Rating: 
Summary: Pardon me, what were they thinking?
Review: Dorian Gray is not a kid book by any stretch of the imagination. No swordfights, no prince and princess, no happy ending. Dorian Gray is a very dark work with drug use, murder, and depression. One of the main themes is homosexuality. It shocked and outraged the public when it was first realeased. It is scary. It scared me . Frankly, I doubt very much that many children would appreciate this book. Colleges study this book in literature classes. That's not to say no child would not get stuff from this book, but the few children that could would probably be just fine with the original work. Folks, stick to Treasure Island and White Fang for the kids. And if you want something kinda spooky, try Phantom of the Opera. Save Dorian Gray for later.
Rating: 
Summary: Platter of Amorality
Review: Best to label this story a fantasy despite the fact that such fantasy is revealed in only a few paragraphs. Most of the book is what used to pass as witty dialogue between stifled, elite Englishmen and women. Most of this dialogue displays the thinking of a totally amoral Lord Henry who verbally paints everyone he meets as a slivered character reflecting his own amorality. To Lord Henry, one's belief in anything is proof of one's deranged thinking. Both he and Dorian experienced continued hedonism but with no gratification. The reader is forced to accept the premise that an artist painted the portrait of Dorian and in so doing captured the young man's soul on the canvas. While Dorian lived the portrait kept aging while Dorian retained his outer, youthful appearance. Thus no other living character in the story had any evidence of the aging ugliness of the portrait. At Dorian's death the living portrait, the soul of Dorian, returned to its pristine, youthful glow. Throughout the story the reader is joined with the character Dorian in accepting the portrait's brutal transformation. But with the array of deaths that followed Dorian's heartless cruelty the reader kept being confronted with the pointlessness of the tale. The reader would like to have witnessed Lord Henry's response to the apparent suicide of Dorian Gray who he worshipped throughout the tale. But no such ending was provided.
Rating: 
Summary: Be careful what you wish for
Review: The Picture of Dorian Gray is a mesmerizing read dominated by two amazing personalities. Dorian Gray is certainly interesting, but I was much more impressed by his friend and mentor Lord Henry Wotton. Dorian is a perfectly nice, well-meaning young man when we first meet him in the studio of the painter Basil Hallward. Hallward in fact is so drawn to the youth that he draws his greatest inspiration from painting him and just being with him. It is the influence of Hallward's friend Lord Henry which leads to Gray's downfall. There are few characters in literature as decadent, witty, and somehow enchanting as Lord Henry. He is never at a loss for words, fatalistic observations of life and people, sarcastic philosophical musings, and brilliantly devious ideas. Among his world of social decadents and artistic do-nothings, his charm remains redoubtable and highly sought-after. Gray immediately falls under his spell, soon devoting himself to living life to its fullest and enjoying his youth and beauty to the utmost. He solemnly wishes that he could remain young and beautiful forever, that Hallward's exquisite picture of him should bear the marks of age and debauchery rather than himself. To his surprise and ultimate horror, he finds his wish fulfilled. Small lines and creases first appear in the portrait, but after he cruelly breaks the heart of an unfortunate young actress who then takes her own life, the first real signs of horror and blood manifest themselves on his portrait. His love for the ill-fated Sibyl Vane is a sordid, heartbreaking tale, and it marks the culmination of his descent into debauchery. He frequents opium dens and houses of ill repute, justifying all of his worst actions to himself, while the influence of Lord Henry continues to work its black magic on his soul. He hides his increasingly grotesque portrait away in an upstairs room, sometimes going up to stare at it and take pleasure in the fact that it rather than he bears the stains of his iniquities. In time, his obsession with his secret grows, and he is constantly afraid that it will be discovered by someone. For eighteen years he lives in this manner, moving among the members of his society as a revered figure who magically retains his youth, but eventually he begins to see himself as he really is and to curse the portrait, blaming its magic for his miserable life of ill-begotten pleasures and loss of moral character. The final pages are well-written, and the climax is eminently satisfying. Exhibiting the undeniable influence of the French Decadence movement of the late 19th century, this wonderful novel serves as a morality play of sorts. One can understand why its unique nature upset a British society emerging from the social constraints of Victorianism, but this reader is hard pressed to see why this novel proved so damaging to Wilde's eventual imprisonment and punishment. Dorian Gray is no hero, nor does his ultimate internal struggles and yearnings for rebirth inspire one to engage in the sort of life he himself eventually came to regret. The only "dangerous" character in this novel is Lord Henry; his delight in working his evil influence on others as a type of moral experiment and the silver-tongued charm he exploits to aid him in such misbegotten quests have the potential to do harm to a vulnerable mind such as that of Dorian Gray. Lord Henry's evil genius makes him much more interesting than his disciple Dorian Gray. By today's standards, this book is not shocking, and indeed it is much more dangerous to censor work such as this than it is to read it. This book in eminently quotable, and it still manages to cast a magical spell over readers of this day and age. Quite simply, The Picture of Dorian Gray deserves a place on the shelf of the world's greatest literature.
