Oscar Wilde

1854 - 1900 *

playwright, poet, novelist and critic born in Ireland, famous for his wit.

Oscar Wilde is most acclaimed for his comic theatrical masterpieces, particularly The Importance of Being Earnest and Lady Windermere's Fan which feature entertaining plots and witty dialogue. He was also a novelist, poet and critic and a proponent of the aesthetic movement which promoted the idea of 'art for art's sake'. Wilde was at the centre of a legal issue involving homosexuality and was imprisoned for two years.

          Source: Classics Network Editorial Team

Irish poet and dramatist whose reputation rests on his comic masterpieces Lady Wintermere's Fan and The Importance of Being Earnest. Among Wilde's other best-known works are his only novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, which deals very similar theme as Robert Luis Stevenson's Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde. Wilde's fairy tales are very popular - the motifs have been compared to those of Hans Christian Andersen.

"When they entred they found, hanging upon the wall, a splendid portrait of their master as they had last seen him, in all the wonder of his exquisite youth and beauty. Lyin... [read entire biography]

          Source: Petri Liukkonen

WILDE, OSCAR O'FLAHERTIE WILLS (1856-1900), English author, son of Sir William Wilde, a famous Irish surgeon, was born in Dublin on the isth of October 1856; his mother, Jane Francisca Elgee, was well known in Dublin as a graceful writer of verse and prose, under the pen-name of "Speranza." Having distinguished himself in classics at Trinity College, Dublin, Oscar Wilde went to Magdalen College, Oxford, in 1874, and won the Newdigate prize in 1878 with his poem "Ravenna", besides taking a first-... [read entire biography]

          Source: Public Domain

These essays offer analysis of the author's life and works. Many of them have been submitted by users, and are assigned an Editorial Rating on a scale from one to five stars to assist you in evaluating their worth. See also: Note on Essays, Editorial Policy.

     

The Importance of Being Earnest as a Social Satire -- A brief look at Wilde's humourous critique of Victorian society.
By raymond mullen,	Editorial Rating:

Wilde's View On Society -- A GCSE/AS level essay, looking at the use of language throughout the play in connection to his views on society.
By DrChaz,	Editorial Rating:

Libertinism in The Picture of Dorian Gray and Laclos' Dangerous Liaisons -- An investigation into the changing role of the individual in society in Wilde's novel and de Laclos' Les liaisons dangereuses.
By Andrew Nicol, Student	Editorial Rating:

Conflicts in The Importance of Being Earnest -- How the resolution of conflicts of the play has social significance.
By James Cox, Student	Editorial Rating:

The Importance of being Earnest - Characters -- The Importance of Being Earnest is encompassed in the keeping up of social morals at all costs
By [unknown]	Editorial Rating:

     

Miscellaneous

		oscar wilde chronology -- chronology of oscar wildes life http://landow.stg.brown.edu/victorian/de... Editorial Rating: Number of Visitors: 590 3 users have rated it an average of 3 stars     [rate it]

     

Yet each man kills the thing he loves,
By each let this be heard,
Some do it with a bitter look,
Some with a flattering word,
The coward does it with a kiss,
The brave man with a sword. -- The Ballad of Reading Gaol.

Oscar Wilde

All that we know who lie in gaol
Is that the wall is strong;
And that each day is like a year,
A year whose days are long. -- The Ballad of Reading Gaol.

Oscar Wilde

The vilest deeds like poison-weeds
Bloom well in prison-air:
It is only what is good in Man
That wastes and withers there:
Pale Anguish keeps the heavy gate
And the Warder is Despair. -- The Ballad of Reading Gaol.

Oscar Wilde

The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it. -- The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Oscar Wilde

He knew the precise psychological moment when to say nothing. -- The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Oscar Wilde

As long as war is regarded as wicked it will always have its fascinations. When it is looked upon as vulgar, it will cease to be popular. -- The Critic as Artist.

Oscar Wilde

Where there is sorrow there is holy ground. -- De Profundis.

Oscar Wilde

It is through Art and through Art only that we can realize our perfection; through Art and Art only that we can shield ourselves from the sordid perils of actual existence. -- Art.

Oscar Wilde

Additional searches

Wilde at Encarta Encyclopedia

Wilde at Britannica Encyclopedia

Wilde at Xrefer.com