and Lord Henry, Basil’s marks about Gray, and even the words of the story which are edited and put into the endnotes. All were shockingly wonderful. Also related to the endnotes, we can see that Wilde was a man of much knowledge. He retracted and inserted other people’s intellectual works in the book. What’s more is that I think the ingenious mind of Oscar Wilde is really reflected on the character of Lord Henry though he pictured Lord Henry as someone as empty as a barrel.

If a song once said, “if a picture paints a thousand words then why can’t I paint you? The words could never show the you I’ve come to know,” this really does not count the book along. Why? Because as we can read, Dorian Gray’s picture, literally, gives out millions and millions of words about him. The first day Basil paints it, the first day Gray brings it home, the first day people take their glances at it; it speaks to them as if it has a mouth telling them how great of a creature Dorian Gray is. At that time, there is no single person that would not call him ‘Prince charming’ since his self-portrait was so beautifully enchanting.

As time goes by, the first-innocent mind of Gray is inflected by Lord Henry’s views towards life –towards beauty. He said that beauty is the only thing that matters, and Gray eventually agrees with it and realizes that the portrait will live forever, and retain its beauty while he himself is left to age. This is the turning point of the story, the part when we realize that wishes are stronger than life. So Dorian Gray wishes to trade his soul for everlasting youth, and to always retain his beauty, just like the portrait. Of course, when there’s an action, there will always be a reaction. Every time Dorian Gray commits a sin, the picture miraculously adjusts itself with the evil side of Dorian Gray.

As much as other things in the story are intriguing, the most fascinating part is how Wilde used ‘beauty’ as something harmful. Something so corrupting that a person would kill another, another, and yet another human being, before finally Dorian Gray tries to kill his picture, his guilt –his conscience, resulting in killing himself. Astonishingly enough, when Dorian dies, the painting, as if released from all the sins it bears, returns back to the old self just like when it was first shown to Dorian; painfully beautiful.
One thing that captures my mind is that Oscar Wilde had thoughts ahead of his time, and not afraid to show it either. In real life, he was charged with gross indecency as early as 1895. His works make fun of the hypocrisy of the society, damn the moralities. In short, he was leading quite a controversial life.

Nevertheless, however controversial he is, he obviously concerned deeply about life itself. That is why this particular novel offers some kind of a wake-up call to the readers…narcissist readers, that is. So if you are one, and want to be saved not by lectures…take a walk on the Wilde side, let this fantasy story take your breath away, and may morality save you from constant debauchery.
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Feb 15, 2012 Mike (the Paladin) rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: horror, classic-horror

I have been meaning to read this book for...maybe 40 or 50 years, closer to 40 I suppose. It's one of those classics that you always mean to get to. I just never had.

Like many people (I suppose) my knowledge of Oscar Wilde is fairly sketchy and mostly surface. It's the kind of thing you get from quotes and literary sketches. This book made me a little more curious about the famous rebel.

Most people, even those who haven't read the novel will be aware of the background story here. Dorian Gray in...more I have been meaning to read this book for...maybe 40 or 50 years, closer to 40 I suppose. It's one of those classics that you always mean to get to. I just never had.

Like many people (I suppose) my knowledge of Oscar Wilde is fairly sketchy and mostly surface. It's the kind of thing you get from quotes and literary sketches. This book made me a little more curious about the famous rebel.

Most people, even those who haven't read the novel will be aware of the background story here. Dorian Gray in the "glory" of youth and being an exceptionally attractive young man anyway looks on his own visage in a portrait painted by his "friend" Basil Hallward. Having been influenced (it is supposed) by his new acquaintance Lord Henry Wotton, Dorian dreads the loss of such youth and beauty and "wishes" the portrait could suffer the ravages of time and life while sparing him such...he says he'd go so far as to give his soul for this.

This book is a product of it's time, maybe a little more florid in some ways than we'd find now. Wilde takes his time introducing us to the characters and laying the ground work before he introduces the fantastic and horrific elements of the story which creep up on us a bit at a time. Sir Henry is usually taken as the background villain of the piece, Mephistopheles to Dorian's Faust... but to an extent I think that's a bit misleading and I don't think Wilde saw it that way.

This is an excellent work and I think most will find it enjoyable. It is not only a well written and deeply characterized book...it carries an understated and pervasive type of horror that might just require the reader to think.

5 stars.

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Mar 23, 2009 Laurel rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, fiction

Be careful what you wish for.