Rating:
Summary: To be in harmony with one's self, is to be good
Review: Wilde gives a new definition to the good. Dorian Gray's problem, despite the fact all his sin is transmited to a painting, art reminds him of the good, and this reminding is enough to be in discord with himself. I don't feel, as some suggest, that Dorian regreted his wish of eternal youth and beauty, but the images of the painting, art itself, drove him crazy - his self doubt. The art showed his inauthentic life, how his feelings and actions were not in harmony. In De Profundis Wilde talks about Jesus' criticism of the Pharasee for studying, but not living what they know - they have no feeling for life, they are souless driviling intellects. Dorian`s cognizance of his own inauthentic soulless profanatory abject self did him in, he died killing the reminder of his splintered self, and of the frustrations of being an aesthetically induced schizopherenic. Wotton's warning was that conscience makes egoists of us all. Is it the dualistic nature of conscience that drives Dorian to kill himself, not regret? In the end he desires to do good, but is it? Can he? Is he? Wilde, the master of Paradox, leaves some poignant questions, if not eschatological questions, availab.le to be thought upon. Wilde is highlighting the importance of art as truth and art as a mirror, but in the end who is the mirror? Art makes reality, as far as reality is a truth anyway, a perception of truth and reality that is more meaningful than these nonexistant abstracts. But then there is sin to ponder on, is it real? Wilde would say so.
Rating:
Summary: Wilde Nearly Redefines Literature
Review: I never would have thought this interesting combination of Marlowe, Shakespeare, and Dickens possible. For those of you who follow my writing, you know that I really liked Mr. Wilde's "Importance of Being Earnest." And his "Picture of Dorian Gray" is enough to put him right up there with Mr. Marlowe, Mr. Shakespeare, and Mr. Dickens. Like any good tale of terror, the story starts normal and plausible. We only get to know Sybil for a short while, but she delivers a very touching passage on her love for Dorian which prepares her very sympathetic character. Her brother is prepared early and resurfaces with good timing. Basil is well drawn as the artist who has an interesting fascination with Dorian. We only see Alan Campbell briefly, but we are permitted to feel some sympathy for him when he is forced into a criminal act and finds himself overcome with anxiety. Harry is a well drawn character who not only provides comical touches, but jokes (unknowingly) about many dark thoughts that are undoubtedly revolving in Dorian's mind. And Dorian? What a wonderful creation! First we get to see him as a normal person. Soon afterwards, we see his dark desires. We see him fall in love, and then we see his love turn to abuse. But even as we see his character descend into evil, Wilde never quite permits us to forget that he is human. This is especially prevalent when he longs for his childhood innocence. Wilde masterfully builds tension when Dorian's unchanged face starts to raise questions. And as if this were not enough, Wilde allows Dorian's reputation to degenerate with his character. What's left? Only beautiful and excellent wording, magnificent suspense, terrifying moments, dramatic irony, some well placed comical touches, etc, etc, etc. This is a phenomenal book that offers an interesting combination of Marlowe's techniques (showing pacts with evil), Shakespeare's techniques (articulate wording and passages), and Dickens' techniques. (Fierce humor side by side with pure terror.) DO NOT let this phenomenal masterpiece get away!
Rating: 
Summary: Rewarding but tedious
Review: For me, The Picture of Dorian Gray was a tedious read. I did not particularly enjoy it that much, although I acknowledge that it is a good piece of literature. It is very well written and full of details and vivid descriptions. The story is told artfully and exquisitely but I found it long-winded and difficult to get through at times. Many people would enjoy a book like this, but it was not for me. I couldn't relate to the British aristocracy system and was utterly appalled at how unbelievably shallow the characters were, although Wilde was probably going for that effect. I was also disappointed with the ending. I thought the point of the novel would be to eliminate the stereotype that bad people are ugly, but it just perpetuated it. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a book that makes them think. It is also recommended to people who like books from this era (late 1800's) and have a lot of time on their hands.
