Oscar Wilde's novel “The Picture of Dorian Gray”: reviews of the book, summary, main characters

general characteristics

Looking through reviews of the book “The Picture of Dorian Gray,” it is not difficult to notice that absolutely everyone emphasizes the problem of the destruction of the human soul. Oscar Wilde, the author of the novel, took it upon himself to show how disgusting and rotten a person can be, despite his unearthly appearance. Although this story may concern not only an individual. For example, the society of English aristocrats of that time. They also look very bright and exciting, although in reality they constantly weave intrigues, because of which ordinary people suffer.

But that's not the point. The main message that the author wanted to convey is the importance of internal content. Oscar Wilde clearly demonstrated how weak man is and how easily he gives in to temptation just to stroke his ego.

Reviews of the book “The Picture of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde

I would like to note that I am incredibly admired by the works of the English philosopher, esthete, writer and one of the most famous playwrights of the late Victorian period, Oscar Wilde. that the novel “ The Picture of Dorian Gray ” brought him stunning success. This is a classic, this is a masterpiece! The atmosphere of the aristocracy of the London intelligentsia is very clearly felt in the novel. The work is replete with philosophical conclusions and aphorisms, making you think about both life in general and the life of an individual person. Despite the remoteness of the events described in the novel, the author reveals very pressing problems of modern times. Dorian Gray, a young man of unearthly beauty, wanting to remain forever young and not lose his beauty, pays a very high price for this - he sells his soul. “I envy everything whose beauty is immortal. I envy this portrait you painted of me. Why will he keep everything that I am destined to lose? Every moment that passes takes something away from me and gives it to him. Oh, if only it were the other way around! If only the portrait could change, but I could always remain the same as I am now!” These words turned out to be prophetic, and the portrait, painted by a talented artist who put a piece of himself and his soul into it, played a decisive role for the main character. The portrait takes upon itself all the vices and sins of its owner: vanity, crimes, betrayal and pride of the depicted young man leave their mark on the portrait, while leaving the beauty, purity and innocence of Dorian’s appearance intact. Subsequently, the portrait became a terrible nightmare and a shame for its owner, because it reflected his true appearance, his wretched soul. Here we can draw an analogy with secular society, which has a bright, beautiful shell, but the shell hides the dirt and abomination of reality. The novel encourages us to think about what we hide under external beauty, a socially desirable shell, and what vices lie inside. The main character had the opportunity to look into his soul and clearly see how mutilated and disfigured it was by his actions. But Dorian could not win this fight with himself... you cannot kill your conscience with impunity. Only that person has true beauty who is beautiful in soul; there is no external beauty without internal fullness. I recommend everyone to read this delightful novel, a masterpiece of not only English but also world literature.

Wish

Below is a summary of The Picture of Dorian Gray. It all starts with the introduction of the main characters. The painter Basil Hallward and Lord Henry Wotton, also known as the “Prince of Paradox,” are old friends. One day, when the artist was working on yet another portrait, Lord Henry came to his studio. Hallward was very excited about his new work and told an old friend about his new sitter - the incredibly handsome young man Dorian Gray.

History of creation

The characterization of the image of Dorian Gray will not be complete without an almost mystical backstory of the creation of both the main character and the novel.

Oscar Wilde was an original creator of his works and heroes. All his images did not appear out of nowhere, but were created by life itself. This is what happened with his only published novel, the history of the conception of which is no less interesting than the work itself.

The writer was a friend of the then famous London artist Basil Ward. One day, while spending time having pleasant conversations in his workshop, the writer saw a very handsome young man. Struck by the beauty of the sitter, the writer made a whole sad speech about how inexorable time is, which will soon leave its mark on the young man’s beautiful face. To this, the artist half-jokingly said that he would paint a portrait of a boy every year so that the portraits would “grow old” instead.

First love

After that incident, Lord Henry and Dorian Gray began to communicate well. It was the lord who showed the young guy all the delights of high life. Henry Wotton insisted that a person should independently find something beautiful, and not rely on the trends of modern art. Under the guidance of Lord Henry, Dorian Gray turns into a real London dandy, in whose mansion you can find many valuable works of art.

Meanwhile, by chance, Dorian Gray meets the young actress Sibyl Vane and falls in love with her.

First wrinkle

Next, one of the key events of the novel “The Picture of Dorian Gray” occurs. It is difficult to convey all the important points in a short summary, but even this way you can get the main meaning. Sibylla has a difficult fate. She lives almost from hand to mouth and plays in a cheap theater. Dorian Gray appears to her as a real prince who will lift her out of poverty. And when he announces his engagement, the girl is simply delighted. That evening she is forced to play Juliet in the play, but it seems absurd to her to play being in love when she is already in love. Sybil does her job very poorly, the performance ends in complete failure. Dorian is disappointed in his beloved, which he immediately informs her about. The girl, who believed that she would finally begin to live a normal life, cannot bear it and commits suicide.

