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25/01/2024

 I finished reading another book, "The Picture of Dorian Grey" by Oscar Wilde. I am happy to say that I hit the minimum of two books per month goal for January. I have this sense of accomplishment and feel quite satisfied that in three days I read two books. If only I could just keep reading like this, but alas, it is not to be, I have so many other things that I need to tend to, so hitting pause on the reading for a brief period till I am able to complete the immediate tasks at hand.

But before that I felt like I should put down a few thought I had about the book. The book was a good read, a little heavy and on the philosophical side, and I think it is something that makes you want to introspect about how you are. In my view it primarily deals with the concept of self, how we view ourselves in the sense of how we think we are and what we want to be, and what we actually are, and how others view us are  quite different. Carl rogers talks about the congruence of self-concept, when the ideal self and real self are  congruent is when we have a stronger sense of self-worth and have a healthier and more productive life. I think it suffices to say that Dorian did not have a congruent self at all. I think he wanted to perceived in a certain way and while his physical attributes helped him in keeping up that image in some way, he had a constant reminder that told him otherwise. On one hand he used the portrait as a way to shake off all blame and accountability for his actions and yet he could not let it go because at the end of the day it was still him who was responsible for all his actions, and the portrait always showed him his true reflection, a reflection of his soul. I think it was a hauntingly beautiful story. I liked the two characters of Lord Henry and Basil Hallward too, both of them at various points tell Dorian what he could be, Lord Henry tells him to focus on seeking pleasure, while Basil tells him to do the right thing. But what i think struck me was that regardless of how they tried to guide or advice him, they always felt that he was simply incapable of doing anything wrong or drastic. they feel that someone so beautiful cannot do anything abhorrent, but we know that's not true just like Dorian's portrait. Much like how the 'picture' of Dorian Grey truly knows what he actually is like we the readers also know what Dorian is actually like, our impression of him changes just like how the picture keeps changing based on his actions. 

There is so much more to be said about it, but all in all it is a story that makes you think and has many layers to it and I really enjoyed reading it. 

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