Rating:
Summary: mind over matter
Review: The essence of the book can be summed up when Dorian Grey wishes that his portrait to age, get old and decay but he should remain young and beautiful for ever! He not only accomplishes it but convinces others to this remarkable feat. He is so conceited, self absorbed and without any conscious that after he murders his true friend, he goes to bed and has a good night sleep. Dorian Grey is one of the most bizarre charecters in literature. I guess we all have a little bit of Dorian Grey in us at times, hopefully in small doses. Lord Henry, the quick witted,
brilliant companion is none other than Oscar Wilde. A
remarkable book. If it were written today, there would be lot of
controversy as the male charecters bond so freely. Oscar Wilde himself was accused of homosexual act and was sent to jail for
two years. He left England and moved to France where he died at a
very young age. What a loss?
Rating:
Summary: Suspenseful Page Turner But A Little Lengthy
Review: The Picture of Dorian Gray was a hard novel to get into. But once the plot of the story got underway it transfolded into a page turning, mind questioning story. Wilde tells us the story of a beautiful man who wishes that his soul would forever be part of his self portrait, and that he will forever stay youthful. Little to say, his wish comes true. Though there were many parts of the story that seemed to be described in quite a bit of unwanted detail, they almost give the novel a sense of philosophy. This compliments the many complicated philosophical views of Lord Henry, one of the main characters in the work. As the story progressed I found myself being pulled into the plot. When Dorian fell in love with Sibyl Vane I anticipated each turn of events that followed. Since we know about Dorian Gray's wish, each chapter teases us as to what will happen to him. Throughout the rest of his life, Dorian involuntarily causes accidents and grief to others. From Sibyl's death to the suicide of Alan Campbell, things always turn tragic for the ones in his life. It is inevitable that Dorian will meet his own death by the time the novel finishes. The conclusion to the story couldn't have been done better. The way that Wilde closes the life of Dorian Gray is perfectly written, and paints a perfect "portrait" in our minds as well.
Rating: 
Summary: Quite riveting
Review: The Picture of Dorian Gray is a masterpiece of English literature from the 1800's. It's easy to see why the book aroused so much controversy when it was released, and why it had an integral role in Wilde's subsequent imprisonment: the moral dilemna the book presents is disturbing even today. Wilde was truly a great writer; it's obvious from reading this book. Not only was his wit top-notch as is often ackwnoledged, but his prose is very smooth and polished, very refined. Wilde's attitudes towards art are well-known - indeed, he says in the book's introduction that "all art is quite useless" - but it seems obvious now that he was a natural talent. I hesitate to say things like He was meant to be a writer, but it certainly seems true of Wilde. This is one of the books that shakes our moral foundations. Wilde's high-class lifestyle is well-documented - it seems his surname was utterly appropriate - and one can definitely see where the plot and perhaps some of the details of this book came from his own experience. Undoubtedly, the main premise of the novel - a man selling his soul for eternal youth - most likely sprung from a desire that Wilde himself expressed. Perhaps he was having doubts about his hedonistic lifestyle even when this book was written, several years before his imprisonment. One can conjecture all one wants, but the fact remains that this book is a marvelous piece of work. The wonderful, polished prose is a joy to read - with aphorisms abound - and I, for one, see it as a deep regret that this was the only novel Wilde ever wrote. We missed out on a lot of great literature, especially with the general disdain the plays are now looked upon with in our society. Alas, read this masterpiece, and you will miss out less.
Rating:
Summary: A Chilling Read
Review: "It is the spectator, and not life, that art really mirrors" - Oscar Wilde "The Picture of Dorian Gray" is an excellent novel about the degradation of the human soul. The novel focuses around the handsome Dorian Gray and his interactions with the artist Basil Hallward, who paints his portrait and Lord Henry, who becomes the corrupting influence on Dorian's soul and Dorian's iinteractions with the British aristocracy. Dorian is compared to Narcissus, who was so obsessed with his own beauty, that it swallowed him whole. Dorian seals his fate with one wish; upon viewing his portrait, he wonders if it would be possible for his portrait to show the signs of aging, in exchange for his mortal beauty. Throughout the novel, we see Dorian's decent into total self - absorbtion and evil all of which culminates in an ending that is predictable but still entertaining none the less. Just a quick side note, there is some great social commentary running throughout "The Picture of Dorian Gray," specifically Wilde's commentary on the stiff, British aristocracy of the late 19th century, absurd views regarding women, who are painted by Gray as blubbering idiots (a sign of the times) and last but not least, the underlying homosexual undertones present between Dorian, Basil and Lord Henry are fascinating to deconstruct. "The Picture of Dorian Gray" was my first introduction to Oscar Wilde and after reading the novel, I was hooked. I would like to return to the quote above, about art mirroring the soul of the spectator, after reading this novel, you will have a sense of how trully frightening that notion is.
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