Concetti Chiave
- Oscar Wilde was renowned for his ironic demeanor and individualistic style, often seen as a rebellious "dandy" in Victorian society.
- He advocated for "art for art's sake," focusing on art's beauty and personal pleasure rather than any didactic purpose.
- "The Picture of Dorian Gray" exemplifies Victorian hypocrisy, contrasting superficial beauty with hidden corruption and the enduring nature of art.
- The novel utilizes dramatic elements like vivid settings and character actions to convey its themes through a third-person narrative.
- Wilde's play "The Importance of Being Earnest" uses satire to critique Victorian morality through clever dialogue and hidden secrets.
What is Oscar Wilde and His Individualism?
Oscar wilde became very famous for his irony, attitude and poses. In particular for his superior way to dress, to speak and to think about his individualism, he was considered a rebel and a “dandy” in the Victorian society where he lived. In agreement with the famous sentence “ arts for art’s Sake”, Wilde was more interested in the worship of pleasure , believing that the only purpose of the art was the art in itself and no more else. So art could be seen as a cult of the beauty and a way to escape from the murder of a man’s soul.
That is because art is considered eternal and able to survive on people and at the same time the beauty. For this reason Wilde writes only for personal pleasure, refusing any didactic role: this attitude and this superiority to the materialistic world, at the end, made him an outcast.
The Picture of Dorian Gray
The novel “The picture of Dorian Gray” is a clear example of the hypocrisy inside the Victorian society and a confirm of his principles about the eternity of the art : the young Dorian ,with his false good-looking appearance, represents the bourgeois hypocrisy, the hidden picture, which reflects his real corrupted nature, is the symbol of immorality. But ,at the end, it confirms its superiority because while the young dies cruelly as a punishment, it restores its original beauty and survives on him. The style use in this work is typical of a drama: the setting is vividly described, characters’ nature arises from their words and actions and the narration is made by a third –person narrator.
Wilde's Social Satire
He will write also plays like “The importance of being Ernest” where once again Wilde makes a social satire against Victorian people. Through witty dialogues, amusing puns, customs, hidden secrets he shows how the society in reality is not so moral as it pretends to be.
Domande da interrogazione
- How did Oscar Wilde's views on art and individualism set him apart in Victorian society?
- What does "The Picture of Dorian Gray" reveal about Wilde's perspective on art and morality?
- How does Wilde use social satire in "The Importance of Being Earnest"?
Oscar Wilde was considered a rebel and a "dandy" in Victorian society due to his emphasis on individualism and the belief in "art for art's sake." He prioritized personal pleasure and viewed art as a cult of beauty, rejecting any didactic role, which ultimately made him an outcast.
"The Picture of Dorian Gray" exemplifies Wilde's belief in the eternity of art and critiques Victorian hypocrisy. The novel portrays Dorian's outward beauty as a facade for his corrupted nature, with the hidden portrait symbolizing immorality. The story concludes with the portrait's restoration, underscoring art's superiority and endurance.
In "The Importance of Being Earnest," Wilde employs social satire to critique Victorian society. Through witty dialogues, puns, and hidden secrets, he exposes the moral pretensions of the era, revealing that society is not as virtuous as it claims to be.
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