The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde | Book Review

“Every portrait that is painted with feeling is a portrait of the artist, not of the sitter.”

If you're looking for a book that's equal parts gorgeous, creepy, and thought-provoking, The Picture of Dorian Gray is your go-to. Oscar Wilde’s 1890 novel about a guy who stays young while his portrait gets uglier (thanks to his terrible life choices) is like the Victorian version of a dark Instagram filter, except way more brutal. Packed with Wilde’s iconic one-liners and a plot that’s basically "be careful what you wish for" on steroids, this Gothic classic is about how far people will go to avoid facing the consequences of their actions. Over a century later, it still slaps because, let’s be real, society’s obsession with staying young and looking perfect hasn’t changed much. 

(Kalau kamu nyari buku yang estetik, ngeri, tapi bikin mikir, The Picture of Dorian Gray itu jawabannya. Novel karya Oscar Wilde tahun 1890 ini menceritakan tentang cowok ganteng yang tetap muda sementara potret dirinya makin jelek (gara-gara keputusan hidupnya yang wow) kayak filter Instagram gelap ala era Victoria, tapi jauh lebih sadis. Isinya quote-quote sakti dari Oscar Wilde dan alur cerita yang intinya "hati-hati sama harapan kamu", tapi levelnya ekstrem. Buku gothic ini nunjukin sejauh mana orang bakal melakukan apa aja biar enggak tanggung jawab atas perbuatannya. Sudah lebih dari 100 tahun, tapi buku ini masih relevan soalnya (jujur aja) obsesi masyarakat sama tampilan muda dan sempurna itu gak berubah banyak, kan?)

TL;DR: Hot guy makes a demonic TikTok filter deal (portrait ages instead of him), becomes a toxic king, and learns the hard way that you can’t outrun the ick. Wilde’s iconic one-liners + Gothic drama = a book that’s way more thrilling than your lit class makes it sound.

⚠️ WARNINGS

• May cause existential dread about society’s beauty standards

• Lord Henry’s quotes sound deep but are actually red flags—don’t @ me

• Victorian furniture descriptions might make you zone out (speed-read those bits)

• Dorian’s downfall is brutal—avoid if you can’t handle messy protagonists

• Sybil Vane’s treatment will make you yell at the book (Wilde, we need to talk)

✅ PERFECT FOR YOU IF

• You love dark academia vibes but with more murder

• You’ve ever debated whether influencers are philosophers or just chaotic

• You want a classic that actually feels relevant (vanity, peer pressure, etc.)

• You’re into psychological horror that’s more "mind games" than jump scares

🚫 AVOID IF

• You need likable characters (everyone’s flawed here)

• You hate open-ended morals (Wilde won’t tell you who’s right)

• You can’t handle no trigger warnings (drugs, suicide, toxic relationships)

• You prefer fast plots (those 19th-century decor tangents...)

BOOK REVIEW 

You might think that a lot of classics feel stuffy and outdated these days. But The Picture of Dorian Gray? This book slaps harder than ever. Oscar Wilde's wild ride about a gorgeous dude who trades his soul for eternal youth could've been written yesterday. Sure, it's set in the 1800s, but its take on vanity, peer pressure, and moral decay feels way more relevant in our Instagram-filtered world.

Dorian Gray is a ridiculously handsome guy who gets his portrait painted. The we meet Lord Henry, the ultimate bad influence who convinces Dorian that beauty and pleasure are the only things worth chasing. Next thing you know, Dorian's making that classic horror movie mistake ("I wish this painting would age instead of me!") and boom! He's got a free pass to be terrible while his portrait gets uglier. What follows is like watching a Victorian-era chain collisions in slow motion.

Fun fact: When this book first came out, people lost their minds calling it immoral. Today? It's basically the perfect mix of Gothic horror and dark comedy. We're talking drug binges, ruined relationships, and eventually murder, all while Dorian's portrait turns into something from a nightmare. His fling with actress Sybil Vane is where things start going south fast, proving that even the hottest people can be trash. The ending? Let's just say Dorian learns the hard way that you can't stab your problems away.

