The Picture of Dorian Gray

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
on October 13, 1993
Genres: Classics, Fiction, Psychological, Suspense, Thrillers
Pages: 176

I was on the hunt for a classic horror novel to add to my 2021 spooky reading lineup. I couldn’t think of a better choice than Oscar Wilde’s homoerotic “The Picture of Dorian Gray”. Oscar Wilde is a historical figure of interest for me. He was bold enough to live openly as a gay man in the 19th century, resulting in imprisonment. After references to Dorian Gray in contemporary media, such as Netflix’s Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, I wanted to read the original work. I knew the general premise of the novel, a young attractive man never ages, while a supernatural painting of him does. I was not expecting the story to become a critique on the purpose of art.

When the story begins, readers are introduced to Dorian Gray, a young attractive man, and two older gentlemen Basil Hallward and Lord Henry Wotton.  Basil and Lord Henry are obsessed with Dorian because of his youth and beauty.  Dorian is the muse for Basil’s paintings and is the subject of his best work.  Upon seeing Basil’s painting of him Dorian becomes aware that he will one day age and lose his beauty.  He makes a fateful wish, saying “If it were only the other way!  If it were I who was to be always young, and the picture that was to grow old!  For that—I would give everything! Yes, there is nothing in the whole world I would not give! I would give my soul for that!” (Wilde 19).  This ends up being the classic scenario of be careful what you wish for. Dorian never ages, but the painting, which he hides away from others does. Under Lord Henry’s influence Dorian becomes obsessed with living a beautiful, happy life at any cost. With each immoral act he commits the portrait of Dorian grows hideous, while real Dorian remains unchanged.

A Picture of Dorian Gray is very gay (ha! A rhyme).  Basil and Lord Henry’s competition for the attention of the young, attractive Dorian feels way more than friendship.  Dorian originally wrote a more homoerotic version of the story that was “toned” down before publication.  I’d love to read the bits deemed too gay that had to be deleted.  Wilde makes his support for the movement of aestheticism clear in the preface.  He believes art should have no morals.  Art is meant to stand alone as an aesthetically pleasing work.  This contrasts the Victorian style where stories were crafted to teach readers moral lessons (Charles Dickens was an example of this).  I think both philosophies place too many limitations on what art is. However, I believe this novel ironically contradicts Wilde’s aesthetic philosophy because the story ends with a moral message.  Dorian’s pursuit of an aesthetic life corrupts him and lead to tragedy at the novel’s conclusion.  Wilde fails to write this story without including a moral.

A Picture of Dorian Gray was a challenging book to read.  The language from Wilde’s time is difficult to understand, resulting in a slower reading pace.  Also, there were sections in the book that referenced many people and events that were not familiar to me.  Chapter XI is an entire section made up of these references.  The chapter reads as a long list of aesthetic objects Dorian acquires to surround himself with beautiful things.  Reading this chapter was a struggle for me and I found myself skimming most of it.

I am impressed with The Picture of Dorian Gray.  I enjoyed reading a novel from the 19th century with so many gay references.  While the language was challenging to read the experience made it well worth the effort. Wilde’s philosophy of aestheticism was interesting and led me to reflect on my own artistic philosophy.  I recommend picking up Dorian Gray for a short, spooky read.  And don’t feel guilty skimming through the sluggish parts!

I wanted to end with a fascinating quote from Oscar Wilde that I am still processing.  “Basil Hallward is what I think I am; Lord Henry what the world thinks of me; Dorian what I would like to be—in other ages, perhaps.”

Mexican Gothic

Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Published by Random House Publishing Group on June 30, 2020
Genres: Latinx, Fantasy, Fiction, Gothic, Historical, Horror
Pages: 320
three-half-stars

Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic is a buzzy horror novel that I’ve seen featured all over Booktube and Bookstagram.  Readers looking for a horror novel with an intelligent and assertive female protagonist should consider adding this to their Halloween reading lineup.  Noemi Taboada receives a concerning letter from her cousin Catalina.  Catalina has recently married Virgil Doyle, an Englishman, and moved into their family home called High Place located in the mountains near El Triunfo, Mexico.  The Virgil family established themselves at High Place after operating a nearby silver mine.  In the letter Catalina claims that Virgil is trying to poison her.  Noemi’s father sends her to High Place to check in on her cousin.  While at High Place Noemi is allowed little contact with her cousin, who is supposedly suffering from consumption.  The house is very creepy and depressing.  Most of the Virgil family is less than welcoming.  The Virgil family is led by the patriarch Florence Doyle who spends most of his time hidden away in his private wing.  The only friend Noemi makes is Virgil’s brother Francis.  The novel follows Noemi solving the mystery of the Doyle family and uncovering the secrets within High Place.

I really enjoyed the character of Noemi, who is an intelligent and strong female protagonist.  Too often in horror novels the main characters are either too helpless or too naive about the peril they’re in.  There was excellent body horror in the later portions of the book.  Some gnarly descriptions of a particular character’s body in the later portions of the book were wonderfully repulsive.  There are also some dark dream sequences that I enjoyed.  The book has themes of colonialism.  The Doyle family has set up their home in Mexico to run a mine and Florence is an avid supporter of racial eugenic theories.  High House is almost a character itself in the novel.  The descriptions of the home and its impact on the mood and characters is strong and reminiscent of gothic classics (major Fall of the House of Usher vibes).

My biggest critique with the novel is how the big twist is handled.  I saw the answer to the main mystery from a mile away and assumed there would be another surprise layer to the story.  Unfortunately, it played out exactly as I predicted.  Moreno-Garcia leaves too many obvious hints.  I expect most readers will figure out what is going on before they even make it halfway through the novel.  For me horror novels where the plot centers around a mystery need to deliver an unexpected answer.  Authors need to balance having the mystery be solvable while also making the mystery clever enough that most readers will be surprised when they discover the answer.

Mexican Gothic did not wow me as much as I expected it to.  There are great aspects to the novel, but the too easy to solve mystery really soured my opinion.  However, if you want a Halloween book with a Latinx protagonist or a recent release with gothic elements this may be worth the read.  Hopefully the Hulu adaptation of Mexican Gothic will do a better job of making the story’s twist less obvious.

three-half-stars