Reviews

Портрет Дориана Грея by Oscar Wilde

alice_kingsleigh's review against another edition

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dark mysterious sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Ciekawa książka, chociaż momentami mnie nudziła. Dużo było w niej przeciągłych nawiązań do sztuki, które mogły być o wiele krótsze. 
Głównego bohatera nie dało się lubić. Wydawał mi się już na samym początku zdziecinniały, co wtedy było wytlumaczalne. Jednak przez całe swoje życie popadł w coraz gorszy stan. Nie potrafił uformować własnego zdania na dłużej niż kilka chwil i zawsze uginał się pod wpływem Lorda Henryka. Im głębiej zachodziłam w książkę, tym bardziej czekałam na jego sromotny upadek, który dodał mi poczucia satysfakcji.
Podobała mi się tutaj postać Lorda Henryka. Przypominał mi on diabła na ramieniu Doriana, podsycającego i szepczącego zgniłe słówka, jednak z jakiegoś powodu polubiłam go. Gdyby Dorian miał kręgosłup, gadanie Harrego nie wywarłoby na nim tak dużego wrażenia. 

shilliard315's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

3.5

willthebean's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

gravvia's review against another edition

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5.0

So wonderfully written. The development of Dorian’s character from beginning to end truly makes you feel something that is so indescribable. It is between hatred and pity of the man he has become. The way Wilde wrote these characters is truly amazing and this story will forever stick by me.

penpar's review against another edition

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2.0

This book was written two centuries ago. Most of the text--that is to say its diction, syntax and style--are now archaic. The plot itself seemed rather promising at the start, but soon got lost amidst chapters of prolonged agony that focused too much on citing other works and other alleged dandies, and focused too little on actual worthwhile plot development. There is no doubt that the Picture of Dorian Gray has influenced many works of literature since it was published, but I personally don't see what's so great and relatable about this novella today.

I expected Lord Henry to fill in the traditional role of the wise mentor, only to find him quickly turned into a character permanently occupied with the superfluous task of forcibly presenting opinions he himself doesn't believe in just for the sake of sounding smart and alternative; Basil is perhaps the most relatable and likeable character, yet Lord Henry and Dorian Gray soon despise him for being conventional; and Dorian Gray is an innocent lamb till Lord Henry meets him and from there on, it's all, 'Oh look, I'm Lord Henry, and I'm corrupting you, O youth! Look and see how unconventional and unorthodox my wisdom is!'

Had I only just read the first fifty pages and skipped through to the final two chapters to see the portrait destroyed, I'd have saved myself quite a bit of time and not missed much at all.

shannandavey's review against another edition

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4.0

4.5 stars. i love this book! oscar wilde really created a piece of art with this one.

clys_nyx's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

chloe13013's review against another edition

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3.0

I really wanted to love this book. But I just don’t understand the hype behind it.

Don’t get me wrong, this book has some very beautiful lines that took my breath away. The preface for Dorian Gray (it being that all art is useless) was fairly interesting and I cared for… some of it?

Overall though I found the writing to be hard to get into, far too dense at times, and very challenging to understand. Although the characters were fully fleshed out, I found it hard to care about anyone or anything, really. There were so many times where my eyes would scan through blocks of chunky text and I would realize I didn’t understand a word I just read.

Someone please sit next to me and read me the book chapter by chapter. Please help me understand why this book is so beloved by the bookish community because I have major FOMO.

katef211's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Audio 

sneaky_stewart's review against another edition

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mysterious reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0