Reviews with content warning for Misogyny - The Picture of Dorian Gray

Reviews tagging 'Misogyny'

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

476 reviews

apersonfromflorida's review against another edition

4.75

dark mysterious reflective

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Content Warnings

carmineslamp's review against another edition

4.5

dark reflective medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I read this book because it's one of my bestie's favorite novels, and girl I'm so devastated I hadn't read it earlier. It's such a wonderfully written book, and the only reason it's not a full five stars is because it's not my favorite book of all-time.

Dorian slowly killing everyone he gets close through, be it by mere interaction leading to suicide or killing them with his own hands (Basil my Beloved), is so impactful for the overall novel; him going from some paragon of youthful purity to a detested man in society is so interesting. Good book. Oscar Wilde, my little mistress of commas, you slayed.

Content Warnings

rjkadlick's review against another edition

4.25

dark reflective sad 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

okay i've been sitting for two days straight trying to figure out how to properly review this book, so here goes:

1. the premise is super interesting and is carried out in an exciting way. i wish wilde had focused on the plot more, but i know i have a personal preference for plot-based books.

2. idk if i haven't read any classics in a while or if it's just this one, but it felt very Platonic (in the Plato way) with a lot of talk (especially by

Sir Henry

) about Beauty and its relationship to Art, Genius, etc. i like this kinda stuff so i enjoyed it but if you don't you're not into a lot of abstract philosophical talk you're probably not gonna like it.

3. as with many classics, there's some... offensive portrayals of certain characters... in this case antisemitism and misogyny so i would recommend looking at content tags before reading!

overall though i thought it was super interesting and one of the easier classics to read and understand

Content Warnings

jhigginbottom's review against another edition

4.25

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

The characters are unlikeable, but that's somewhat the point. There's some brief antisemitism and misogyny, and that's not surprising, but it is annoying to read. It does seem that a good chunk of this novel is unnecessary, but it's still well-written and it gets 4.25 stars for the plot twists, really. There are duller chapters and tense, exciting chapters, but, overall, it's solid and one of the classics worth reading. I enjoyed that Lord Henry had a lot of philosophical takes, but I definitely didn't agree with most of them. Super satisfying ending.

Content Warnings