But here's why this book still matters: Dorian's obsession with staying young and popular is basically Victorian influencer culture. Swap fancy dinner parties for TikTok fame and it's the same story. Wilde's writing is surprisingly easy to read (for a classic), though maybe skip this one if you're under 15, it gets dark. This is not about that magic painting, but it's about how chasing perfection can destroy you, and how the worst influences often come wrapped in the prettiest packages.

This book shows how easily someone's whole personality can get warped by bad influences. When Lord Henry slips Dorian that mysterious French novel (basically the 1800s version of a toxic self-help book), it's game over. Wilde wasn't kidding when he said words have real power, we literally watch Dorian go from wide-eyed innocent to full-blown hedonist like someone falling down a Wikipedia rabbit hole of bad ideas. Scariest part? You can totally see how this happens in real life when charismatic people feed you garbage philosophies.

The character dynamics are chef's kiss perfect. On one side you've got Basil, the artist who's basically Dorian's simp, he's so obsessed with his muse that he ignores all the red flags. Then there's Lord Henry, who's like that college friend who makes bad decisions sound deep with fancy quotes. Their tug-of-war over Dorian makes you wonder: is art supposed to show truth (Basil's view) or just look pretty (Henry's take)? Wilde's answer seems to be "yes, but also no" typical queen of keeping us guessing.

What's wild is that this book refuses to give you a neat little moral. Dorian doesn't get punished just for being vain, he crashes and burns because he never deals with his own mess. That creepy portrait is basically his streak with reality, getting uglier the more he ignores it. And that ending? Iconic. The image of the fresh painting next to Dorian's gross old corpse is the ultimate "the truth will come out" moment. Wilde's basically saying you can't just aesthetic your way out of being a terrible person.

This isn't definitely some dusty old book that's only good for English class. It's actually fun to read! Sure, the rich people problems might make you roll your eyes (too many jewels to wear), but the core message about influencers being dangerous and youth culture being toxic? That's some real 2024 energy. Whether you're here for the Gothic horror, the philosophical burns, or just watching a hot mess express wreck his life, Wilde delivers. And that final lesson is chef's kiss: no matter how good your filters are, you can't airbrush your soul.

(Kamu mungkin mikir kalo buku-buku klasik itu jadul dan membosankan. Tapi gimana dengan The Picture of Dorian Gray? Nah, ini buku nendangnya masih kenceng banget sampai sekarang. Karya Oscar Wilde ini bercerita tentang cowok ganteng yang menukar jiwanya biar tetap muda abadi, dan buku ini rasanya kayak baru ditulis kemarin. Iya, settingnya zaman Victoria, tapi soal obsesi penampilan, tekanan sosial, dan kemerosotan moral? Masih relate banget di dunia kita yang dikelilingi filter Instagram.

Jadi ada Dorian Gray, cowok ganteng level dewa yang dilukis. Terus muncul Lord Henry, si bad influence ultimate yang ngasih racun, "Yang penting itu cakep dan seneng-seneng, bro!" Dorian pun ngeluarin jurus horror movie klasik: "Gue mau lukisan ini yang yang jadi tua, gue enggak!" Dan boom! Dia jadi bebas berbuat semau dia sementara lukisannya makin mirip meme "distracted boyfriend" versi horor. Lanjutannya? Kayak nonton kecelakaan berantai di era Victoria, versi slow motion yang bikin tegang!

Pas pertama terbit, buku ini bikin orang-orang histeris dan bilang ini "tidak bermoral". Sekarang? Ini perfect mix antara horor gothic dan dark comedy. Bayangin: dugem dan mabok, hubungan toxic, sampai pembunuhan, sementara lukisan Dorian berubah jadi kayak gambar creepy-pasta. Pacarnya si aktris Sybil Vane? Nah, itu titik awal semuanya runtuh. Buktinya, orang secakep apa pun bisa jadi sampah masyarakat. Endingnya? Dorian akhirnya belajar, sayangnya dengan cara yang brutal, kalau masalah enggak bisa diselesaikan menusuk lukisan dirimu sendiri.

