The Picture of Dorian Grey
Ratings1,320
Average rating4.1
I didn't really know anything about the plot when I started the book, and I'm glad I didn't.
I didn't even know it was a horror novel; all I knew was there was a portrait, and I had a vague sense there was a macabre feel to the story.
I highly enjoyed the book whilst despising the characters (in the best possible way), would recommend to anyone who likes stories about uppity victorian era English aristocrats, and those who don't mind disliking the main characters.
I loved it very much. The way Oscar developed his characters. The way it is written. And he even made me hate on Lord Henry. I can't stand him. Dorian didn't deserve that. He wanted to be happy. But the corruption of Lord Henry made him worse than expected.
Woah. After a profound book funk, I am having some good luck with the last few books I've read.
This is my Ireland book around the world.
The prose is so beautiful, so engaging, and so wonderful to read that I thoroughly enjoyed this book just for that. The plot kept me interested and I really enjoyed this book. The end had me re-reading it because my jaw dropped at how it ended. SO. PERFECT.
I cannot wait to dive into Oscar Wilde some more!
“Each man sees his own sin in Dorian Gray.” Oh how painfully true that quote was from Oscar Wilde. This book is a masterpiece. The whole book is full of marvelously written words.
I'm trying to read more classics this year, and I decided to start here.
I really liked parts of The Picture of Dorian Gray. Wilde built tension so well. You could feel Dorian becoming increasingly consumed. I liked the back-and-forth he would have with himself after doing something awful, trying to justify who he had become. He would cite what Sibyl and Basil "put him through," as though that justified their deaths. It was messed up and I loved it. I thought the ending was fantastic.
As far as aspects I didn't enjoy as much, sometimes it felt like parts of the book where the plot wasn't advancing rapidly were just filler. This might be intentional, to show how Dorian would try to distract himself with material indulgences. Regardless, I found these passages boring and flowery. I didn't need to hear about gemstones and tapestries in that much detail.
Wilde would also repeat certain adjectives a lot (e.g., languidly). Speaking of, beauty is very explicitly coded white. Descriptors like “ivory” and “white” are often used to signify attractiveness. I wouldn't expect different from a book published in the late 19th century, but because the text is so focused on physicality, this comes up frequently, so I thought I would note it.
Many ideas Wilde puts forth remain relevant today: Use of wealth to escape reality. Trying to make sense of and peace with discordant fragments of the self. How being admired informs not only how Dorian sees himself, but also how he sees his admirers. How vanity turns into entitlement turns into cruelty. The disparity between judgments made based on appearances and what people are going through behind closed doors.
The Picture of Dorian Gray is essentially the halo effect taken to the extreme.
I wasn't expecting the DRAMA but I loved it. There were elements of almost every genre that were cleverly interwoven. I wish the end hadn't been spoiled for me, but I still thoroughly enjoyed my time reading this.
I don't know, man, this was just... okay. It wasn't anything special. I can appreciate and acknowledge the themes that Wilde presented along with the fact that he presented them really well.
However I didn't really enjoy reading this book. I was bored the whole time and there were only about 20 pages total that I was actually invested in the story.
Also, there was a weird portion between pages 170-200 where gemstones were being discussed but I didn't care and it didn't have anything to do with the story? Maybe I'm just dumb but I didn't think it contributed at all and was pointless.
Overall, this is a decent classic. It conveys the themes of selfishness and vanity incredibly well and that, if nothing else, is a reason to read this.
Not difficult to see why this is considered a masterpiece. The way Wilde phrases his sentences often made me go back and re-read them because they're so richly textured and witty. Beautifully written with a compelling protagonist to boot.
Not difficult to see why this is considered a masterpiece. The way Wilde phrases his sentences often made me go back and re-read them because they're so richly textured and witty. Beautifully written with a compelling protagonist to boot.
The Picture of Dorian Gray is witty, engaging, and delightful! It is a very easy read, and every step of the way it is a joy to read. If you've just read something long and perhaps dry at times (such as The Lord of the Rings, even), The Picture of Dorian Gray is a very refreshing read.