Dorian Gray is an irresistibly handsome (and utterly selfish) socialite concerned with superficialities of the ego: appearance, beauty, passion, youth and image. Upon getting his portrait painted by a friend, Gray expresses his desire that he remain as young and handsome as he is in the picture, while the portrait instead be the one to age. As it turns out, his wish is realized. As Gray enters deeper into a life of sin and crime, he remains young and physically unaff...more

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May 28, 2011 Abdullah Suliman rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

قراءتي الثانية:
التقييم 5/5
9/3/2010

بعد أن قرأتها للمرة الأولى قبل سنتين, اشتقت لقراءتها مرة أخرى خصوصا بعد صدور الفيلم الشهير بنفس اسم الرواية ومشاهدتي له. سأتحدث عن الرواية نفسها وعن الفيلم.

تدور أحداث الرواية حول 3 شخصيات رئيسية.. وهي عن الرسام "بازيل" واللورد "هنري" والشاب "دوريان غراي". يقوم الرسام برسم الشاب وتصويره بشكل فاتن, فيُذهل الشاب بصورته وتبدأ أحداث الرواية.

(لن أتطرق لأي أحداث أو مفسدات للرواية.. فقط رأيي الشخصي بعد قرائتها)

عندما قرأتها للمرة الأولى لم تعجبني كثيرا لأني كنت أتوقع منه...more

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Jul 03, 2011 K.D. Oliveros rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to K.D. by: 1001 Books You Must Read Before You Die (2006-2010); Filipinos Group Read for July 2011

Shelves: 1001-core, 501, classics

My third time to read an Oscar Wilde’s work and I still like it. However, I prefer the first two: De Profundis (Out of the Dephts) and The Happy Prince and Other Stories. I liked his poignant and brilliant lamentations in the first and his adept and crisp storytelling in the 12 short stories in the second. Those two reasons, in my opinion, are not here in his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray.

This tells the story of a strikingly handsome young man, Dorian Gray that is badly influenced by ar...more

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Jul 29, 2012 Erik rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, bepretentious, has-good-review

Plot summary: Dorian Gray is a beautiful, wholesome young man. He begins with two friends, one of whom paints the titular picture, while the other is a modern, cosmopolitan lord, who puts the fear of losing his youth into Dorian. When it turns out that the painting grants Dorian an eternal youth (which one should differentiate from eternal life - Dorian's physical appearance is never burdened by the deeds which he commits nor the simple passage of time), then Dorian struggles against losing all...more Plot summary: Dorian Gray is a beautiful, wholesome young man. He begins with two friends, one of whom paints the titular picture, while the other is a modern, cosmopolitan lord, who puts the fear of losing his youth into Dorian. When it turns out that the painting grants Dorian an eternal youth (which one should differentiate from eternal life - Dorian's physical appearance is never burdened by the deeds which he commits nor the simple passage of time), then Dorian struggles against losing all sense of morality. Stuff happens. The end.

It's difficult to know what to write about The Picture of Dorian Gray. This book is Oscar Wilde's only novel, with good reason. The Picture of Dorian Gray is like a play written in novel form - no one (I hope) would seriously contest that Oscar Wilde was an important and influential playwright with a penchant for witty, sharp dialogue. That is, his plays are a rare example of century old writing that's still enjoyable to read today. This skill of his is in full force in Dorian Gray - dialogue is by far the primary mover of characterization, plot, and conflict. And it is quite amusing. On the other hand, his descriptions, when he bothers to describe at all, tend to be overly flowery (the first sentence of the book is like ten lines long) or pretentious.

I say pretentious because, by far, the most annoying part of this book is the 10+ pages of needlessly detailed description of all the various arts, skills, and knowledge in which Dorian dabbles once he realizes his immortality / immorality. Some may argue that this huge list was needed in order to accurately develop and depict Dorian's corruption. Hogwash. I've seen a fall from grace portrayed in a single line - Oscar Wilde's prose here is entirely indulgent and comes across as someone saying, "see here, see here, look at how clever and learned I am!"

My second complaint is that much of Dorian's corruption happens off the pages. I recall a recent review for the HP7, pt. 1, movie which stated, "Much of the action happens disturbingly off screen." This trait was cited as a positive, and I wanted to be like, Why? Why is it a good thing that the most compelling elements of a story are summarized or hinted at, rather than shown? Likewise, there are a great number of allusions to the many evil deeds of Dorian. But they are rarely shown. The result is that when at last Dorian was actually shown committing an evil deed, I was not convinced. This was not a visceral experience.

