Oscar Wilde as a young child
Oscar Wilde dressed in a traditional Greek outfit
Constance Lloyd
Oscar Wilde (left) and Alfred Douglas (right) in 1893
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Background and Early Life
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde was born on October 16, 1854 in Dublin, Ireland. His father, William Wilde, had been knighted for his work on Irish censuses. He was a well-known, very successful doctor in Ireland, and went on to found a hospital using his own money, according to Biography.com. William had three children before marrying Oscar's mother, Jane Francesca Elgee (The Official Web Site of Oscar Wilde). Jane was a respected poet in Ireland in her own right. Her writing and translation of books had a huge influence on her son's later writing. Also, she was involved in the Young Irelanders' Rebellion of 1848. Schooling Oscar Wilde did very well in school, and attended Portora Royal School at Enniskillen. There, he soon emerged at the top of the class and had a clear aptitude for the classics, especially Greek. He won a scholarship to Trinity College in Dublin, where he continued studying Greek and ended up, once again, at the top of his class. He then won yet another scholarship to continue his studies at Magdalen College in Oxford, where he graduated in 1878. Early Career In 1881, Wilde's first book was published -- a book of poems called, shockingly, Poems. This was Wilde's first taste of the criticism he would later receive, but enough people appreciated his work to fund a tour through the United States, where he gave over 100 lectures in less than one year. While in America, he met some of the most famous writers of our country at that time, such as Walt Whitman, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and Oliver Wendell Holmes. Whitman in particular got along well with the aspiring author, according to the website of New Republic. Wilde continued to lecture around Ireland and England for the next two years, becoming known as an up and coming author and a strong supporter of the aesthetic movement. In 1884, Oscar Wilde and Constance Lloyd married. They had two sons within two years; Cyril and Vyvyan. Success In 1885, Wilde became the editor of the magazine Lady's World. He soon decided the magazine should cover more than just fashion, and began including social and even some political topics, which was rare for a ladies' magazine at that time. Wilde enjoyed the chance to get involved in literary criticism. While working as editor there, Wilde wrote many of his most successful works, including two collections of short stories; The Happy Prince and Other Tales and The House of Pomegranates; his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray; and several plays, such as Lady Windmere's Fan and The Importance of Being Earnest, among others. Many of these works were considered controversial in the Victorian era. Wilde was mocked in newspapers and magazines via cartoons and caricatures for his aesthetic inclinations. Rumors circulated about his strange dress and odd habits, like carrying a flower through the streets of London. He challenged many of society's standards and refused to let others' opinions stop him from doing whatever he wanted. This made him an obvious target for critics. Trial, Imprisonment, Exile, and Death In 1891, Oscar Wilde met a young man named Lord Alfred Douglas, son of the Marquess of Queensberry. Wilde and Douglas became lovers, causing Douglas' father to leave a note accusing Wilde of sodomy, which was a criminal offense at the time. Wilde sued the Marquess for libel, but ended up being convicted of "gross indecency" and sentenced to two years of hard labor, according to the Oscar Wilde official website. His wife, Constance, took their two sons and moved to Switzerland and took the name of Holland to try to separate her children from her husband's scandal. Wilde lived out the rest of his life in cheap hotels across Europe, almost completely broke and alone. His only work after his release from prison was The Ballad of Reading Gaol in 1898, which drew on his experiences during his imprisonment. Two years later, Wilde contracted meningitis from an ear infection and died in a hotel room in Paris on November 30, 1900. |
Sources used:
"Death of Oscar Wilde." The New York Times 1 Dec. 1900: n. pag. NYTimes. The New York Times. Web.
"Biography." Official Website of Oscar Wilde. CMG Solutions, 12 Aug. 2005. Web. 4 Mar. 2016.
Friedman, David M. "Oscar Wilde and Walt Whitman Once Spent an Afternoon Together. Here's What Happened." New Republic. New Republic, 17 Oct. 2014. Web. 12 Mar. 2016.
If you want to read more, be sure to click here to see the rest of my sources.
"Death of Oscar Wilde." The New York Times 1 Dec. 1900: n. pag. NYTimes. The New York Times. Web.
"Biography." Official Website of Oscar Wilde. CMG Solutions, 12 Aug. 2005. Web. 4 Mar. 2016.
Friedman, David M. "Oscar Wilde and Walt Whitman Once Spent an Afternoon Together. Here's What Happened." New Republic. New Republic, 17 Oct. 2014. Web. 12 Mar. 2016.
If you want to read more, be sure to click here to see the rest of my sources.