English Blog

The Picture Of Dorian Grey.
[*moderate spoiler alert*]
(Below: Ben Barnes as the 2009 version of Dorian Gray.)

Source 

To attempt to articulate the expectations I had set out for this novel is difficult. It is probably summarised well by the fact that The Guardian ranked it no.34 on it's list of best novels of all time. It may be slightly over-patriotic of me but considering it was also the only book by an Irish author on that list I was eager to affirm that from a literary aspect Ireland was capable of producing a novel of such impeccable acclaim.

We first entered the book from the perspective of the character who seems to retain a socially accepted moral code of being kind. Basil is an artist and is the character that the reader relates to the most. We are struck by his vulnerability and how impressionable he is when he delves into a conversation with Lord Henry whom he considers a close friend. Here he reveals his current strange obsession with a young man he has been painting. The novel then tells a grotesque and unfortunate tale of a young person corrupted by their own beauty after the realisation that youth and beauty are the only things worth having. We see how the author believes that the mind is corrupted by the sense of utter freedom and immorality and learn about the way in which the aforementioned beauty is used to exploit other characters.
The main aspects of this novel that I enjoyed were: the character development, it's investigation into the impact of desire and the abstract style of writing.
Character development in this novel is more intense than in any other I have read. It is most obvious in the protagonist Dorian. When we meet him he his a nineteen year old who had just inherited from his grandfathers death. We learn about how he experienced a lonely and isolated childhood and yet we are shown a polite warmth within his actions and his opinions. When the philosophies of Lord Henry are presented to Dorian he begins to morph into a more obsessive and stern character and by the end of the novel we are left with a pitiful and cold character. This is unique novel due to the fact that the most dramatic change imaginable occur in less than 200 pages.
This novel was extremely controversial when published in Victorian Britain and it probably lead to his future prosecution for 'gross indecency' as the public opinion of Wilde dwindled after publication and the novel had to undergo extreme censorship. The book even when read today is somewhat striking in this regard. We are given Wilde's perspective into human desire and his ideas are far from traditional even by modern standards. This also made the book interesting as it gave it an immense sense of fearlessness and power and it gave the reader freedom to explore the impact that the writings of the allude to.
It is strange for me to enjoy the style of a book with a clear lack of descriptive passages, but in this case I think it is extremely effective. The book is less of a novel and more of a constructed argument applied to a model. The agenda of the tale is clear and the writer at no point adds to the story line or atmosphere unless it is necessary.
I imagine that I would give this book a four-star rating. I would recommend it to people who are as fond of essays as they are of colourful stories. As Wilde's only novel it made me a fan of his- I believe that it did live up to my high expectations.

Great Expectations

Great Expectations is credited as being a classic piece of literature, thus my expectations were-'Great'.

Currently I have only endeavored as far as Chapter 7, because the book has failed to draw me in completely the way most books I read do. So far, so good.

  The first chapter is where we meet the protagonist, a very vulnerable and resented little boy named Pip. We meet him at the graveyard in which his parents are buried. Where he is confronted by a frightening man who forces Pip to steal food from his older sister/guardian's pantry. Pip returns home to his violent older sister and her timid and obedient husband 'Joe'.

Source:www.victorianweb.org

 It is highlighted how much Pip is resented as a human when Christmas dinner is hosted at the house. All of the guests speak openly about what an inconvenience Pip is to his older sister who rared him 'by hand'. They all speak of how unappreciative Pip is and speak of how kind his sister is to have not thrown him out onto the street after he was orphaned... Which is quite an unpleasant thought that Pip is completely accustomed to.
We were then introduced to Estella and her creepy mother: Miss Havisham. Something about the scene was extremely uncomfortable to imagine. There was a sense of childishness about Miss Havisham and about how she commands Pip to play cards against Estella. Estella holds a cruel yet matured view of the events in the scene, she is the one who lets Pip into the house, and she criticizes Pip's social status in a way expected of adults in the world of the novel even though she is only a young girl, while an adult Miss Havisham notes the lack of importance of Pip's class as a child of the same period would.

Helena Bonham-Carter as Miss Havisham.
Source:missbeautifullydepressed.wordpress.com 

I am optimistic going forward into the novel although it has taken a large amount of time for me to take an interest in it. I hope that the plot line will draw me in further, as the characters are beginning to do.