Obsesi Dorian biar tetap muda dan populer itu basically influencer culture era Victoria. Kita bisa mengganti pesta mewah jadi TikTok fame, dan ceritanya sama aja! Gaya penulisan Oscar Wilde surprisingly enak dibaca (untuk ukuran klasik), tapi mungkin skip dulu kalo umur kamu di bawah 15 tahun, soalnya gelap banget. Intinya ini bukan cuma soal lukisan ajaib, tapi lebih ke mengejar kesempurnaan itu bisa menghancurkan diri sendiri, dan pengaruh terburuk sering datang dalam bungkus yang paling menarik.

Buku ini menunjukkan gimana gampangnya kepribadian seseorang bisa rusak karena pengaruh buruk. Pas Lord Henry ngasih Dorian buku Prancis misterius itu (yang basically kayak buku self-help toxic jaman old), semuanya langsung game over. Oscar Wilde beneran gaspol waktu bilang kata-kata punya kekuatan, karena kita langsung bisa lihat Dorian berubah dari anak polos jadi hedonis ekstrim, kayak orang yang terjebak di Wikipedia rabbit hole berisi teori ngaco. Yang paling serem? Kita bisa lihat ini terjadi di kehidupan nyata pas tokoh karismatik share filosofi sampah di akun media sosialnya.

Dinamika karakternya? Literal chef's kiss. Di satu sisi ada Basil, si seniman yang basically simp-nya Dorian. Dia sampai buta sama red flag cuma karena terobsesi sama muse-nya. Trus ada Lord Henry, tipe temen kuliah yang bikin keputusan buruk kedengeran intelek karena dibalut quote-quote fancy. Dinamika mereka yang mempengaruhi Dorian bikin kita mikir: seni tuh harus nunjukin kebenaran (kayak kepercayaan Basil) atau cuma harus indah aja (kayak pendapat Henry)? Nah Oscar Wilde ini the queen of bikin bingung dengan ngasih jawaban kayak, "Iya, tapi enggak juga".

Yang gila, buku ini enggak ngasih batasan moral yang jelas. Dorian enggak dihukum cuma karena dia narcissistic, dia hancur karena enggak pernah menyelesaikan masalahnya sendiri. Potret seram itu basically kayak streak-nya sama realita, makin jelek saat dia makin cuek. Endingnya? Iconic banget. Adegan lukisan yang kembali kinclong di sebelah mayat Dorian yang udah menua itu kayak meme "the truth will come out" versi Victoria. Oscar Wilde basically bilang, kamu enggak bisa mengandalkan aesthetic doang buat nutupin kalau kamu orang jahat.

Ini bukan buku jadul membosankan yang cuma bagus buat tugas sekolah. Ini seru beneran! Iya sih ini kayak isinya permasalahan orang kaya yang bikin geleng-geleng (terlalu banyak perhiasan, yang mulia), tapi pesan utamanya soal influencer toxic dan budaya toxic youth culture? Itu beneran vibe 2024. Mau kamu baca buat ngerasain horor gothic-nya, roasting filosofi, atau sekadar pengen lihat cowok ganteng merusak hidupnya sendiri, Oscar Wilde selalu deliver. Dan pelajaran terakhirnya? Chef's kiss: sekeren apapun filter yang kamu punya, kamu gak bisa pakai buat jiwa kamu.)

“If one doesn't talk about a thing, it has never happened. It is simply expression that gives reality to things.”

