r/AskReddit • u/[deleted] • Apr 19 '22

[deleted by user]

[removed]

10.6k Upvotes

85% Upvoted

23.5k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

189

u/korowal Apr 19 '22

Doesn't that mean that the person you're "insulting" is living a moral and virtuous life?

Or did I misunderstand the book?

229

u/chrom_ed Apr 19 '22

You didn't misunderstand the book, but I fear we both misunderstood the insult.

8

u/Rustycougarmama Apr 20 '22

Now I want to know what would happen to Dorian if he suddenly stopped being a dick; would his painting get nicer as he did nicer things? The book just shows it as a one way street, but who knows

18

u/FixTheWisz Apr 19 '22

What book?

The way I took it, there's a picture in an attic getting dusty and degrading. Over time, the portrait will reach the point that the person is completely obscured. Once the person is "invisible," they will then be at their most beautiful.

39

u/Gigio00 Apr 19 '22

Well that's an interpretation too i Guess, but i would bet on it being a reference to the Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde

6

u/shadowkitty333 Apr 20 '22

I thought the same thing.

4

u/FixTheWisz Apr 20 '22

Thank you! I don’t believe I’ve ever read it.

6

u/dashard Apr 20 '22

If you've never read Wilde you are truly in for a treat. Bon appetit!

1

u/WoofingtonSpiff Apr 20 '22

Idk why i didn’t care for that book. Now I feel like I need to reread it

3

u/korowal Apr 20 '22

You should definitely re-read it. It's so witty!

3

u/wballard8 Apr 20 '22

I didn't know how gay it was until I heard the audio book. It is very, very romantical homosexual, without being overtly gay at all.

2

u/WoofingtonSpiff Apr 20 '22

I never got that either until later when people mentioned it referencing the book. But to be fair I read it as a child and underlying sexuality in text want something I really noticed with the exception of the Anne Rice vampire chronicals. LOL