The Picture of Dorian Gray - Oscar Wilde - UPDATED REVIEW

The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde  Genre : Classics Blurb (on back of book) : Oscar Wilde’s only novel is the dreamlike story of a young man who sells his soul for eternal youth and beauty. In this celebrated work Wilde forged a devastating portrait of the effects of evil and debauchery on a young aesthete in late-19th-century England. Combining elements of the Gothic horror novel and decadent French fiction, the book centers on a striking premise: As Dorian Gray sinks into a life of crime and gross sensuality, his body retains perfect youth and vigor while his recently painted portrait grows day by day into a hideous record of evil, which he must keep hidden from the world. For over a century, this mesmerizing tale of horror and suspense has enjoyed wide popularity. It ranks as one of Wilde's most important creations and among the classic achievements of its kind. UPDATED REVIEW MY OPINION : ****** I would like to start out this review by stating that this is undoubtedly m...
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The Stranger - Albert Camus

The Stranger by Albert Camus
Genre: Classics

Blurb (on back of book): Published in 1942 by French author Albert Camus, The Stranger has long been considered a classic of twentieth-century literature. Le Monde ranks it as number one on its "100 Books of the Century" list. Through this story of an ordinary man unwittingly drawn into a senseless murder on a sundrenched Algerian beach, Camus explores what he termed "the nakedness of man faced with the absurd."

MY OPINION: ****

This was my first Camus and I'm glad to say I enjoyed it! It was a way faster read than I was expecting, which was nice. I went into this one having basically no idea what the story was about but having heard good things about it. I also just read excerpts from the man's other works for my European History class so I knew that I had to pick this one up asap. 

It's divided into two parts, the first of which culminates in our protagonist literally killing an Arab person for no real reason and the second of which deals with the trial and the aftermath of this murder. 

The alternate title for this book is "The Outsider" which I think is a way more fitting name. A man who seems to have no real feelings or emotions or literally any humanity is punished for being an outsider. The book starts with the death of his mother and his complete and utter lack of reaction to this traumatic event. Already, you see how strange our protagonist is and as you read more, you start to see more of the antipathy and general lack of emotion that this man carries within him. This does not bode well for his trial, as his stressed-out lawyer so aptly personifies with his actions and his eventual giving up.

It's definitely a very religious-themed book, though I do not believe Camus himself was very religious. I personally am not religious but I always find it interesting to read religious texts and see how Christianity (or whatever the religion is for that book, this one just happened to be Christianity) plays a role in the overall morals that the author is trying to impart upon their audiences. Camus was an Atheist and I think this book tended to fall on the more anti-religious side and focused more on morality and existentialism rather than God. I thought that was interesting, especially for a classic where you'd expect it to be strongly faith-affirming.

This is definitely more of a commentary on Camus's personal philosophy than an actual entertaining piece of fiction. It's one I feel like I need to reread several times to fully understand it. For now, I was interested in it enough that I enjoyed my experience reading it this first time around. I would recommend it to anyone looking to read a piece of fiction that changed the world of literature.

Main Character: Meursault
Sidekick(s): N/A
Villain(s): Murder, misunderstandings, etc
Classics Elements: This is a classic novel.

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