The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890)
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The Picture of Dorian Gray Book Review
The Picture of Dorian Gray is a Gothic, philosophical novel by Oscar Wilde released in 1890. It’s one of the best books that I have read so far.
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“The only way to get rid of temptation is to yield to it“
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It is about a young, handsome man who, after getting his own painting, wishes that he doesn’t get old, but the painting does. And he does get exactly that which leads to torment and self-destruction. It’s a great story which is relatable to this day and age which made the movie very timeless and one of the most modern of its century.
Actually, the entirety of the book is surprisingly modern and progressive in its views on hedonism in particular. Yes, Wilde himself did feel conflicted in what he was trying to say a bit near the end where he became less enamored with this idea of aestheticism and hedonism, but I personally loved those first couple of chapters the most which fully support modernity, hedonism, aestheticism, youth etc. However, I found its critique of people looking mostly just at the surface very strong and relatable.
Yes, the novel is pretty much of dual nature and quality to it which ultimately worked for me as it showcased both the polite surface of the 19th century gentleman and his inner demons and his true feelings and yearnings. That made for a highly realistic and ultimate exploration of this time period and the people from it.
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Thematically speaking, it’s absolutely magnificent. It explores the physical beauty so well and how most people just value that and even are enamored by it. The superficiality of every society, both back then and now, is in full display here. I also found very interesting its exploration of art and its purpose, in particular I agree with its assessment that art cannot influence a person to do bad or immoral things as it does not hold such a power. That potential for such actions either exists or doesn’t inside each and every person individually.
The novel is famous for including many homoerotic touches and it surely was both intriguing and shocking reading such an openly homoerotic book from the 1890s. Yes, it faced major controversy upon its release, but that it saw release at all was truly remarkable. And I did really like those passages and descriptions as it made for a different, unforgettable reading experience as it offered us a glimpse into the mind and the heart of the author himself. I do find this novel to be very personal for Wilde.
Dorian Gray himself is at first such an awful man very easy to hate, but eventually he repels and becomes a better person. He showed his humanity which was both a good thing and a bad thing. It made him more relatable, but it also made him unrealistic. That dual nature of the book where the author cannot clearly take a stance on his themes are both its strength and its weakness.
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Basil Hallward is the most likable and naive character in the book and thus I found his death truly shocking and unexpected. That’s where the novel became very dark suddenly. Lord Henry Wotton is obviously the book’s most fascinating character as the man who purports to shock and offend with his every statement. The other characters are uninteresting and serve little purpose to the story with Sibyl and James Vane both being stereotypes.
The Picture of Dorian Gray is gloriously written by Wilde. His descriptions and his imagery are good, but it his writing style, especially his dialogue that’s truly special. There are many thought-provoking discussions to be found here and each and every one of them is memorable and fascinating. He knew how to write dialogue and characters superbly.
The Picture of Dorian Gray has a dual nature to it for better and for worse, but ultimately is a classic of world literature thanks to its iconic, timeless story and many themes that are relatable and powerful to this day and age. Its characters are also very strong and the dialogue in particular is absolutely fantastic with many thought-provoking discussions.
