7 reviews for THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY [Paperback] by Oscar Wilde (Author) 1 August 2015

1. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Shatarupa Dhar – December 12, 2019

   Synopsis:Dorian Gray is a naive, unassuming young man before he comes into contact with Lord Henry Wotton. Henry, fondly called Harry, is a friend of Basil Hallward. Basil is an artist who is smitten with Dorian and considers him his muse. It so happens that Basil does a life-sized portrait of Dorian and puts his very essence into it, such is his art. But, what if it results in something sinister? And, is Dorian really that naive or is it his inherent nature that comes out as he ages? Was that evil already there, just waiting to be unleashed?Review:The story opens in Basil’s studio, where Harry is sitting languidly – inhaling both the scent of roses and cigarette smoke. While in the centre sits the artist, with an unfinished painting of a very beautiful man. So beautiful that – anyone who so much as glances at him, cannot help but look for a second time, a bit longer, that was the marvel of his face. Basil unwillingly reveals that man’s name to be Dorian Gray and refuses to display that creation extraordinaire of his anywhere as he believes that he has put too much of himself into it. But when Dorian comes to visit Basil in the presence of Harry, their meet up with each other is inevitable. Something which Basil didn’t want, judging by his mannerisms. He’s apprehensive of Harry ruining Dorian’s ‘innocence’.Sounds pretty simple, like your average goth story, no? Nah. What do you say when each and every line of The Preface is a quote in itself? In fact, throughout the text, the story is littered with brilliant and quotable quotes. Of course, you just read and be mesmerized, and be impressed by the sheer brilliance of the author’s way with words. It is really sad that Wilde didn’t write any more prose.”There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written, or badly written. That is all.”While Basil worships Dorian, Dorian doesn’t feel their friendship has altered him, as much as Harry’s did in the short time of knowing him. Harry, that man is so sure of himself. Influencing Dorian negatively, arousing unhealthy passions in him. He doesn’t even believe Dorian when the latter shares that he’s in love with the seventeen-year-old Sybil Vane, an actress. Though it is obvious later on that Gray seems to be in love with the idea of love. His twenty-year-old brain seems addled as far as the concept of love is concerned.As time passes, under Harry’s influence, Dorian gives in to his decadent lifestyle. His mood swings are too much. Wilde has written such wicked characters, that you will love to hate them or hate yourself for loving them. Haha! I buddy read this book with a bunch of bookstagrammers and I remember one of the co-host – Ditsha – saying that she would love to suggest him a therapist. I believe so too.”The more he knew, the more he desired to know. He had mad hungers that grew more ravenous as he fed them.”The eleventh chapter (out of a total of twenty) is a revelation, a hedonistic revelation. The passage of life has made him all of thirty-eight now. His aura is such that he destroys everyone who comes in his path. He has become the epitome of evil, and what a cruel fate Basil had been handed in the end. But there’s one character who doesn’t change, Harry has his wits and his quips with him right till the very end.And in the end, the same portrait that saves him destroys him too.”There were moments when he looked on evil simply as a mode through which he could realize his conception of the beautiful.”The book has so many references to other written works and most importantly – music! But the text is something that I wouldn’t call lyrical. It’s rather lush, luxurious in meaning, rich in wordplay, oozing like chocolate out of a centre filled cake. I would recommend this book to everyone who wants to fall in love with the written word again.P.S. Published in 1890, The Picture of Dorian Gray is described as a gothic and a philosophical novel. And I haven’t touched at all in this review about the philosophy part. I plan to do it soon, give me a month or two, maybe after my exams. I feel there is so much in the text that is just waiting to be unravelled.Books the Characters Read:1. Émaux et Camées by Théophile Gautier (Enamels and Cameos) – A collection of PoetryAvailable for free on Project Gutenberg2. À rebours by Joris-Karl Huysmans (Against Nature or Against the Grain)3. Disciplina Clericalis by Petrus Alphonsi4. A Margarite of America by Thomas Lodge5. The Travels of Marco Polo by Marco Polo and Rustichello da Pisa6. Historical Memoires on the Reigns of Queen Elizabeth and King James by Francis OsborneOriginally posted on:My Blog @ Shaina’s Musings

2. 

