The Picture of Dorian Gray and Other Works by Oscar Wilde

   This is not my kind of book. It is the story of the corruption of a young man just to see if it can be done. Definitely a Victorian story it comes off to me as very preachy with the moral redemption of the story coming at the end of a downward spiral. I started it on my own at the beginning of summer break and laid it aside after about half of it. It was required reading for an English class the next semester so I had to finish it. The corruption was complete and the redemption sacrificial.

   Dorian Gray, an extremely naive good looking young man, sits for a portrait at the request of his new friend Basil Howard. In the process of painting Dorian Basil falls in 'love' with Dorian's naive, innocent good looks. Basil wants to keep him always the same as an inspiration to art. But Lord Henry, third in the triangle, finds it much more interesting to tempt Dorian with all the pleasures of the senses that life offers just to see how far Dorian will go and how much it will change him. Doran is fascinated with the temptations. Once Basil's portrait is finished and Dorian actually sees his reflection in it he is amazed at his own beauty and immediately regrets that he will one day grow old and lose his beauty. At that moment he makes a fervent wish that his portrait would grow old and he himself would enjoy youth and good looks forever. It is not until his first major fall into Lord Henry's offered temptations that he realizes his wish has come true. From that moment on he spends his life satisfying all of the lusts and temptations of the senses that life can offer, all the while seeing the effects on the face of his portrait and not in his mirror. Good looks and youth open many doors to the world for him. 'No consequences" changes Dorian Gray's spirit and soul as the reader watches him spiral downward - until he hits bottom.

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