It is worth noting that Dorian himself did not intend to break off their relationship. After a night walk, he decides to write a conciliatory letter of apology to his beloved, but finds out that it is too late. Lord Henry tells the young man that he needs to forget about this incident and promises to introduce him to a charming lady. To Basil's surprise, Dorian agrees and only the first, hard wrinkle appears in the portrait image.

Breaking Bad

In reviews of the book “The Picture of Dorian Gray” it is often mentioned that after the young man saw the first changes in the portrait, he went, as they say, into all seriousness. Although in fact the reason was the book that Lord Henry recommended. It was written about a man who wanted to experience all the extremes of human life.

Dorian is passionate about this idea; he has long been bored with exquisite things and social life. He begins to spend time in opium dens and dirty dens. He fell in love with different women dozens of times, but he never really loved. A handsome golden-haired man and a soulless seducer. This is exactly what he has become over the past 20 years, without aging a day.

Heroes

In the novel “The Picture of Dorian Gray,” there are only seven heroes who take part in the development of the plot:

Lord Henry Wotton is Dorian Gray's patron, a hedonist, an esthete and a cynic who tells Dorian that he needs to enjoy life to the fullest. However, he does not warn about the consequences (the real Mephistopheles in the flesh).
Basil Hallward is an artist who was inspired by Dorian Gray to create a new work. He was the only one who saw in the young man not only external beauty, but also the inner purity that was characteristic of him at the very beginning.
Sibyl Vane is a young, beautiful and very talented actress. She was the only one who could resist Lord Henry's words.
Dorian Gray is the main character. The young man who sold his soul and conscience for the opportunity to be forever young.
James Vane - sailor, brother of Sibyl.
Victoria Wotton is the wife of Lord Henry.
Alan Campbell is a chemist who helped Dorian dissolve Basil's body in reagents.

"The Picture of Dorian Gray" main characters

The Picture of Dorian Gray is Oscar Wilde's only published novel.

"The Picture of Dorian Gray" characters of the novel

Dorian Gray
is a young man endowed with incredible beauty. Falling under the influence of the ideas of new hedonism preached by Lord Henry, he devotes his life to the thirst for pleasure and vice. This is a dual figure. He combines a subtle esthete and even a romantic and a vicious, ruthless criminal and libertine. These two opposite sides of his character are in constant struggle with each other. This duality of the hero is characteristic of many Gothic novels.
Basil Hallward
is the artist who painted the portrait of Dorian Gray. He is distinguished from other heroes by his extreme affection for Dorian Gray, in whom he sees the ideal of beauty and humanity. In other words, he is Dorian Gray's failed guardian angel.

Lord Henry
is an aristocrat, a preacher of the ideas of new hedonism, the “Prince of Paradoxes.” His paradoxical, contradictory thinking is imbued with criticism of the entire Victorian English society. He is a kind of Mephistopheles for Dorian Gray.
Sibyl Vane
is an actress, one of the most amazing characters in the novel. Before meeting Dorian, she lived in her own fictional world, the world of theater, and was a talented actress. Love showed her all the artificiality of her world, where she did not live, but only played. With love, the talent in her soul will disappear, as she tries to break out of the world of illusions into the real world. But this is precisely what leads to her death.
James Vane
- Sibyl's brother, a sailor. A man of military bearing, who practically lost the meaning of life after Sybil’s suicide. Finds peace in the desire for revenge.

The image of Dorian Gray in the novel goes through certain stages of development. At first the sitter is influenced by Lord Henry's ideas, but makes attempts to resist them. The turning point in the development of the image is the death of Sibyl Vane, who, in the opinion of Dorian Gray, alone could resist the tempting conversations of the lord. After her death, Dorian Gray becomes a conscious conductor of Lord Henry's ideas, the implementation of his philosophy. He spreads these ideas to those around him, poisoning a certain part of the youth, and he has strong evidence on his side - his beauty. No one believes that he leads an immoral lifestyle; they trust him because his face is clean and calm, and his eyes radiate a gentle shine. By poisoning those around him with the ideas of Lord Henry, Dorian Gray cripples the lives of many.

As the artist Basil Hallward , there are only two important moments in human history. The first is the appearance in art of new means of depicting form, the second is the appearance of a new image in it. Basil Hallward created a portrait of his second Dorian Gray, a complete work of art. From now on, the portrait and the sitter will become inseparable. At first Dorian Gray does not notice his beauty, then Lord Henry appears. His words contain a hymn to youth and beauty and a warning that it will pass. When Dorian looks at his completed portrait, envy of the portrait (that is, of the image itself) awakens in him, because its beauty is immortal, and he expresses the idea that it is not he who ages, but his portrait. Dorian's thought materializes. There is a deterioration in form and content. The portrait becomes the personification of the soul of the main character, himself, and Dorian always remains beautiful and the same, like a portrait. All the ruins of the hero’s soul, all the mysterious thoughts and ugly desires, all the criminal acts are reflected in the portrait. He strives to hide the portrait, to change it, but you cannot hide from yourself. After all, the portrait and the sitter change places. The portrait becomes content, internal, and Dorian is just a form, a shell. This correlation is also interesting among other heroes of the novel.

