The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde: Book Review

Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray is the perfect tale of human vanity, pride and destruction. There’s no doubt in my wind why it is a classic piece of literature; it definitely deserves such a respected position in the literary world. Wilde’s writing style is beautiful and whimsical. There are so many wonderful sentence in the novel that are beyond original and highly creative. The language is also reminiscent of other literature of the era, for example the properness of dialogue. Sometimes that style annoys me, but it transported me to another world, something that I think is the greatest power of literature and stories.

I already knew the story of The Picture of Dorian Gray having watched a film adaptation years ago. So I knew what would happen and I knew how Dorian’s sin and self-destruction would come to its head. Even though I knew the story, the novel still surprised me. There are so many great moments and so many ideas explored in the novel that are complex insights into humanity. Of course, there were times I was slightly bored by the novel, as in the passages that detailed material things such as jewels and fabrics, such things that are no interest to me. But, mostly, this novel fascinated me. Like Dorian points out in the novel, that doesn’t mean necessarily that I liked it, rather that I can see its brilliance as a piece of literature well-worth analysing and enjoying for its pure enticement of the mind.