Inspired
by my enjoyment of the recent, relatively faithful, film version of
Oscar Wilde's "An Ideal Husband," I decided to finally read The Picture of Dorian Gray.
The book is Wilde's diversification from stage to novel, and
some
of the characters clearly form the basis for "An Ideal Husband."
It is also has a surprisingly moral theme, from an author was
later imprisoned for moral views rather unacceptable to Victorian
society.
The book opens with the Basil Basil raving to his
friend Lord Henry about a beautiful and pure young man who had been modeling
for him, and whose Lord Henryness of character had been a recent inspiration
of his art. Lord Henry considers that Dorian could not really be
as
perfect as Basil made him out to be. Upon meeting Dorian
during
a session with Basil and discovering that Dorian was a blank slate,
he decided to perform an experiment and attempt to corrupt Dorian.
At the same time, Basil had finished what turned out to be
his
masterpiece, a picture of Dorian Gray in his uncorrupted youthly beauty
and character. Already Lord Henry was corrupting Dorian, and
Dorian
wished with all his heart to remain forever like his portrait, which Basil had given him.
Lord Henry persuaded Dorian that hedonism, the living of
life solely for the satisfaction of oneself, seeking every new pleasure
as the only way one retain
the vivacity of life that one has as a youth. In his desire
to keep his youth unspoiled, Dorian was Lord Henry's willing pupil.
Ironically, though, we discover that while Lord Henry preaches
hedonism, he does not really live it. Dorian soon discovers
that the painting has some connection to him: as he begins to
live his life at the expense of others, the painting begins to change.
He takes on a sneer, a learing look. Dorian quickly
grows to hate the painting, and hides it in his now unused school-room
where he was taught. He begins to grow suspicious of his
servants, lest they discover the painting and uncover his secret.
Dorian is accosted into attending a Shakespeare play at a very
unpromising theatre. As expected the acting is lousy, except
for one girl, who is Dorian proclaims is a superb actress. He
falls in love with her, meets up with her several times, and goes to
see all her performances. She, too, is madly in love with
him, and they talk of marriage. Her mother and brother are
dubious of this unknown rich suitor of hers, and her brother swears
that he will take revenge on him if he hurts her. He then
leaves to serve on a ship. Dorian brings the skeptical Lord Henry
and Basil to a performance by his lover, in which she is performs
just as wretchedly as the others. Dorian promptly dumps her.
She commits suicide. Too late, Dorian realizes that
he was being a bit unfair, but when he attempts to contact her, he
learns that she is dead. Lord Henry uses the opportunity to
suggest that Dorian experience all the facets of love, seeking many
lovers and committing to none, to fully experience life.
Much of what we learn about the characters happens at dinner parties.
We find that Dorian is highly sought after in high society,
both for his charm and his good looks. As time passes, people
comment how Dorian appears unchanged through the years. Black
rumors begin to be spread, that Dorian corrupts young people, and some
of his former friends now avoid his company. Yet, these
remain unsubstantiated rumors. Lord Henry remains unchanged in his
character: preaching witty hedonism yet never really living
it out. Of Basil we hear little, save that he begins to
have concerns about Dorian.
Just before Basil leaves for France to exhibit his paintings, he
stops to see Dorian and to clear up the black rumors about him, or if
the rumors are true, to dissuade Dorian from pursuing that path.
Dorian refuses to be persuaded, and takes Basil to see his
painting. Dorian is now a tyrannical-looking man in the
painting, with his body bearing the effect that his hedonism would have
had on his real body. Basil is naturally shocked.
Then Dorian suddenly becomes ashamed that Basil knows his
secret and murders him to prevent the secret from getting out.
Dorian has now accumulated a number of worries. He has a
death to cover up, and the brother of his first lover returns and hunts
him down. He finds Dorian in the opium part of town, but
Dorian persuades him that he could not possibly be the man he is
looking for, pointing to his unspoiled physical youthful perfection as
proof that he is too young to be the man. The brother
believes him, but quickly finds out from one of the opium parlour
operators that, while his perfect youth belies an evil character,
whereupon he attempts to find Dorian again and revenge himself.
He is accidentally shot during a hunting party and dies.
Dorian eventually cannot take the hiding, and during one of his
periodic viewings of the changing painting of his real self, he
attempts to destroy the painting. Instead of destroying the
painting, he breaks the connection that binds him to the painting, and
the knife ends up in his heart instead. The painting reverts
to its original form, and the body of Dorian Gray is changed into what
it really was all along.
After experience the fast wit and intricate plot of "An Ideal Husband,"
I was rather surprised by the pace of The Picture of Dorian Gray.
Most of the book is conversations between the three main
characters, with very little happening in the way of plot for about
two-thirds of the book. What plot there is is largely
introspective and uncompelling. With the novel being rather
slow, abstract, and moralizing, I found The Picture of Dorian Gray
disappointing. The bright point is the interaction between
Dorian and the painting, but that is not enough to save the book.
Fortunately, Oscar Wilde took the good parts of the book
(namely the character Lord Henry and the interaction between him and Basil) and improved them in "An Ideal Husband."
Review: 5
There is largely no plot,
so the book feels like it is going nowhere for a large portion.
Dorian changes as a character, but in a prescribed a
predictable fashion. Lord Henry receives some of the fruits of his
ideology, but neither he nor Basil change as characters.
Copyright © 2009 by Geoffrey Prewett