Reviews with content warning for Suicide - Il ritratto di Dorian Gray

DISCLAIMER - I read this text as a set text for university meaning I did not pick this up for myself. It does not necessarily fit my usual reading selection so my review may be rather biased.

Really poetic and interesting reflection. Got a little slow towards the middle but picked up again and was a dark but good read.

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bookishmagpie's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious 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

3.75

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cognitivebelligerence's review against another edition

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dark mysterious fast-paced

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

5.0

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heisiiri's review against another edition

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dark reflective slow-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

5.0

A classic that fully deserves its status as such. This is the sort of book I could write fifteen essays on, but I struggle to put my thoughts into one simple review. So let's go with this: I would recommend The Picture of Dorian Gray to almost anyone. It isn't the sort of book that will have you entertained every single moment - some of the long conversations and narrations get quite tedious, in fact - but the richness of its themes and symbolism easily earn it the full five stars. The downfall and corruption of the protagonist is fascinating to follow. You could analyze this book through a hundred different lenses and still find new, fascinating things about it.

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tadah's review against another edition

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dark funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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saintmare's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective 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

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katharinaamaliae's review against another edition

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dark mysterious medium-paced

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

4.75

I was really close to giving this book five stars, but in the end I didn't mostly because of just a few pages. I absolutely loved Oscar Wilde's writing, it was so beautiful and really easy to read, however a few parts were just kind of boring to me, for example when he talked about different jewels for like three pages. But that is really the only thing I didn't like.
The topics this book deals with are just so timeless and I think that's why it's still important today. I totally understand why it's a classic, and its definitely worth reading. It is also great if you're not used to reading classics and want to start reading them.

And beauty is a form of genius - is higher, indeed, than genius, as it needs no explanation. It is of the great facts of the world, like sunlight or springtime, or the reflection in the dark waters of that silver shell we call the moon. It cannot be questioned. It has its divine right of sovereignty. It makes princes of those who have it.

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