The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

The review contains spoilers.

I can see why this book is considered to be part of literature’s greatest classics. Its flow was amazing and it kept me hooked till the end. It revolves around the life of Dorian Gray and the subsequent impact that he had upon meeting two people. The first is the artist Basil and the second is Lord Henry. The book looks into the nature of a person and the belief that what you do in life burdens the soul. It's an old-fashioned play on good vs evil.

In the beginning, Dorian has a childlike naivety. He is charming without putting much effort into being so and is very attractive to boot. So much so that the artist Basil found his looks to be perfect and his painting of Dorian’s portrait to be his greatest work of art. Dorian himself was unaware of his good looks though he did take great pleasure in hearing Basil compliment him.

Basil was described to be rather regular with no features standing out. Lord Henry even remarks that the only thing that doesn’t make him dull is his works of art. The portrait itself plays a big deal in this story as Dorian makes the deal that his portrait should be the one who ages and bear the burdens of his soul while he is free to remain unchanged by the hands of time.

“How sad it is!" murmured Dorian Gray with his eyes still fixed upon his own portrait. "How sad it is! I shall grow old, and horrible, and dreadful. But this picture will remain always young. It will never be older than this particular day of June…. If it were only the other way! If it were I who was to be always young and the picture that was to grow old! For that—for that—I would give everything! Yes, there is nothing in the whole world I would not give! I would give my soul for that!”

Dorian gets his wish, and thus begins his downfall into all sorts of depravity. This is heralded by none other than our secondary protagonist Lord Henry, who is an avid believer and champion of the philosophy of self-indulgent hedonism. Just look at what he tells Dorian in chapter 2.

“The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. Resist it, and your soul grows sick with longing for the things it has forbidden to itself, with desire for what its monstrous laws have made monstrous and unlawful. It has been said that the great events of the world take place in the brain. It is in the brain, and the brain only, that the great sins of the world take place also.”

This is the philosophy he begins to lead Dorian into. Dorian naturally finds this pleasing and why wouldn’t he? A life that can is lead in which one only indulges in what he wants would be pleasing to a young man like him. One thing you should note is that Dorian has never had a proper role model growing up and this is what Lord Henry becomes to him.

The first change that he causes to the portrait is done by breaking a young girl's heart and her dreams. He does in such a cruel and cavalier manner that I was surprised. Though he later expresses regret when he remembers the heartbreak on her face and attempts to make amends by letter but changes his mind upon learning of her suicide the following day by Lord Henry.

After reading the book I often think that if only Basil had come to console him before Lord Henry then Dorians’ character might have had a redemption arc but since it wasn’t, it only gets worse. While reading the book you start to notice that Dorian is both a coward and a selfish person by nature. He doesn’t care about who he hurts or what his actions would later cause. I say he’s a coward because the minute his lifestyle or nature is threatened, his reaction is to hide, lie, cover-up, or place the blame on someone else’s shoulder. He also always uses the philosophy he lives by as an excuse to do whatever he wants. Dorian is also very narcissistic as he comes to learn that he is very appealing to the eyes. He becomes attached to his good looks and it is one of the reasons why he cares less and less what he does to his soul. It is often mentioned that no matter what is said about him, people start to doubt once they see his angelic and innocent face. It is a common fact that you are more likely to trust a stranger if they are attractive, and Dorian can use this to his advantage in putting off the rumors surrounding him in the beginning. It doesn’t last but he does manage to hold onto a close circle of friends, most of which are introduced to him by Lord Henry which is another factor that furthers the influence Lord Henry has on him. After all, an association of like-minded people is just the perfect way to drag him down further into the life Lord Henry believes he should live.

Lord Henry is another despicable character, His entire philosophy would allow a person to discard morals, law, and good conscience to chase after pleasure. The fact that he regularly preaches his philosophy to whoever listens would have made you think that someone in the book should have called him out. The reason no one does is due to Lord Henry being naturally charismatic and able to weave his words like a spider would weave their webs. As a natural wordsmith, he knows what to say and how to say it to hook someone into his line of thinking. And once you begin to doubt, he makes it even more attractive and appealing to listen to. I think he would have made a spectacular cult if he had the ambition to.

Under such influence, Dorian falls deeper into a pit of his own making. He does drugs, sleeps around (though it is only heavily implied), ruins the lives of people, and ultimately kills his friend Basil.

The murder of Basil was admittedly a shocker initially. But it made sense as Basil had finally looked at the portrait, (the one thing Dorian strived to hide) and was able to see what Dorian had done to his soul. It was a shock mainly because Dorian himself revealed what he had done. Maybe the years of lying and falsifying his nature to everyone he considered important finally caught up to him and lead him to make that decision, or maybe it was the madness of the moment. Whatever it was, it horrifies Basil and he pleads with his friend to make amends, and that is when he is murdered. Dorian recovers remarkably well after committing his first murder. He does experience the initial shock and horror at what he has done, even more so when he sees his portrait dripping with blood, but once he gets a chemist to cover it up by blackmailing him (the latter at which commits suicide) he feels more settled though still slightly rattled and paranoid.

Towards the end, he tries to delude himself into thinking that he can start anew. Move away and try to forget that he has ruined his very soul. In his mind the only thing that burdens him is the portrait, so he takes the very tool he killed Basil with and uses it on the portrait. In a very fitting conclusion, Dorian is switched with the portrait. His body now old, decrepit, and hideous while the portrait is as it used to be before he made the deal.