Price of Beauty: The Picture of Dorian Gray review

By Hanna Kim ‘29

The Picture of Dorian Gray, a novel written by Oscar Wilde, is classic work of literature that is often viewed as Gothic horror. The story explores concepts such as the dark side of aestheticism, the nature of morality, and the corruption of innocence. The story follows the protagonist, Dorian Gray, who is a wealthy and extraordinarily beautiful young man descending into a life of hedonism and cruelty. The book highlights the dangers of abandoning ethics for pleasure through this cautionary tale.

Lord Henry Wotton, a character from nineteenth-century England,  is in the studio visiting his friend, Basil Hallward, who is painting a portrait of Dorian Gray. Basil is worried that Lord Henry’s satirical ideas might influence Dorian, even to the point where Basil warns Dorian to ignore what Lord Henry says. While Dorian is taking a break from posing for his portrait, he and Lord Henry have a chat. Lord Henry tells Dorian that youth is the most valuable thing in life and that he should live for pleasure without fear. This conversation leads to Dorian fully realizing the potential of his youth and beauty. It is a seductive message that resonates deeply with Dorian. When Dorian sees his finished portrait, he wishes for his immortality  in life with the portrait slowly decaying in his arms. 

He later on even states  that he would willingly give his soul for his long living desires. This sparks the moment of intense realization of his beauty as well as his inevitable decay, causing him to utter his desperate wish. Basil gifts the painting to Dorian, saying that it belonged to him even before it was created.

About a month later, Dorian visits Lord Henry with some news. The news is that Dorian has fallen in love with an actress named Sibyl Vane and is engaged to her. Dorian praises Sibyl and her acting, calling her a genius. He claims that he loved her and worshiped her. Dorian invites Lord Henry and Basil to watch Sibyl perform in Romeo and Juliet. However, Sibyl’s performance was a complete failure.. After the play, Sibyl claims that she used acting as a tool for escaping her harsh reality but now Dorian shows her a way to  ‘free’ her soul and teaches her a way to filter out the lenses she was looking through.. In response, Dorian expresses his disgust towards Sibyl and says that she has killed his love and that she is nothing without her art. It is clear that Dorian has fallen in love with Sibyl’s art rather than her as a person. He was able to completely change his attitude towards her. Dorian can also be seen showing signs of the kind of shallowness that his mentor Lord Henry is famous for. Dorian breaks off their engagement and goes home. When he gets home, he sees his portrait’s expression has been altered. There were lines of cruelty around the mouth of the portrait.

The same day, Lord Henry arrives at Dorian’s residence unannounced. Dorian tells Lord Henry about his intention to reconcile with Sibyl. However, Lord Henry informs him that Sibyl has killed herself with poison. Dorian calls Sibyl selfish and says that she had no right to kill herself. He has no understanding that his actions led to Sibyl’s death and is only focused on the pain it is causing him.

Dorian eventually moves the portrait to his attic after being questioned on why he covered his painting up.

In the evening before Dorian’s thirty-eighth birthday, Dorian runs into Basil who warns him of his atrocious reputation for his shallow lifestyle. Dorian invites Basil to show him his portrait. Basil is shocked when he sees the hideous face grinning at him. It is almost unrecognizable to him. Basil calls the situation sinful and tells Dorian to repent. Overwhelmed by his anger and pride, Dorian stabs Basil to his death. After Dorian kills Basil, he feels strangely calm, feeling no remorse for the monstrous crime he had committed. Dorian contacts his scientist friend and blackmails him to get rid of Basil’s body. Following the murder, there was red dew on one of the portrait’s hands, the red dew seeming like blood. After Dorian’s friend helps get rid of the body, he kills himself.

Dorian then spends the next few months trying to change his life, desperate to undo his wrongs. He wished his life would be full of purity, meaning that he would be able to expel every sign of evil passion from the portrait. However, he could see no change. The painting was loathsome, even more loathsome if possible. Haunted by the painting, Dorian stabs the painting with the same knife he used to stab Basil.

There was a shriek coming from the attic. Dorian’s servants go upstairs to find a dead man lying on the floor. His face is hideous, wrinkled, and extremely aged. Only after they saw his rings that they recognized who it was.

The Picture of Dorian Gray is a classic masterpiece. The story and plot were original for me so reading the book itself felt refreshing. I personally find stories more interesting when the main character is also the villain or morally flawed. In The Picture of Dorian Gray, watching Dorian shift from an innocent young man to a morally cruel character made the story more compelling and entertaining. While the plot was engaging, what makes the book great for me is Oscar Wilde’s writing. Wilde uses language that feels poetic. The book is filled with philosophical ideas expressed in a very witty and lyrical way. Most of the ideas are stated by Lord Henry. His comments are also written in a charming tone. Even when I disagree with his ideas, I still found the way he expressed them fascinating to read.

However, there are some problems with the book. The first problem some people have is the book’s uneven pacing. The novel begins slowly, with long philosophical conversation, which I personally liked, but I can see why people have a problem with it. In contrast, the important plots in the story happen too quickly for my liking. The second problem I have is how quickly Dorian Gray changes from a pure young man into a cruel and selfish person. His shift feels too sudden and unrealistic. The novel also jumps forward about eighteen years, during which Dorian continues living a corrupt lifestyle. As a result, Dorian appears to change too quickly in the beginning and then stay almost the same for the next eighteen years. That made me unsatisfied with the unbalanced character development.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading the book. The plot was creative and the poetic writing style stood out to me. Oscar Wilde’s language made many lines memorable and enjoyable to read. It was also the first book that I reread as soon as I finished reading it for the first time. For readers who enjoy philosophical ideas and morally complex characters, The Picture of Dorian Gray is a memorable and thought-provoking novel.

Quotes

“But beauty, real beauty, ends where an intellectual expression begins. Intellect is in itself a mode of exaggeration, and destroys the harmony of any face.”- Lord Henry

”Behind every exquisite thing that existed, there was something tragic.”- Oscar Wilde 

”There is a luxury in self-reproach. When we blame ourselves we feel that no one else has the right to blame us. It is the confession, not the priest, that gives us absolution.”- Oscar Wilde

“To define is to limit”- Lord Henry

References

Image 1:

Independent Press. (2019, February 7). The picture of Dorian Gray. The Impious Digest. https://impiousdigest.com/the-picture-of-dorian-gray/?utm_source=Pinterest&utm_medium=organic

Image 2:

Amazon.com: The Picture of Dorian Gray: 9780141439570: Wilde, Oscar, Mighall, Robert, Mighall, Robert, Mighall, Robert: Books. (n.d.). https://www.amazon.com/Picture-Dorian-Gray-Oscar-Wilde/dp/0141439572