The Picture of Dorian Gray
What would you do if you could live a life of sin, filth, and debauchery without any physical effects? You could be young and beautiful, free to do as you want. To live forever, with only a portrait bare your blemishes- a portrait that must never see the light of day…
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde is a classic Gothic horror novel. Though short in length (a much shorter version of the novel was printed in a magazine before Wilde printed his finalized version later), there’s a lot to unpack in this story. I read this my freshman year of high school, and besides a couple odd quirks about my teacher (she had wild mood swings AND a mustache), it’s one of the few things I can recall from my English class that year. Based on the title, I had assumed that it was about a picture of a guy- and I was pretty spot on. But besides that, I didn’t really have any clue what it would be about. I do remember someone mentioning the character had been in the movie The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. But I hadn’t seen the movie anyways (Sean Connery didn’t mean shit to me). My mustachioed teacher gave the class a heads up on what the story was, and not gonna lie- I was intrigued as hell.
The novel begins with Lord Henry Wotton making a visit to his close friend Basil Hallward, who happens to be painting a portrait of a young man named Dorian Gray. Dorian is very young and naïve, whose innocence Basil was enamored with- and who Henry was eager to corrupt. Henry being a Lord, he lived a carefree life and was knowledgeable in many different aspects- all things that peaked Dorian’s interest. As Dorian spends more time with Henry, he becomes influenced by his mannerisms and quickly loses his innocence, much to the dismay of Basil. Basil finishes his portrait and it is raved about by the few who have seen it. He eventually gives it to Dorian to remind him of his innocence and it’s beauty, which is now nowhere to be found. As Dorian studies the painting over time, he realizes that though he remains young (regardless of the debauchery he is getting into with Lord Henry), the painting has begun to reflect the sins of his actions. Alarmed at first, Dorian eventually decides to see it less as a curse, and more of a pass to explore the darker aspects of humanity.
The premise of the novel is something most people have contemplated at some point in their life- what would you do if you were almost guaranteed to not face the consequences of your action. Drink your fill of alcohol? Eat to your heart’s desire? Drugs galore? Maybe even murder? Dorian chases all of these sins and more in search of fulfillment. But as he goes down this road, he leaves behind not only his friends, but the innocence and simplicity of his previous life- something he is constantly reminded of as he looks over his portrait. Not only do you feel for his character, but you can easily relate to the people surrounding him in his journey (except for Henry, he’s just a rich asshole playing devil’s advocate). Dorian’s actions soon catch up to him, and as the tale unfolds, we as readers are left wondering- would we have fared any better in Dorian’s shoes?
This novel has remained in my heart all these years for many great reasons. Like I mentioned, many of us have wondered what we would do should we be able to act without consequence. Welp, this book provides an example that might slightly quench that thirst. The storyline also is almost Shakespearean with some of the twists and turns, something I have always appreciated. There are also several characters in the novel that, though their time may be short, leave lasting impressions. The novel is a quick read and is well worth the read.
The only real issue I have when it comes to The Picture of Dorian Gray is it’s length. It is much too short and it leaves you wanting more. It’s pretty much a soap opera that gets cut a season too early. The characters get a fair amount of development and you aren’t left wanting to know much more about any one in particular (except there is one character that haunts my thoughts to this day). Honestly though, much like the food at Buffalo Wild Wings, it’s probably for the best not to over do it. Cause shits delicious. And bad for you.
Rating: I give this novel 9 out of 10 portraits. It’s a quick read that has much to enjoy. And by enjoy, I mean it will haunt your brain. But like in a good and puzzling way.
If you are looking for more of Dorian in your life, you can start with Penny Dreadful, a short lived horror anthology that covers a whole host of gothic literature figures. More recently, Dorian has also been spotted in Netflix’s The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina- something I think was well done, even if short-lived as well. If you are looking for another gothic-themed movie with supernatural ties, From Hell stars Johnny Depp as an investigator looking into the murders of Jack the Ripper as they are happening. The trailer does it no justice, so please promise me you won’t watch it. Please.
If you are looking for some similar lit’ to get lit with, you can check out The Dark Half- both the movie and the book. One of the thousands of Stephen King pieces, it’s about an author who decides to stop writing horror novels under his pen name, even going so far as to ‘bury’ this other half. But strange events begin happening, matching the writings of the very same author he just buried. The movie is from the early 90’s, but don’t let that keep you from enjoying it. If you want to do some pondering and soul-searching regarding the loss of innocence, it’s hard to not look at the book Lord of the Flies. When a group of school boys attempt to create a society on the island where they are stranded after a plane crash, they quickly lose all sense of right and wrong. It’s a very dark book, and it leaves a pit in your stomach for these young innocent children and what they go through. But would we as kids have fared any better?
What would you do if you had no fear of repercussions? No need to worry about what consequences would come of your sin? Would you dare… TO SUGGEST A BOOK OR MOVIE?
The thought alone sends shivers down my spine…
Until next time…
-M