   Rated 4 out of 5

   Rosh – April 19, 2021

   Our eponymous hero, Dorian Gray, is an orphaned rich and naïve twenty year old. He is the subject of a painting by artist Basil Hallward who seems to have fallen very strongly for Dorian’s physical appeal (only hinted at in the book, not explicitly mentioned.) Basil pours his heart out into the painting and gifts it to Dorian, who exclaims how unfair it would be to have a permanent reminder of his youthful beauty while he grows old and wrinkled. This idea partly germinated in his head due to a new influence over him, that of Sir Henry Wotton, a man fond of spouting philosophical epigrams. The rest of the story builds up on these 4 main characters: Dorian, Basil, Henry, and the painting.Each of these characters is quite intriguing. The painting, as everyone knows, seems to have a life of its own. It provides a mirror into Dorian’s soul. Dorian is a gullible fool who uses his ears and eyes more than his brains. He comes across as very impressionable and selfish. His is an utterly egoistic character till the very end. Basil is the good soul, the concerned friend, the one with a secret crush that can’t ever come out in the open, the person who tries his best to maintain peace with his friends while not necessarily agreeing with their opinions. His is the only voice of reason among the three leads.I found Henry Wotton the most intriguing. In terms of morality, he is right between Dorian and Basil. I’m sure we all know at least one person similar to Wotton. Henry keeps giving his “expert advice” to everyone around, whether they want to hear it or not. He considers himself above everyone else and his thoughts deserving of merit. The aesthete in him prefers beauty over morality. He seems to be a thorough misogynist, and puts down women and marriage at every chance he gets. Though he is quite clever, he uses his wit to disparage rather than develop, his cynical nature bursting forth in almost every declaration. However, all this is mere “preaching”. In practice, he seems to be living a life quite the opposite of whatever he proclaims. It would have been so easy to get exasperated and irritated at that character but I felt as if Wilde was trying to take a sarcastic dig at his peers through Wotton, and even used that character to voice his own secret views on the English mentality. Needless to say, Henry has the best one-liners in the book.The writing style is typical of that literary era. There is a lot of detail in the narration, with entire paragraphs containing a single sentence at times. If you are fond of classics, these hurdles won’t restrict you but allow you to marvel at the beauty of the writing. Unfortunately, contemporary writing has spoiled us and it takes time to get into the spirit of the book. The initial part is a little slow, then the story picks up at a decent enough pace until about Chapters 10-11, which are tedious and longwinded. This will be the biggest hurdle for the modern reader unused to classic reading. Once you go beyond these 2 chapters, the story whooshes ahead with a splendid and unexpected plot turn and you will be engrossed to know what happens next.

3. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Ana Beatriz Novaes Infante – November 9, 2023

   Versão censuradaA história do livro é perfeita, no entanto, completamente censurada. Gostaria de ter lido a versão original, ou pelo menos a mais próxima possível, para ter acesso ao livro que chocou a sociedade da época e levou o autor a prisão. Contudo, mesmo com as censuras, é possível entender porque essa é uma verdadeira obra prima. Oscar Wilde era um gênio.

4. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Reg Gaet – July 4, 2021

   A man portraitThe fight of a man and his conscience. A subtle line between reality and fiction.

5. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Schnupferich – February 25, 2024

   5 Sterne weil billigdas Buch wirkt wie ein Druck von einem PDF oder ein Theater-Skript für Schauspieler, aber für den Preis unschlagbar. Ich lese viel unterwegs und dafür ist es perfekt, fürs Regal als Schmuckstück jedoch eher weniger geeignet, dafür gibt es andere Ausgaben. Trozdem 5 Sterne und Kaufempfehlung :)Inhalt will ich garnicht spoilern, aber hey Oscar Wilde hat es geschrieben….es ist gut :D

6. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   mrs rosemary j mckeand – February 19, 2024

   GreatGreat book and great service. Thank you

7. 

   Rated 1 out of 5

   Norrbys – May 31, 2023

   Present. Beställ i god tid, då hanteringen är usel från Amazon! Emballaget var intakt.Kantstött på 3 ställen! Är en present tills i morgon o är tvungen att acceptera detta.Är inte alls glad över detta. Uselt!!