A classic tale in how too much vanity can be bad for you. Dorian Gray offers wit, sexual encounters and is clearly a classic to last the ages. What would you do if you could stay young forever? If you were given virtually infinite amounts of wealth? If you became completely self-indulged never thinking about the world and people around you? If living to seek out your desires and pleasures was your sole aim? Oscar Wilde explores these thoughts in this classic book, where a man never ages and a painting reflects all of his sins.
This was a good book, but the content was too short and simple to make me enthralled and the subject outside of my interest. Dorian Gray is a naive aristocratic young man in Victorian England that is first empty, then vain and then becomes callous, cynical, hedonistic and selfish.
His emptiness of spirit I think it could be attributed to a typical noble upbringing for the time, that resulted in an indifference to the world and no interest for intellectual or artistic pursuits. He would be a typical millennial these days, someone that never had to endure any real hardships, only cares about social events and dreads how boring life is.
This is not elaborated in the book, I'm just assuming that how he was before he met Basil Hallward. This is when he is told that because he is beautiful, nothing else matters. Basil encourages his vanity, but Dorian is still unaware of what all his youth and good looks can get him in the world if he would just learn how to use these qualities to “explore” others.
That's where Lord Henry comes in. He is the personification of everything that is rotten in the world. Well, I don't really think that, but that is how he is portrayed, as an alluring bad influence to young impressionable minds.
Dorian cannot help but to be attracted by this individual that is so interesting and confident. Someone who seems to know everything about life. All of his friends were probably mindless drones that just went with the flow, and suddenly comes into his life this magnetic personality that defies all common reason.
Lord Henry preaches a life of self pleasure, one that does not care for the interest of others as long as you do what is right for you. As times passes by, Dorian's plunges in more deeply into the corruption originated by this hedonistic lifestyle. And the ugliness of his soul is reflected in a portrait that his artist friend Basil has made for him.
Again, this was a good book, with a good message told in an interesting way. But it was not enough for me to like it too much. I'm giving it +1 star because it made a subject I don't care about (aesthetic) into a palatable short story.
The glittering diamond of this novel for me is Lord Henry, whose persistent stream of horridly witty, alarmingly destructive aphorisms is continually hilarious - a reprehensible character, but still so utterly charming. “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” - what terrible advice to give to an impressionable young lad!
Dorian's downward spiral was captivating throughout. Though he didn't knowingly sell his soul, he had his chances to use his gift for good rather than evil, and poor Dorian chose the dark path. What would I do? What would anyone do?
Plenty of reviews on Goodreads and I cannot imagine that I would write anything new at all. I read that the philosophical musings of the novel was a sensation on release but it reads as nothing too out of the ordinary in this day and age. So be it as time can change the outlook.
Few people can write witty dialogue as well as Wilde. Unfortunately, there were some really slow parts that were basically just lists of books, relatives, or people that Dorian encountered. I'd like to read more of Oscar Wilde's writing, though.
This one is a pure gem! A masterpiece by Oscar Wilde! Lord Henry Wotton's cynical, hedonistic yet witty philosophy! Basil Hallward's idolatry infatuation towards Dorian Gray. And the evolution of Dorian Gray's character. Exquisitely beautiful tale!
P.S: When it comes to profound epigrams, Oscar is divinely genius!
How beautiful. First thing I read by Wilde other than some loose quotes but definitely will look for some other things written by him,
Rapturous prose and a poignant, thought-provoking idea. A classic for a reason–anyone can relate to the questions, emotions, and themes presented through Dorian, Basil and Harry.
Don't know why I like this book so much... it's awful, I hate Lord Henry...
Mas o que raio é que se passou no final do livro? Ainda estou aqui a processar esta reviravolta, conjugada com as passagens que ainda hoje me colocam a cogitar acerca. Como lição, acho que toda a gente deveria ler este livro. Mesmo que as opiniões divergem, esta é uma obra que nos faz pensar acerca dos hábitos que temos e das consequências dos desejos que nos acompanham. Demorei o meu tempo, mas valeu a pena.