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Oscar Wilde Research Paper

811 Words4 Pages

Oscar Wilde is an important literary inspiration of his time. During the late 1800s, Wilde was not necessarily respected and recognized as an exceptional man of his time. Wilde was often criticized and his work was critiqued heavily. Wilde endured many hardships in his lifetime, yet was still able to write dozens of poems, essays, plays combined. Wilde’s short story, “The Happy Prince,” exhibits an important development of characters in a tale initially meant for children.
Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde was born on October 16th, 1854 to William Wilde and Jane Elgee in Dublin, Ireland. It is said that Wilde’s writing is highly influenced by his mother who was a poet and skilled linguist (“Oscar Wilde Biography”). Wilde was recognized …show more content…

Aestheticism revolved around the doctrine of “art of art’s sake” which was a phrase coined by Victor Cousin in 1818 (“Aestheticism”). In the year 1882, Wilde set out on an American tour, where he propelled himself into as a leading advocate of the movement (“Oscar Wilde Biography”). While on tour, Wilde preached about the aesthetic lifestyle and taught his audience how to apply it to their homes and lives. Some may even consider Wilde as the “Apostle of Aestheticism” because of his highly anticipated tours around America, England, and Ireland (Adams …show more content…

According to Britannica, Wilde exhibited “languid poses” and had an aesthetic costume that consisted of a “velvet jacket, knew breeches, and black silk stockings” upon his visit to America (“Oscar Wilde”). In 1884, Wilde married Constance Lloyd who was well educated in multiple languages, well-read, and was an independent individual (CGM Worldwide). Together, Wilde and Lloyd had two sons. However, despite his happy family, Wilde was still drawn to a man named Lord Alfred “Boise” Douglas, in which they had an affair together (“Oscar Wilde Biography”). The two remained lovers until Boise’s father eventually caught wind of their affair and accused Wilde of being a homosexual. Outraged, Wilde sued Boise’s father for libel but later withdrew his case (CGM Worldwide). Wilde’s decision to sue Boise’s father was “the decision [that] ruined his life” (“Oscar Wilde Biography”). Following the withdrawal of his case, Wilde was arrested and charged with “gross indecency”. Wilde was sentenced to two years of hard labor (CGM

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Oscar Wilde Chapter 7

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The trial ended with the jury unable to reach a verdict. Three weeks later, Wilde was retried. This time, Wilde was convicted of gross indecency and received two years of hard labor, the maximum sentence allowed for the crime. 4. Some people have been affected my the media's hype on youth and beauty because they feel beautiful or ugly, and depending on what the media's hype on youth and beauty is, they could feel better or worse about themselves.

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The Importance Of Being Earnest Rhetorical Analysis

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Throughout the story of The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde, Oscar pointed out many oblivious actions done by the characters. He constantly used the characters to exaggerate actions of our society today. Wilde uses exaggerations to show how the characters were unable to be a complete individual without the face of the strict social expectations influencing their actions. Everywhere in the society, they are all unable to make their own decisions, and it is very hard for them to be truthful towards who they are without societal norms interfering causing them to lose all individuality. Wilde uses reversal to show how the characters actions were completely insane since they were trying to accommodate societal expectations.

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Religion In Oscar Wilde's The Picture Of Dorian Gray

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The relationships focused on in the novel are very unstable and based on almost no connection other than money. Although there are many different views about different romances. One type of romance that has long been under fire are LGBTQ romances. While many live happily being who they are, others face the scrutiny of others throwing what they believe to be true onto them. That is the case with Oscar Wilde himself.

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The novel is constructed to even deceive the reader. The first paragraph of the first chapter begins with a description of a beautiful summer day with “delicate perfume” (Wilde 1). It is a beautiful and pleasantly smelling environment but it is also

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Literary Analysis Of Oscar Wilde's Impressions Of America

718 Words | 3 Pages

Through this satirical writing, Wilde uses comparison of beauty and industrialism and juxtaposition between compliments and criticism to paint American social values as backwards and unappealing in order to dispel the glamour of a romantic American culture.