Perhaps these complaints can be ignored because The Picture of Dorian Gray is invariably an intellectual's book. It's not a story in the sense that I define stories - it's a philosophical journey. It's a hypothetical... what if: Is the dark side inevitable? Is a human innocent at birth and corrupt at death? It is the planting of a seed of doubt in your own mind; as you read through it, you can't help but wonder... how would I behave, if I could get away with everything? It is in this role, I would suggest, that The Picture of Dorian Gray is historically considered a must-read.

I do not concur. Is this a book you should read? Undoubtedly. Is it one you must read? Sorry, no.

Edit: I retroactively added a star because, despite my initial doubts about the book, I've been using the ideas contained within quite often. I think it explores the connection of physical beauty & goodness in a way that has become obfuscated by modern society's hypocritical and inane mantra: 'beauty is on the inside.'(less)

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Jan 04, 2011 Mon rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 19th-c

19th century people do funny things. For example, the males characters are constantly picking out flowers for their 'buttonholes'. And not just any flower, but colour and specie specific orchid. Heavy floor length curtain was popular (think about it, they didn't have that many windows back then, so the interior would be pretty gloomy most of the time). Hot chocolate is consumed before coffee as breakfast (and not just for children). They also faint easily (maybe it's the chocolate feast). I'm al...more

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Jul 24, 2008 Brendan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Moral degradation follows moisturiser use.

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Feb 18, 2013 Dana rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012

This book exceeded all expectations. When I was halfway through, I was skeptical, because it was clearly just a vain boy with a love interest who's suicide was like so many tragic love stories told before.
But Dorian Gray, his character development was the most dynamic I've ever read through. First off, Oscar Wilde's philosophies, mainly portrayed by Lord Henry's character and countered by Dorian Gray, were thought provoking and wonderful. There were times when he went of on tangents that were u...more This book exceeded all expectations. When I was halfway through, I was skeptical, because it was clearly just a vain boy with a love interest who's suicide was like so many tragic love stories told before.
But Dorian Gray, his character development was the most dynamic I've ever read through. First off, Oscar Wilde's philosophies, mainly portrayed by Lord Henry's character and countered by Dorian Gray, were thought provoking and wonderful. There were times when he went of on tangents that were unnecessary, but for the most part they were very enjoyable, and worthy of underlining. I underlined so many quotable lines, that I feel like i'll be referring back to this book forever.
I really, very much enjoyed that Dorian would challenge Lord Henry's logic. It made the dialogue so much more interesting, and gave the reader a chance to gather their own thoughts.
The thing I don't quite understand is why people don't pay more attention to the book Lord Henry gave him. Clearly that's what started Dorian's psychotic break, the portrait was only the mirror to his actions that followed. The chapter involving the book was exquisite, but I would have liked to hear even more about it.
SO. Every murder was done so that Dorian could make them excusable. I thought that was brilliant, from Sybil to Basil to James. He made it seem almost logical, murder for their 'crimes' was perfectly acceptable. Ahhh, Dorian. His obsession of Lord Henry made me question why he didn't murder Henry before accidentally offing himself. Henry's 'crime' was the worst of all, in my opinion! The damn book was what made Dorian question everything, and the questioning was what inevitably ruined the lives of others as well as himself.
The fact that everything connected in the novel, and came full circle, is the reason I enjoyed this so thoroughly. It's a classic that had me glued to the pages, which doesn't happen too often. Oscar Wilde is an interesting character of his own accord, and I feel privileged to have read the novel that mirrors his thoughts. (less)

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Apr 07, 2013 Nawel rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I feel perplexed about The Picture of Dorian Gray. On one hand, I like the witty and ironical style of Oscar Wilde and the idea of the central theme : the relationship between beauty and morality which initially captures the reader's attention. On the other hand, I found the book to be inconsistent, flowery and the character development does not really help to hold the reader's attention for a long period of time.

The aesthetic maxim of "Art for art’s sake" is reflected in the opening of the nove...more I feel perplexed about The Picture of Dorian Gray. On one hand, I like the witty and ironical style of Oscar Wilde and the idea of the central theme : the relationship between beauty and morality which initially captures the reader's attention. On the other hand, I found the book to be inconsistent, flowery and the character development does not really help to hold the reader's attention for a long period of time.

