Oscar Wilde

Birth and death

1854-1900

Where was he born?

Dublin

Lecture tour

He Ireland for a lecture tour in America

Then he left for another lecture tour in England and Ireland becoming the leading figure in the aesthetic movement.

Main works

• The picture of Dorian Gray

• The happy prince and other tales

• The importance of being earnest (theatrical masterpiece)

Wilde’s legal case

Accused of homosexuality

2 years in prison after that he was not the same

Aestheticism

art is neither moral nor immoral, but beauty in itself is a supreme value

The picture of Dorian Gray plot

• Basil portrait Dorian Gray

• Dorian will sacrifice his soul if he can maintain his youth and beauty, while the portrait itself will bear all the signs of time.

• Dorian leads a hedonistic life of pleasure, sin, crime and corruption

• Dorian responsible for the death of an actress and the murder of Basil

• Dorian stabs the portrait killing himself

Double life of Dorian Gray

A sign of his hypocrisy

he uses his innocent appearance to be accepted in society and also to fulfill his basest desires without paying the consequences.

Cult of Beauty

That art exists for the sake of beauty, strong reaction to the utilitarian philosophy