For Lord Henry, Dorian Gray becomes his soul, essence, embodiment of ideas, and he himself remains only a form, an outer shell, for Dorian Gray his real “I” is embodied in his portrait, and he himself is only a humanized image. On the other hand, for Basil Hallward, the portrait becomes both content and form, which makes his cherished dream come true. In Sibyl, Dorian Gray loves only the external, the form (the images of various heroines she created) and does not notice the inner present, Sibyl herself. The characters seem to be divided into two camps: people who create art (“artists”) - Sybil Vane, Basil Hallward; and people who perceive, think about art (“critics”) - Lord Henry; Dorian Gray. An artist, according to the author, is someone who creates beauty. A critic is someone who is capable of conveying his impression of beauty in a new form or using new means. Perhaps that is why “artists” value friendship and love more highly than art, while “critics” are unable to look beyond the shell, discard real feelings and are satisfied with what they see, theatrical ones.

Reviews of the novel

Based on reviews of the book The Picture of Dorian Gray, we can say that the novel turned out to be complex. Many readers noted the fact that the book contains many descriptions and discussions that they partially missed while reading. But when it came to the moment where the hero saw the first changes in the portrait, it became much more interesting to read.

But no matter how the reviews of the book “The Picture of Dorian Gray” begin, they all end with the words: “This novel is a real masterpiece.”

Dorian Gray characterization of the hero

Dorian Gray is the main character in Oscar Wilde's novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. Dorian is a young aristocrat, a handsome young man who, like Faust, entered into a deal with the devil in order to maintain freshness, youth and beauty, while age, vice and crime leave their mark on the portrait made by Dorian's friend, the artist Basil Hallward.

Dorian Gray was amazingly handsome. But external and internal beauty are different things. Unfortunately, Dorian was only beautiful in appearance. Or maybe he was too weak spiritually, did not have his own point of view on life and easily accepted the motto of Lord Henry’s life - beauty and pleasure, that is, complete selfishness. Dorian loves only himself and his beauty. But everyone who encounters him dies. Sybil Vane, who selflessly loved Dorian, committed suicide. All those who did not want to see a deity in the beauty of Dorian Gray and sought to judge his actions from the standpoint of public morality died. But Gray flouted moral laws. People thought that such a beautiful person could not be vicious. Even fate gave him a magnificent gift. Amazing magic happened. Dorian Gray's wish came true, and his beauty did not fade over the years. And only the portrait depicted everything that happened to Dorian’s soul.

How could Dorian use his only advantage - beauty - so badly? All the vices of a depraved nature clearly appeared in the portrait. But fate still gave him a chance to regain his human appearance. The artist Basil Hallward tried to reason with Dorian until the last minute, and received a knife in the back for this. Gray angrily blames the artist for all his misfortunes; the rage that gripped him finds a way out in murder. If he had at least once looked into the Bible, and indeed, if he had had his own opinion, he would have known that sooner or later one has to pay for all sins. Everyone gets what they deserve. Dorian deserved to die. So silly. If I were beautiful, I would give beauty to people by doing only good.

At the beginning of my essay, I talked about Wilde’s philosophy, about his attempt to prove that art is stronger than life. What happened to Dorian Gray? What killed him - art? Of course not. The portrait was a reflection of Dorian's soul. He killed himself with his mediocre life. A portrait is a symbol of art, and it cannot be indifferent to life. By serving only ourselves, our own whims, we kill the person within us, and the novel serves as another warning against bitter mistakes.

A few final quotes

And yet it remains popular, this novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray. Quotes from his pages are used by both adults and teenagers. For example, here are a few phrases:

“If you love everyone, then everyone is equally indifferent to you” (Lord Henry).
“It’s good if friendship begins and ends with laughter” (Lord Henry).
“Everyone lives as he knows, and pays for it himself” (Dorian Gray).
“If I love someone, I don’t tell anyone that person’s name. It’s like giving others a piece of someone you care about” (Basil).
“You don’t meet your ideal twice. And not everyone can find it once” (Basil).
“In everyone there is both hell and heaven” (Dorian Gray).

You can endlessly find more and more new quotes in The Picture of Dorian Gray. But even if you memorize the novel, it will be impossible to understand its full depth. This is a book about the human soul, and not everyone can understand it.