The aesthetic maxim of "Art for art’s sake" is reflected in the opening of the novel. Oscar Wilde, « a major proponent of the Aestheticism movement of the late 19th century » weaves a plot that explores this issue to its core.

Dorian Gray, a vain young man sells his soul for eternal youth and beauty. (I wonder Who wants to live forever?)

Wilde focuses on Dorian Gray's vanity and moral decay, his portrait « a magic mirror » shows the physical burdens of age and sins from which Dorian has been spared. Setting his conscience aside and living his life according to a single goal: the pursuit of pleasure. The portrait however, asserts itself as his conscience and hounds him with the knowledge of his sins.

Other major themes include the amorality of art, the Faust legend, The superficial nature of society, the fall of man and his dual nature, vanity, narcissism, friendship, the negative consequences of influence and manipulation...

I did enjoy the novel overall, found it insightful in some parts and liked some quotes strewn throughout the novel but as a natural result of his aesthetic philosophy, Wilde's writing seems too vain and selfish, and this piece of literature, which, as it falls under the category of art, should have no purpose other than to be beautiful according to Wilde.

The Reader may interpret the tale in any way he wishes and draws whatever conclusions he may, but as the last word on the subject, Oscar Wilde states: “All art is quite useless”!

The CORE issue of why I'm giving it 3 stars, is the fact that I believe that a work of art with no real value (as his author claims) should not be considered ART, thus I’m bound to find some defects with the so called art it produces in general and with the Picture of Dorian gray in particular.(less)

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Dec 23, 2012 Brigid *Flying Kick-a-pow!* rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-for-school, on-my-kindle, 5-star-books, favorites, addicting-as-crack, free-books, fantasy

"How sad it is! I shall grow old, and horrible, and dreadful. But this picture will remain always young. It will never be older than this particular day of June. ... If it were only the other way! If it were I who was to be always young, and the picture that was to grow old! For that––for that––I would give everything! Yes, there is nothing in the whole world I would not give! I would give my soul for that!"

I was assigned to read The Picture of Dorian Gray for one of my classes this past semeste...more

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Mar 05, 2010 Alex rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010, ireland, reading-through-history

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Nov 06, 2007 Clare rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: dedicated readers

Oscar Wilde's only novel! I thoroughly enjoyed Wilde's ability to play with words, to toss them about and see where they land. There is a particular joy in finding a word used slightly out of sync to it's meaning, a stretching if you will. Wilde's thick, image driven, morally questionable (to most, not me) string of words delight the eye and impassion the mind. His dialogues demonstrate his future word play in plays. His ability to create synthesis between character types is magnificient, he all...more

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May 29, 2007 Linda rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, classic

“Women have no appreciation of good looks; at least, good women have not.”

“We are punished for our refusals. Every impulse that we strive to strangle broods in the mind, and poisons us. The body sins once, and has done with its sin, for action is a mode of purification. Nothing remains then but the recollection of a pleasure, or the luxury of a regret. The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it. Resist it, and your soul grows sick with longing for the things. It has forbidden to it...more

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Sep 14, 2011 Carlo rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Everyone

Recommended to Carlo by: A Friend

Shelves: english-literature, to-be-read-again, literary-fiction

The Picture Of Dorian Gray raises very original and interesting questions about life, and shows how it is impossible to formulate a precise answer to them. This, in itself, makes the book great.

I consider Wilde one of the wittiest authors I've ever read. His intense sensitivity is remarkable, along with his expertise in portraying both emotions and circumstances. His paradoxical views about themes such as love, beauty, hedonism, evil, sin and passion, made me literally spellbound throughout the...more

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Jul 21, 2012 Tanu rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: all-time-favorite, cringe-worthy, owned

Oh my God! What was that? Lord Henry Wotton, are you by any chance trying to brainwash me? Oscar Wilde, what have you done?

I started reading this book one week back, resolving on a twenty to thirty pages a day daily quota. Somewhere along the middle of the week I started ignoring Dorian Gray for my favorite jerk Sherlock Holmes. Then last night, I again plucked up the courage and to my complete surprise found myself unable to stop reading. Not something you expect from a Victorian novel. The st...more

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Mar 24, 2012 Stephen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Picture must be from paperback. Hardcover has painting of Narcissus from the mid/late 1800's.

