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A review by sgbrux
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
4.0
“Because to influence a person is to give him one’s own soul. He does not think his natural thoughts, or burn with his natural passions. His virtues are not real to him. His sins, if there are such things as sins, are borrowed.”
The first half of this book completely captivated me. It wasn’t until about the 65% mark that it started losing me for the next 15–20%. There would be pages and pages of internalizations and musings over gemstones or his expensive, cultured tastes, but all in all, this was a really strong read.
The first half brims with Lord Henry’s epigrams, which seemed too specific and perfectly stated to not be a reflection of Wilde’s own views—regardless of what he claimed in the prologue. Oscar has said Lord Henry was who the world thought he was, and I can definitely see why. But perhaps this is all the genius of who Wilde was as a philosopher.
This was an unexpected dark fantasy story, and while I didn’t absolutely love the ending, it did fit.
Dorian Gray was a protagonist I was unable to like, but he made for an interesting study. I will definitely revisit this one over and over. One of the most quotable classics I’ve read in some time!
The first half of this book completely captivated me. It wasn’t until about the 65% mark that it started losing me for the next 15–20%. There would be pages and pages of internalizations and musings over gemstones or his expensive, cultured tastes, but all in all, this was a really strong read.
The first half brims with Lord Henry’s epigrams, which seemed too specific and perfectly stated to not be a reflection of Wilde’s own views—regardless of what he claimed in the prologue. Oscar has said Lord Henry was who the world thought he was, and I can definitely see why. But perhaps this is all the genius of who Wilde was as a philosopher.
This was an unexpected dark fantasy story, and while I didn’t absolutely love the ending, it did fit.
Dorian Gray was a protagonist I was unable to like, but he made for an interesting study. I will definitely revisit this one over and over. One of the most quotable classics I’ve read in some time!