The Irish writer was a leading representative of the aesthetic movement of L’art pour l’art. He became famous for his polished fluency and extravagant demeanor. Admired as an author and at the same time decried as a scandalous author and dandy in Victorian England, he repeatedly criticized the prudery of English society. He deliberately tried to disregard those values and was sentenced to prison for homophilia. Oscar Wilde left behind a diverse literary work. He became the most quoted representative of modern English literature. The melodramatic novel The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890), about the story of a young man who seems to possess the secret of eternal youth, became his best-known prose work…
Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde was born on October 16, 1854, the second child of the physician Sir William Wilde and Lady Francesca Wilde in Dublin, Ireland.
The Wildes had three children, two boys and a girl. The eldest, William Wills Wilde, was born in 1853. A year later Oscar was born, in 1858 Jane gave birth to her third child, Isola Francesca, who only lived to be ten years old. The mother maintained a literary salon in which Wilde became acquainted with leading figures in local cultural life at an early age. From 1864 to 1871 Oscar Wilde attended the Portora Royal School in Enniskillen as a boarder. He then attended Trinity College in Dublin from 1871 to 1874 and Magdalena College in Oxford from 1874 to 1878, where he studied classical philosophy and devoted himself to his first own work within the l”art pour l”art movement. After completing his studies, Oscar Wilde embarked on a journey through Europe, visiting Greece and Italy for several months. In 1879 he returned and settled in London, where in the early 1880s works such as the play “Lady Windermere”s Fan” were created. In London, as an esthete and refined spirit, he became the central figure in social life and a sought-after guest at all jet-set parties.
In 1884 Wilde married Constanze Lloyd and settled in Chelsea. This connection made him financially independent, so that from then on he was able to devote himself exclusively to his literary work. Their son Cyril was born in 1885 and their daughter Vyvyan in 1886. From 1887 to 1889, Wilde published a feminist magazine entitled “The Woman”s World”, in which he, quite contrary to the zeitgeist, advocated the emancipation of women. During this time he met his Oxford fellow student, Lord Alfred Douglas. After a year, the old friendship turned into a love affair, for which Wilde left his family. In 1890, Oscar Wilde published The Picture of Dorian Gray, which is now one of his most popular works. The novel tells the melodramatic story of a young man who seems to possess the secret of eternal youth. In the following years Oscar Wilde wrote a new work about every year, mainly social comedies. The best known are “Lady Windermere’s Fan” (1892), “A Woman of No Importance” (1893), “An Ideal Husband” (1895) and ” The Importance of Being Earnest” (1895), which satirizes the upper classes.
His play “Salome” (1891) based on the biblical legend of Salome (with famous Art Nouveau illustrations by Aubrey Beardsley, some of which were very revealing) was rejected by the censor and was therefore not published in England. In 1894 it was premiered by and with the famous Sarah Bernhardt in Paris. The composer Richard Strauss took Wilde’s drama as a literary model and set the German translation to music in his internationally successful opera “Salome”, which premiered on December 9, 1905 at the Dresden Court Opera. Wilde was only exploited by Lord Arthur Douglas. Furthermore, the new partner suffered from violent sexual fantasies with children. Lord Arthur Douglas’ father accused Wilde of “sodomy” in a smear campaign in the press. As a result, on May 25, 1895, Wilde was sentenced to two years in prison with hard physical labor. The outcome of the proceedings meant Wilde’s financial and social ruin. After his release, Wilde moved to Paris. Here he converted to Catholicism.
Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde died on November 30, 1900 at the age of 46 as a result of meningitis resulting from a chronic otitis media.
Why is Oscar Wilde famous?
Wilde was admired as a writer in his day and notorious in prudish Victorian Britain as both a scandalous writer and a dandy. He was famous for his fluency in language and his extravagant demeanor, which he characterized with his unusual clothing (e.g.
Who is Oscar far?
OSCAR WILDE is immortal through his fairy tales, the best known of which is probably “The Canterville Ghost”. In his time he was particularly successful as a playwright. He was celebrated for his frivolous society comedies, he mastered the dramatic technique perfectly.
Why did Oscar Wilde die?
Meningitis is an inflammation of the lining of the brain and spinal cord, i.e. the covering of the central nervous system. It can be caused by viruses, bacteria or other microorganisms, but can also occur due to non-infectious stimuli.
How old is Oscar Wilde?
46 years
1854–1900
Where is Oscar Wilde buried?
With an area of 44 hectares, the Cimetière du Père-Lachaise is the largest cemetery in Paris and at the same time the first burial site in the world designed as a park cemetery. It is named after Father François d’Aix de Lachaise, on whose gardens the cemetery was built.
Does Oscar Wilde have children?
Cyril Holland
Vyvyan Holland
When was Oscar Wild born?
October 16, 1854
Which literary device is used in the title of oscar wilde’s play the importance of being earnest?
The direct answer to this question is hyperbole. Hyperbole is an exaggeration, which means that hyperbole is “language that describes something as better as or worse than it is.” For example, in The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde uses measures to poke fun at Victorian England.
Why did oscar wilde most likely use stock characters such as dandies in his works?
Dandies are always men. They are portrayed as trivial, shallow, and obsessed with other peoples’ perceptions. Wilde used this stock character (to attack the fake morality and superficiality he saw in Victorian society.)
Which of these victorian beliefs did oscar wilde openly challenge?
Artists should use their work as a call for social reform.
