Might and Mystery
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The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
There are always books that one feels one 'should' read, because the world has declared them classics or masterpieces or both. Oscar Wilde's 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' was one such for me. Somehow, despite years of studying and loving English literature, as well as seeing many productions of Oscar Wilde's plays, I had never picked up this famous novel. And when I did, I was prepared to be disappointed (so many 'masterpieces' do not live up to their hype), or at least to find it in some way dated.
I could not have been more wrong. 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' is indeed a masterpiece, as well as a classic! On the face of it, the story is so simple. A stunningly beautiful, and still relatively innocent young man, Dorian Gray, has his portrait painted by an artist called Basil Hallward. The picture is a stunner, capturing the essence of the sitter's extraordinary, youthful beauty. But then the darkly motivated Sir Henry Wotton pays a visit and deploys his mastery of words to persuade Dorian Gray to turn his back on virtue and instead worship all the sensual pleasures that life offers, including beauty itself. During the course of this seduction Dorian makes a wish - which, as in a fairy tale, is granted - for the wondrous portrait of him to endure all the ravages of time and vice, while his own glorious looks stay ageless and in tact.
Okay, so it might sound weird, but such is the power of Wilde's writing - the power of the words Wotton uses in his seduction of Dorian - that the scenario is easy to believe in. For the reader there is also a compelling, almost voyeuristic, sense of intrigue as the story continues and we follow Dorian deeper and deeper down the paths of depravity that he then begins to explore. No sinful indulgence is resisted; instead, a bit like the addict seeking an ever-stronger hit, Dorian is sucked not only into the extremes of deviant and abhorrent behaviour, but also treats those in his everyday dealings with increasing ruthlessness, regardless of their vulnerability or trust in him. In short, he becomes utterly despicable. No crime or cruelty is too much.
Through it all, the portrait remains Dorian's touchstone. He keeps it in a secret place, checking it furtively and with a sickening heart, as - in accordance with his own wishes - the face it depicts begins ghoulishly to disintegrate while his own features remain magically unaltered. The temptation to reveal spoilers is strong, but I shall resist, because the twist in this novel is as spellbinding as the storytelling.
The novel gallops along, packed with Wilde's razor-sharp intelligence and humour, as well as unsettling and ingenious insights into the human psyche - how are minds and hearts work, and why. Above all else however, 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' is an examination of the mystery and might of the human imagination, how it can take you to the best and worst parts of yourself, as potentially lethal as any bomb and to be handled with exactly the same amount of care.
View all my reviews
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar WildeMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
There are always books that one feels one 'should' read, because the world has declared them classics or masterpieces or both. Oscar Wilde's 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' was one such for me. Somehow, despite years of studying and loving English literature, as well as seeing many productions of Oscar Wilde's plays, I had never picked up this famous novel. And when I did, I was prepared to be disappointed (so many 'masterpieces' do not live up to their hype), or at least to find it in some way dated.
I could not have been more wrong. 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' is indeed a masterpiece, as well as a classic! On the face of it, the story is so simple. A stunningly beautiful, and still relatively innocent young man, Dorian Gray, has his portrait painted by an artist called Basil Hallward. The picture is a stunner, capturing the essence of the sitter's extraordinary, youthful beauty. But then the darkly motivated Sir Henry Wotton pays a visit and deploys his mastery of words to persuade Dorian Gray to turn his back on virtue and instead worship all the sensual pleasures that life offers, including beauty itself. During the course of this seduction Dorian makes a wish - which, as in a fairy tale, is granted - for the wondrous portrait of him to endure all the ravages of time and vice, while his own glorious looks stay ageless and in tact.
Okay, so it might sound weird, but such is the power of Wilde's writing - the power of the words Wotton uses in his seduction of Dorian - that the scenario is easy to believe in. For the reader there is also a compelling, almost voyeuristic, sense of intrigue as the story continues and we follow Dorian deeper and deeper down the paths of depravity that he then begins to explore. No sinful indulgence is resisted; instead, a bit like the addict seeking an ever-stronger hit, Dorian is sucked not only into the extremes of deviant and abhorrent behaviour, but also treats those in his everyday dealings with increasing ruthlessness, regardless of their vulnerability or trust in him. In short, he becomes utterly despicable. No crime or cruelty is too much.
Through it all, the portrait remains Dorian's touchstone. He keeps it in a secret place, checking it furtively and with a sickening heart, as - in accordance with his own wishes - the face it depicts begins ghoulishly to disintegrate while his own features remain magically unaltered. The temptation to reveal spoilers is strong, but I shall resist, because the twist in this novel is as spellbinding as the storytelling.
The novel gallops along, packed with Wilde's razor-sharp intelligence and humour, as well as unsettling and ingenious insights into the human psyche - how are minds and hearts work, and why. Above all else however, 'The Picture of Dorian Gray' is an examination of the mystery and might of the human imagination, how it can take you to the best and worst parts of yourself, as potentially lethal as any bomb and to be handled with exactly the same amount of care.
View all my reviews
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