THE FAVORITES

■ Can we just appreciate how Oscar Wilde absolutely snaps in this book? His quotes aren’t just witty because they’re the kind of brutally honest zingers you’d screenshot and send to your Instagram story. Lines like "There’s only one thing worse than being talked about: not being talked about" or "Every time you ignore a bad impulse, it just festers in your brain" stick with you like a song lyric you can’t shake. Even when things get dark, Wilde’s writing is so extra and luxurious that you can’t help but stan.

■ A painting that ages instead of you? Sign me up! (Kidding, mostly.) Dorian’s Faustian deal is the ultimate "be careful what you wish for" scenario, turning what could’ve been a stuffy philosophical novel into a Gothic psychological thriller. The best part? Watching his pretty-boy facade stay flawless while his portrait gets increasingly cursed like a filter from hell. The tension between his hotness and his rotting soul? Chef’s kiss.

■ The characters are next-level. Dorian Gray: The original toxic bae. You know he’s a disaster, but you can’t look away as he spirals from sweet himbo to full-blown hedonistic nightmare. Lord Henry: That friend who’s hilarious at parties but low-key ruins your life with his deep takes. His quotes are iconic, just don’t actually listen to them. Basil Hallward: The ultimate simp. He’s so pure in his artistic obsession that his doom feels extra tragic.

■ The fact that this 1800s novel nailed influencer culture before Instagram even existed? Wilde was clearly a time traveler. Dorian’s obsession with staying young and famous? Basically every celeb today. His social climbing? Peak "fake it till you make it" energy. And the whole "art for art’s sake" debate? Still raging in the comments sections of 2024.

■This book is like if a haunted painting and a therapy session had a baby. The atmosphere is chef’s kiss, glamorous yet eerie, with that portrait serving as the ultimate metaphor for guilt (and also being nightmare fuel). And that scene where Dorian stabs the painting? Brutal. Symbolic. Iconic.

■ Wilde refuses to tell you what to think, and that’s why it’s so fun to debate. Is Dorian a victim or just a selfish disaster? Is art to blame, or is it just holding up a mirror? Everyone walks away with a different take, and the fact that it still sparks arguments over 100 years later? That’s how you know it’s a masterpiece.

(■ Wilde's roast game strong banget. Bisa kita apresiasi gimana Oscar Wilde beneran snaps di buku ini? Quote-quotenya bukan cuma pinter, tapi juga savage banget sampai kita mau screenshot semua buat dikirim ke Instagram story. Kayak "Lebih baik dibicarain daripada enggak dibicarain" atau "Nafsu buruk yang kamu tekan bakal meracuni pikiran" nempel di otak kayak lirik lagu yang susah dilupain. Bahkan pas ceritanya jadi gelap, gaya penulisan Oscar Wilde tetap extra dan mewah, bikin auto jadi fans!

■ Lukisan jadi tua, gue tetap muda? Sign me up! (Bercanda, mungkin.) Perjanjian Faustian Dorian itu ultimate "hati-hati sama keinginan kamu", yang mengubah buku filosofi membosankan jadi thriller psikologis ala gothic. Yang paling seru? Lihat penampilan Dorian tetap kinclong sementara potretnya makin seram kayak pakai filter dari neraka. Ketegangan antara tampang gantengnya vs jiwa yang busuk? Chef's kiss.

■ Karakter-karakternya next level. Dorian Gray: Si toxic bae original. Kita tahu dia berantakan, tapi kita enggak bisa berhenti lihatin dia jatuh dari himbo baik jadi monster hedonis. Lord Henry: Temen yang lucu di party tapi diam-diam merusak hidupmu dengan deep talk-nya. Quote-quotenya iconic, tapi jangan ditelen mentah-mentah. Basil Hallward: Si simp ultimate. Polos banget sampai obsesi artistiknya bikin nasibnya makin tragis.

