Wilde, Collins, Stevenson,Thackerary

Oscar Wilde-The Picture of Dorian Gray

I am glad that the general public is noticing Wilde again, but I must confess, it annoys me. Wilde is all the rage right now, like Austin was a few years ago, but I believe many of these people are not sincerely interested in the works of Wilde and that they are simply name-dropping in an effort to look cutting edge. They act like someone just unearthed an old manuscript of his and published it. I've got news for them, some of us have been reading his works all along. Next week, Wilde will be long forgotten for someone new and ever so trendy.

Now onto The Picture of Dorian Gray. It is dark and immensely preachy but in a GREAT way! I know very little about Wilde, but I find it ironic that he was imprisoned for his "morality" yet the Victorians could not see what high standards he had for human behavior...such were the times. The book is about one man's descent into evil and depravity, and how in spite of his sins, he retained a beautiful outward appearance. Such is the glamour of evil (now I am being preachy). This is a short novel with a terrific impact.






Robert Louis Stevenson-Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde

When I was in Edinburgh, I went to Brodie's Close, the home of a man who was a respectable cabinet maker by day, violent criminal by night. It is said Deacon Brodie along with Jack the Ripper were templates for Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. This short novel is based on the Jack the Ripper killings and like Frankenstein is a commentary on man dabbling in science, sometimes with disastrous results. All heady analysis aside, the book was scary.

Sometimes it is hard to put aside a story that you have heard about your whole life and read it as if it was the first time, but I tried. Yes, it was frightening and not at all far-fetched. We see this sort of violence in the news all the time. Like Dr. Jekyll, the killer was the "quiet neighbor" next door, a hideous monster by night.  Even though it was written over a century ago, Stevenson really nailed it. It is a timeless story of the nature of some "humans".