Oscar Wilde

Favorite novels, plays, comics, etc.
karenjeane
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Re: Oscar Wilde

Post by karenjeane »

Masao, I would recommend Oscar Wilde by Richard Ellmann. The only outdated aspect is that her surmises that Wilde died of syphilis, whereas contemporary research has revealed that he died of acute meningitis. But that's a minor point - it's a really fantastic book and tells Wilde's story as it deserves to be told.

Guess I should proceed with the questions...

1. What's your favourite work of his?
Dorian is great, of course, but I actually like Wilde's fairy tales very much. They're really charming and don't exactly have simple lessons. His plays are fun but much more so when brought to life through performance. The most recent films for An Ideal Husband and The Importance of Being Earnest are a blast.

2. Have you read any of his numerous biographies, or seen a biographical film? Thoughts?
I mentioned the Ellmann bio above... Every couple of years there seems to be a new biography published, though the authors seem too eager to show how "modern" Wilde was rather than considering him in the context of the Victorian Era.

The Wilde film is fun but he doesn't seem like the "perfect" Oscar. Just Stephen Fry bubbling around. Wilde strikes me as having a lot more energy and spontaneity than is depicted. I think this series of books really captures his character well: http://www.oscarwildemurdermysteries.com/

3. What's his wittiest quote or epigram, in your opinion?
Always changing, but lately I like this one: " If I am occasionally a little over-dressed, I make up for it by being always immensely over-educated."

4. Has his life and work inspired you in some way? If so, how?
I read a lot about Wilde while in university, and went on to study a lot of other figures and aspects from the Victorian Era and the early 20th Century, so I can thank him for spurring these interests. I still get mailings from the William Morris Society.

Wilde inspires me not to take things too seriously, esp. other people's opinions. He challenged many widely-held social norms of his time that are now horribly outdated, so I wonder how outdated our society will seem in a century, and what changes we can make here and now to improve it for everyone.
Stefi
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Re: Oscar Wilde

Post by Stefi »

Wilde is amazing! Like everyone here, Dorian is very good, but I really love The Importance of Being Earnest. I've read other things by him when I was in high school and had--need--to read everything he wrote (so long ago!), but those two are the ones I remember particularly well.

I don't usually memorize famous quotes because, well, I'm bad a memorizing, but so many of them float around that it's hard to forget. "We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars"; "Be yourself; everyone else is already taken"; "To live is the rarest thing in the world; most people exist". But probably the one that will probably stick with me the most (and what got me interested in the first place): "I can resist anything except temptation".

This one is a close second, shortly before he passed away: "My wallpaper and I are fighting a duel to the death. One of us has got to go."

I think that Wilde was the first person to really teach me about being positive, and that even if things look grim, you can still be funny, bright, and spirited.
Todd
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Re: Oscar Wilde

Post by Todd »

I've read both The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Importance of Being Earnest. I was about to say I read The Bottle Imp by him, which is at the back of my Dorian Gray novel, but that's by Robert Louis Stevenson, oops.
Sara
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Re: Oscar Wilde

Post by Sara »

1. What's your favourite work of his? Since he only wrote one novel, feel free to share a play, poem, or short story that you like.

The Importance of Being Earnest was my favorite piece; I even have a copy of the play that dates back a century!

2. Have you read any of his numerous biographies, or seen a biographical film? Thoughts?

Sadly, no. But I'm looking to get a copy once I clear my huge pile of to-read books.

3. What's his wittiest quote or epigram, in your opinion?

It's a tie between I can resist everything except temptation. and We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.

4. Has his life and work inspired you in some way? If so, how?

It has always taught to never be afraid of what others thought of me and to live vicariously because this is the only life we get.
The truth is rarely pure and never simple.
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