■ Menyindir influencer culture sebelum ada IG. Buku tahun 1800-an ini sudah memprediksi budaya influencer sebelum Instagram lahir. Oscar Wilde jelas time traveler. Obsesi Dorian biar tetap muda dan terkenal? Literally artis masa kini. Gosip sosialnya? Fake it till you make it level pro. Debat "seni untuk seni"? Masih rame di kolom komentar 2024!

■ Kayak gabungan lukisan seram + sesi terapi. Atmosfernya chef's kiss, glamor tapi seram, dengan potret Dorian jadi metafora sempurna buat rasa bersalah (dan bikin merinding). Adegan Dorian menusuk lukisannya? Brutal. Penuh arti. Iconic.

■ Enggak ngasih jawaban instan, makin seru debatnya. Oscar Wilde enggak mau menyuapi kita dengan batas moral yang jelas. Apa Dorian korban atau cuma egois? Seni itu salah atau cuma cermin aja? Tiap orang punya interpretasi berbeda, dan fakta bahwa buku ini masih bikin perdebatan 100+ tahun kemudian? That's how you know ini mahakarya.)

“It is only shallow people who do not judge by appearances. The true mystery of the world is the visible, not the invisible.”

THE DRAWBACK

■ Okay, don't get me wrong. Wilde's writing is gorgeous and his wit is chef's kiss. But man, sometimes this man really needed an editor to tell him, "Oscar, babe, we don't need three pages describing a brocade curtain." There are whole sections where he goes full HGTV on furniture and decor, and I'm just sitting there like, "Cool, but can we get back to Dorian being a hot mess?" It doesn't ruin the book, but I won't lie, my eyes definitely glazed over a few times. Some of those lavish descriptions could've been an Instagram caption instead of a whole chapter.

(■ Jujur, aku suka tulisan Oscar Wilde yang estetik dan quotes-nya yang chef's kiss. Tapi beneran deh, kadang dia kayak butuh editor yang ngomong, "Oscar sayang, kita gak butuh 3 halaman yang jelasin detail tirai brokat, ok?" Ada bagian-bagian yang tiba-tiba jadi kayak acara HGTV versi Victoria dengan deskripsi furniture dan dekorasi sampe minta ampun. Aku bacanya kayak: "Om, balik ke cerita Dorian dong, om!" Ini gak sampai merusak isi buku sih, tapi siap-siap aja matamu berkaca-kaca pas nemu bagian-bagian yang extra banget. Beberapa deskripsi mewah itu sebenernya bisa jadi caption Instagram aja, gak perlu sepanjang satu bab. But hey, namanya juga karya seni, mungkin Oscar Wilde emang lagi vibing sama estetikanya pas nulis bagian-bagian itu. Pro tip: Kalo nemu bagian yang mulai bikin ngantuk, skip aja, gak bakal ngaruh banget ke alur cerita utama kok!)

CONCLUSION

The Picture of Dorian Gray throws shade at society’s obsession with looks and asks whether art (or life) should even have a moral compass. Sure, some parts feel dated (like the sidelined female characters), but this book’s strengths like its killer writing, messed-up psychology, and that wild portrait twist, make it unforgettable. Dorian’s downfall is a brutal reminder that no amount of charm or good looks can save you from your own bad decisions. And that creepy painting? Let’s just say it’ll stick with you way longer than any idol's selfie ever could.

(The Picture of Dorian Gray menyindir obsesi masyarakat soal penampilan dan bertanya, "Seni (atau hidup) itu harus punya moral enggak sih?" Memang ada bagian yang ketinggalan jaman (kayak karakter ceweknya yang kurang berkembang), tapi kelebihan buku ini kayak tulisannya yang keren, psikologi tokohnya yang kacau, dan twist soal lukisannya, bikin ceritanya susah dilupakan. Kehancuran Dorian bisa jadi pengingat yang brutal kalau se-charming apa pun kamu, keputusan yang salah tetep bakal bikin kamu hancur. Dan lukisan seram itu? Percaya deh, bakal keinget terus di otak kita lebih lama daripada foto selfie idol mana pun.)