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928 Words | 4 Pages

Oscar Wilde’s satirical play The Importance of Being Earnest, set in the late Victorian era, London, is a portrayal of British upper class society and its conventions surrounded by a strict code of conduct. In 1890’s class society, earnestness was desired; to follow the moral code and social obligations in order to keep up one’s appearance. Besides, there was a huge gender disparity between men and women. In the play, Wilde criticizes the social inequality and Victorian upper class standards. He characterizes Victorian personae making fun of their qualities; hypocrisy, arrogance and absurdism, ultimately the very vital state and lifeline of not being earnest at all in Victorian society.

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1059 Words | 5 Pages

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Research Paper On Oscar Wilde

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The victorian individual that I researched was Oscar Wilde. He was extremely important to the Victorian Era because he challenged the standard philosophies of art and literature, moving the culture forwards while creating a lasting legacy that would affect people’s lives for many years following. Oscar Wilde is most definitely a realist. Specifically, he is an aestheticist, or in other words someone who believed that art and literature should not be dragged down by alternative meaning and lessons, but instead focus on the beauty of the work, and working to make it pleasing to the senses instead of to the moral compass. This philosophy fits under the category of realism because in some sense, the addition of lessons and deeper meaning can be

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Marriage In Oscar Wilde's The Importance Of Being Earnest

1653 Words | 7 Pages

Oscar Wilde’s Victorian melodramatic play The Importance of Being Earnest opened on February 14, 1895. Wilde used this play to criticize Victorian society through clever phrasing and satire. Throughout the play The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde displayed the themes of the nature of marriage, the constraints of morality, and the importance of not being earnest. One of the themes that Oscar Wilde includes in the play is the nature of marriage.

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Aestheticism In The Importance Of Being Earnest

1044 Words | 5 Pages

The Importance of Being Earnest written by Oscar Wilde is an excellent play which has many underlying themes and suggestions especially with regards to the Victorian era, during which this was written. Many themes within the play are reflective of Wilde and his life, including his secrecy and supposed “double life,” his interest in aestheticism, his life pertaining the mannerisms and social etiquette during his lifetime. Today, Oscar Wilde is often remembered in part due to his well known homosexuality trial of 1895 (Linderd, 1), but his “second life” per se had been speculated on for years prior to it, in fact many of his plays contain subtle yet effective implications towards a possible piece of his life kept hidden from the public eye. The Importance of Being Earnest mirrored this double life through the utilization of Jack and Algernon's “Bunburying,” and their motives for lying to the ones whom they love.

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The Importance Of Being Earnest Satire Analysis

1876 Words | 8 Pages

This essay illustrates how Wilde reinforce his criticism of the upper class at a satirical tone with his writing style at three levels: inter-scene, intra-scene, and within a word. Satire at the inter-scene level The use of fake identities is one of the motifs of the play. The use of motif is important to

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Hedonism In Oscar Wilde's The Picture Of Dorian Gray

1283 Words | 6 Pages

Wilde is greatly influenced by the societal movements in the Victorian Era, therefore the theme of hedonism is prominent displaying the influence of Aestheticism in The Picture of Dorian Gray and further explaining the consequences of selfishness and self-pleasure. The Aestheticism movement shockingly challenged all past standards of love, pleasure, and sexuality. Specifically this Victorian movement “promotes sexual… experimentation. ”(Burdett)

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463 Words | 2 Pages

His trial became intriguing, and forced London, and a good portion of Europe, to face sodomy and the prison system with an open heart. In 1891, Oscar Wilde became acquainted with a man that would soon

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877 Words | 4 Pages

Wilde’s comedic influence takes place in the characters placing emphasis on trivial things and treating serious matters with inconsequence. Though this play could be viewed as a simple comedy, what makes it a satirical work is the underlying social commentary. Wilde highlights his views on institutions such as love, marriage, and gender relations by satirizing their nature via reductio ad absurdum and thereby reveals their essential frivolity. Though marriage is traditionally viewed by society as the final step in a lover’s journey, Wilde intentionally separates marriage and love to the point where they seem mutually exclusive.

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