Wonderful to read the original finally, without all the homosexual subtext/plot removed. And the editor has done a phenomenal job of adding notes alongside the text, to explain and expand on themes and details that only Victorian/Edwardian (and antiquarian) readers would understand.

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May 28, 2012 Sarazen rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: brave souls

I'm still working my way through an audiobook version of this, and Woo doggie I just gotta say that's some nice misogyny with that misogyny. Lordy.

Wrestling with self...so conflicted...so much offensive in this book...but so INCREDIBLE. OMG! It's great! it's great! And it burns so much!

***Review*** I finally got this one fully under my belt, and I gotta say that's a great place for it. It took some time for me to let this one settle before I could expand on this here review.

In the final recap......more

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Aug 02, 2008 Ayu Palar rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: everyone!

Recommended to Ayu by: Peter Doherty

Shelves: favorites-ever, classics

I want to say it out loud: The Picture of Dorian Gray is my favourite book ever. Thanks to Mr. Doherty for introducing me to this book. Oscar Wilde is famous for his wit, and in this book he successfully showed that talent of him through Lord Henry character who keeps on questioning the essence of beauty. The beauty in The Picture of Dorian Gray is, of course, Dorian Gray himself, one of the best fictional characters ever created. With his beauty, the super good-looking Dorian captured the heart...more

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Aug 03, 2007 Jason rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: the well-read and those who claim to be

Shelves: favorites

I am not sure whether this novel is so perfect I should wish Wilde had written more, or whether this novel is so perfect I should be grateful it stands alone.

Wilde was an aesthete? This is a work of aestheticism? Hardly. The Picture of Dorian Gray is a gripping and sincere morality tale, told with beauty, and about beauty, but ultimately driven by the quasi-Gothic nightmare that rests beneath all that is beautiful in the book and all that is said about the pursuit of beauty by its primary charac...more I am not sure whether this novel is so perfect I should wish Wilde had written more, or whether this novel is so perfect I should be grateful it stands alone.

Wilde was an aesthete? This is a work of aestheticism? Hardly. The Picture of Dorian Gray is a gripping and sincere morality tale, told with beauty, and about beauty, but ultimately driven by the quasi-Gothic nightmare that rests beneath all that is beautiful in the book and all that is said about the pursuit of beauty by its primary characters.

Wilde's writing is beautiful. Anything of beauty within the mise en scène is captured by Wilde and depicted with beauty. Dorian Gray is beauty in human form. His friend Basil Hallward, a painter, sees Dorian's beauty and is driven to portray it on canvas. Per Dorian's wish, he will remain beautiful, and Basil's portrait will bear the ravages of his soul. Basil's homoerotic fascination with Dorian, and its expression in his portrait of Dorian, will unwittingly lead to tragedy. Through Basil, Dorian befriends Lord Henry Wotton, who impresses upon Dorian the ideal of beauty. And, beyond that, the joy of beauty. Of seeking out that which pleases the senses. Of hedonism. A means of existence Dorian takes at its purest. Hedonism regardless the price. Personal pleasure above all else. Eventually the cost of such a life, and the sins Dorian commits in the name of it, come grossly to light, in what is in many ways the simplest of tales of right and wrong.

Why is the novel so good if it's, arguably, so simple? Several reasons. Dorian's wish is not a foreign concept to men of any age. Lord Wotton's philosophy is captivating and, in many ways, persuasive. Beauty pleases man. All man has by way of understanding the world is his senses. All that triggers them and satisfies them (or more) is the best man can take from the world. Wilde knows. When (and when not) feeding the reader a compelling philosophy of beauty, he feeds the reader via the beauty of his prose. Quite literally, Wilde's writing pleases the senses. Multiple senses, in fact. The eye in its words. But more than the eye, as Wilde's eye, and his treatment of the world within the novel, reaches beyond it.

That the beauty of the writing is on par with the views on aesthetics put forth in the novel as a counterbalance to its moral substance makes this a novel only Wilde could have written. There may be better prose in Anglo-American fiction (or not). No such prose, however, is as striking and of such calculated elegance and allure as Wilde's. The novel's abounding beauty provides the force that animates its theme of false beauty. That abounding beauty is Wilde's particular gift, and the heart of one of the best novels in the Anglo-American canon.(less)

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Book-a-holics: Chapter 6-10 Dorian Gray	5	12	Apr 02, 2013 08:54am
Book-a-holics: Chapters 1-5 Dorian Gray	9	13	Mar 26, 2013 03:12pm

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