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Prompt 25: A book you were supposed to read in school but didn't
By Ann · 67 posts · 992 views
By Ann · 67 posts · 992 views
last updated Jan 17, 2023 03:51PM
What Members Thought
I honestly don't know what I think of this book. I read it with only the vaguest of preconceived notions - a man that sold his soul to the devil? What I got was classic Oscar Wilde - quips and paradoxes, a dark comedy of manners, a treatise on the the meaning (the virtue? the downfall?) of physical appearance and beauty? My mind keeps returning to it, so clearly it was captivating, but what did it mean? [[SPOILER]]] I think I'm the only person in the universe who somehow didn't pick up from popu
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The artist Basil is enamored with the beauty of Dorian Gray, and proclaims his portrait of Dorian as his best work. Dorian vainly agrees, and in a Faustian bargain, exchanges his soul if he could always be as young and handsome as his portrait. He soon discovers that his own countenance retains its innocence in spite of his sins, while his portrait becomes uglier and older over time.
This classic Gothic novel was such a great read for October. I keep thinking about the themes and have explained t ...more
This classic Gothic novel was such a great read for October. I keep thinking about the themes and have explained t ...more
This is a re-read for me for book club, and I disliked it even more than the first time I read it. The last paragraph of the book is the best part of the whole book, both for its shock value and for the fact that it meant I am finally done with this piece of trash. I don’t even care if there is a deeper meaning about aesthetics, vanity and morality here—I seriously want to erase this book from my memory. Yuck.
“Basil Hallward is what I think I am: Lord Henry what the world thinks me: Dorian what I would like to be—in other ages, perhaps.”
Yes... I got that. The way Oscar talks about beauty and art and... the passage about the jewels and textiles... *sigh* Reminds me of C.S.Lewis' Surprised by Joy. Funny... but there is the same awe and wonder and helpless devotion there.
And how Basil got killed. I think Oscar knew his young beautiful beaus had the upper hand in their relationships...
I just kept think ...more
Yes... I got that. The way Oscar talks about beauty and art and... the passage about the jewels and textiles... *sigh* Reminds me of C.S.Lewis' Surprised by Joy. Funny... but there is the same awe and wonder and helpless devotion there.
And how Basil got killed. I think Oscar knew his young beautiful beaus had the upper hand in their relationships...
I just kept think ...more
Jul 07, 2016
Barbara
rated it
liked it
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review of another edition
Shelves:
classics,
2015-popsugar-challenge
Nov 19, 2020
Mickey
marked it as to-read
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review of another edition
Shelves:
waiting-at-home,
kindle-reads
