tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13774780.post114117501211804016..comments2023-10-22T07:27:42.505-04:00Comments on Kate's Book Blog: Wildly Disappointed by The Picture of Dorian GrayKate S.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16897618197257393697noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13774780.post-13973135771553722942008-08-21T16:31:00.000-04:002008-08-21T16:31:00.000-04:00yes, i believe Lord Henry's witty aphorisms do ten...yes, i believe Lord Henry's witty aphorisms do tend to get much, and i do not think he believes them himself. i feel he is a sad man, yearning for any form of attention. sigh. just thought i would post up my little commentLenitohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07002009960599146622noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13774780.post-1142017361846970082006-03-10T14:02:00.000-05:002006-03-10T14:02:00.000-05:00i feel the same way about everything of wilde's i'...i feel the same way about everything of wilde's i've ever read, with one exception: <I>de profundis</I>.<BR/><BR/>i honor his life story, but usually find him maddening to read. clever aphorisms and inverted truisms and shallowness everyplace.<BR/><BR/><I>de profundis</I> kinda rescues the whole meaning of writing, for me. it's such a demonstration of the fact that when catastrophic things happen in your life, art can actually redeem and justify them. and in his case, he needed something like that to raise his writing to a serious level. it's a tragedy that he didn't outlive that book.<BR/><BR/>meanwhile, you know what's really wonderful? that green book dorian's always reading: "against the grain" by huysmanns. that's astounding.james chapmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14051535370315669813noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13774780.post-1141512676679528892006-03-04T17:51:00.000-05:002006-03-04T17:51:00.000-05:00The Picture of Dorian Gray is, I think, a novel fo...<I>The Picture of Dorian Gray</I> is, I think, a novel for young readers who fancy that they'd get in trouble if they were discovered reading it. <BR/><BR/>I recall it as an endless catalogue of Dorian's many beautiful possessions.R J Keefehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06925072280945666069noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13774780.post-1141406380273360412006-03-03T12:19:00.000-05:002006-03-03T12:19:00.000-05:00(with nostrils quivering) I don't remember being a...(with nostrils quivering) I don't remember being as disappointed with Dorian as you, Kate. You make some good points here though. Wilde was always difficult to appreciate because he was so facile and self conscious. Quillhill is right about it's impact at the time. It's worth a re-read with your thoughts in mind.Ricky Lee Grovehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03588565441793716202noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13774780.post-1141263528678788072006-03-01T20:38:00.000-05:002006-03-01T20:38:00.000-05:00Thanks a lot.Now I'm going to be watching people t...Thanks a lot.<BR/><BR/>Now I'm going to be watching people to see if their "finely chiselled nostrils quiver"That Girl Who Blogs Stuffhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00618163489031089264noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13774780.post-1141257581282762182006-03-01T18:59:00.000-05:002006-03-01T18:59:00.000-05:00Definitely jealousy.Definitely jealousy.Quillhillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07601080339912553168noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13774780.post-1141222804234496762006-03-01T09:20:00.000-05:002006-03-01T09:20:00.000-05:00Early on Basil suggests that Lord Henry does const...Early on Basil suggests that Lord Henry does construct a facade with his witticisms:"`I hate the way you talk about your married life, Harry,' said Basil Hallward [...] `I believe that you are really a very good husband, but that you are thoroughly ashamed of your own virtues. You are an extraordinary fellow. You never say a moral thing, and you never do a wrong thing. Your cynicism is simply a pose.'" However, given the way Lord Henry toys with Dorian's life and the lives of those around him, I'm not inclined to believe that he never does a wrong thing. And if Basil really believed that, why was he immediately concerned about Lord Henry's influence on Dorian? Was it about the danger of words again (linking to the forum discussion about whether books can be dangerous)? Was it jealousy -- fear of losing his beloved Dorian to his more entertaining friend? Or did Basil have a clearer idea of the wrongs Lord Henry was capable of than he acknowledged on the surface?Kate S.https://www.blogger.com/profile/16897618197257393697noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13774780.post-1141220937058155172006-03-01T08:48:00.000-05:002006-03-01T08:48:00.000-05:00All the witty aphorisms do wear after awhile. The...All the witty aphorisms do wear after awhile. They also keep the reader from getting any deeper into the character of Henry. I wonder about him. Does he really believe in his witticisms? Or is he just witty because it shocks and clever, shocking people are more appreciated in society than thoughtful, serious ones?Stefaniehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14943596258182968212noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13774780.post-1141181586913448092006-02-28T21:53:00.000-05:002006-02-28T21:53:00.000-05:00Quillhill,You raise an important point. I do thin...Quillhill,<BR/><BR/>You raise an important point. I do think that I'm hampered in my capacity to appreciate the novel because I'm not very familiar with the literary conventions of the time period in which it was written. I know that Wilde was taking risks with content; I don't know if he was taking risks with form. I don't know whether aspects that strike me as poor writing were in keeping with the conventions of the time, or deviations from them. The introduction to the edition that I read states that Wilde fashioned something wholly originally but "constructed it from a large array of time-honored, fashionable, or even hackneyed literary genres and devices." It would certainly help to know more about those genres and devices. Perhaps I ought to do a bit of research before I write off <I>The Picture of Dorian Gray</I>.Kate S.https://www.blogger.com/profile/16897618197257393697noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13774780.post-1141179354878520302006-02-28T21:15:00.000-05:002006-02-28T21:15:00.000-05:00I agree with your observation about the weakness o...I agree with your observation about the weakness of aphorisms spreading beyond Lord Henry.<BR/><BR/>I begin to wonder if I don't want to like it so much, like you, but unlike you, I succeed--as a reader have I brought as much to the text as the author, and thereby filled in the gaps and bumps myself? Or is this genre writing that accepts/employs certain "givens"?<BR/><BR/>You note that it seemed old to you, and I remind myself that in its day it was fairly bold and original. So I wonder, should we judge (for lack of a better word) literature by its time and place, or ours?Quillhillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07601080339912553168noreply@blogger.com