Just Finished Reading: The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde (FP: 1891) [349pp] 

Beautiful. It was the only word Lord Henry Wotton could use to describe Dorian Gray. He was both entranced and saddened by it. He knew that both youth and beauty, so prized, so precious and so sought after were also ephemeral. They passed almost before they were recognised for what they are: priceless. Watching the talented artist Basil Hallward paint his masterpiece, his portrait of Dorian Gray, Lord Wotton could only imagine how the real Dorian would age and yet his portrait remain untouched by time and experience. Dorian was equally struck by the juxtaposition of eternal art and ephemeral life himself and wished with all of his soul that their positions be reversed.... 

Obviously, I’ve been aware of this classic novel for as long as I can remember. It’s hard be unaware of a novel that’s been adapted for the movie screen 11 times since 1910 plus the countless TV adaptations and interpretations. So, I thought it was about high time that I finally read the book which had been sitting in a pile of classic texts in my house for several decades at least. It was, as you might imagine, a strange one. 

My first impression was that it was going to be a long, slow read as nothing much happened for the first 50+ pages. Back in my callow youth I might have DNF’d it at that point. Today, being slightly more mature, I soldiered on – not that it took a great deal of effort to keep turning pages. Part of the reason is that the entire book is *heavily* sprinkled with the authors witticisms – and if there’s one thing that Wilde has in SPADES is wit. I found myself more than once laughing very loudly at a comment or aside – mostly from Lord Wotton who was, no doubt, a stand-in for the author himself. Mostly the biting commentary was at the expense of Victorian society, morality or hypocrisy but a fair few were just simply misogynistic. The book also dripped with homo-eroticism from the outset. Although there was nothing explicit in the text you really didn’t have to read very much between the lines to know what Wotton was thinking/feeling about Dorian or what might have been going on between them. Apparently earlier versions of the text were ‘edited’ to tone down the homo-erotic nature of the book but this was clearly the unabridged version. If I didn’t already know that Wilde was gay before reading his novel, I’d certainly have no doubt now. 

Although ‘billed’ as a horror classic, there’s very little here that would disturb a modern reader. It’s definitely creepy at times – especially as the painting begins to change over the years – but nothing that will keep anyone but the most sensitive soul awake at night. After the rather slow start it did turn out to be an interesting read on several levels – not least the philosophical one – and I actually ended up quite enjoying it. I’ve been a fan of Wilde’s aphorisms for some years now and recognised more than a few in the text. Overall, I was impressed by the style, story and execution throughout and I’m looking forward to reading more from and about this most intriguing Victorian. Recommended.