Oscar Wilde was an extraordinary literary figure and one of the most renowned writers of the Victorian period, and is widely known for his display of innovative and flamboyant style. Wilde famously lived in London from 1879 onwards, but also spent portions of his life in Ireland and continental Europe. He was born in Dublin before attending independent schools in Enniskillen and Dublin, and graduating from Trinity College in Dublin in 1871. Wilde then moved to London to pursue the study of law at the Inner Temple, beginning a period of prolific writing that included his famous novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray.
While in London, Wilde began to frequent various salons and social circles and become acquainted with some of the greatest intellectuals of the day, a period in his life that came to represent the ‘obscure glamour’ associated with him as a figure. He moved to a studio in Chelsea and later, in 1884, established a household in the city’s Tite Street. Here, Oscar Wilde’s works were composed, many of them for his aristocratic and artistic society of friends.
Wilde lived in Tite Street for six years, during which time his longest work, The Picture of Dorian Gray, was published, and his plays, An Ideal Husband and The Importance of Being Earnest, first appeared. In 1895, Wilde fell foul of the law which resulted in a conviction and prison sentence, leading to his departure from his beloved London. Oscar Wilde’s subsequent exile and relocation to Paris, where he ‘rested’ until his death in 1900, is well documented.
To summarise, Oscar Wilde had a remarkable life. He grew up in Dublin, Ireland, and studied law in London, England, before becoming a prolific writer of both fiction and plays. He lived in London for six illustrious years, residing in both Chelsea, and later, Tite Street. The light-hearted yet imaginative quality of Wilde’s writing personifies the bohemian veil that shrouded him during the Victorian era, and Wilde is renowned for going outwith the norms of society. He was later forced to leave London for Paris due to his legal troubles, where he lived out the remainder of his life.
Early Life of Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde was born in Dublin in 1854 to William Wilde and Jane Wilde, née Elgee. William was an eminent eye surgeon and a member of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, and Jane wrote poetry, and was an Irish nationalist and a supporter of women’s causes. Oscar was their second son, after William, born in 1852. Oscar was educated at Portora Royal School and went on to graduate from Trinity College in Dublin. He then moved to London to study under Sir William Gull, at the Royal College of Surgeons and at the Inner Temple, one of the four Inns of Court, with the purpose of becoming a barrister.
By this time, Oscar Wilde was well known for his love of books and for his unconventional good looks. He was said to be charismatic and well mannered, regularly attending social functions, and quickly became the life of the party. It was at this time that he began frequenting with members of the aesthetic movement, also known as the “cult of beauty”, which advocated for an appreciation of art over material possessions.
During his early career, Wilde would become an enthusiastic supporter of the arts, regularly attending parties and events, and frequently speaking out on the value of aesthetics. His promotion of beauty and art had a profound influence on the popular writers and critics of the time and his writing cultivated a new appreciation of art in Victorian society.
Wilde began to write book reviews and articles for a variety of periodicals, such as the Pall Mall Gazette, and by 1881 his name had become sufficiently recognised that he began to lecture in America. In 1882 Wilde was called to the Bar in London and he continued to write prose and poetry, but had yet to make a significant mark in the literary world.
Wilde’s first significant success came with the publication of the collection of tales, ‘Poems’, which was published in 1881. This collection won Wilde a number of prestigious awards, including a prize at the Society of Arts and the Newdigate Prize for Poetry from Oxford University, boosting his literary career and famously earning him the nickname “the modern Apollo”.
Life in London
Following his success, Wilde moved to London, where he established a household in Chelsea to work as a full-time writer. Throughout the 1880s, Wilde enjoyed a whirlwind of success both professionally and socially. He secured an impressive contract and wrote the first draft of his most famous novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, as well as having a play commissioned by actor-manager George Alexander.
At this time, Wilde was a fixture in the nationally renowned avant-garde, and had become friends with a variety of personalities including writers, critics, and artists. He was also considered a masterful conversationalist and he was known to make people laugh with his wit and satire.
By the late 1880s, Wilde had become so famous that he was invited to dine with the most renowned members of society, including middle and upper-class couples from the aristocracy. This period of Wilde’s life became known as the ‘sixties set’, and in some salons, Wilde and his contemporaries exhibited a scandalous and flamboyant lifestyle that outraged the traditional bourgeois of London.
Wilde’s reputation as an iconic figure in the Victorian period, who garnered the admiration and adoration of society, had been established by this point and he was considered the embodiment of the upper-class values in literature. His quick and witty conversations would later be immortalised in his works, and his unique play of words earned him further acclaim from the public.
By 1884, Wilde had formed a household with his wife and two children in Tite Street, London. Here, he continued to write extensively and cultivate his success, glittering between the renowned salons and upper-class receptions in London’s society.
Oscar Wilde and the Law
Oscar Wilde’s fortunes changed significantly in 1895 when he was found guilty of ‘gross indecency’ in a court case and sentenced to two years hard labour in prison. This resulted in Wilde’s destruction as a public figure, and after his release from prison in 1897, he went into exile in Paris.
Wilde wrote his last works in Paris, including his famous work, The Ballad of Reading Gaol, a long poem reflecting on the misery and hardship of prison life. The poem was a lamentation of the injustices of the law, and a declaration of his innocence written in a style of prose-poetic verse.
Wilde’s battle with the law had a major effect on his social standing in Victorian society, and resulted in the destruction of his image and status as a literary figure. Consequently, he was ostracised by the salons and social circles that fame had previously allowed him access to, and it was in Paris, in near-isolation, that Wilde lived out the remaining years of his life.
In Paris, Wilde was welcomed tumultuously by friends and fans, who admired the courage and fortitude that he displayed despite all the personal difficulties he had endured as a result of his trial. Nevertheless, Wilde continued to brief his former employers, such as the Pall Mall Gazette, by sending them letters and articles on topics such as art, literature, and politics.
Wilde eventually died in Room 16 of the Hotel d’Alsace at 8pm on the evening of 30 November 1900, just months after his release from prison. He left behind a legacy as a prominent artist, whose works are still regarded as iconic in the world of literature.
Oscar Wilde in Dublin
Before venturing to London, Oscar Wilde spent his childhood in Dublin, Ireland and later studied at Trinity College. His father, Sir William, was an eye surgeon and a professor of anatomy in Dublin, and his mother, Lady Jane, was a poet and a supporter of Irish nationalism. Oscar began his studies at Portora Royal School in Enniskillen, and later went on to Trinity College, graduating with a B.A degree in 1871.
It was while he was in college that Wilde realised his talent for writing, and he quickly gained recognition among his peers for his poise and wit. His first poem, Ravenna was accepted for publication by the Kottabos Club of Trinity College, and his success was celebrated widely throughout the college.
Wilde later contributed a number of articles for Dublin University Magazine and published four plays in ‘Magaeuvre’, a Dublin literary magazine, between 1870 and 1872 which were the basis for his later successes. By this time, Oscar Wilde was already a well-known figure in Dublin.
Wilde left Dublin soon after graduating, leaving his family and friends behind in order to pursue his literary career in London. Nevertheless, his impact in Dublin, and Ireland, has endured. The city’s landscape is dotted with monuments and plaques dedicated to him, and Wilde continues to be celebrated as Dublin’s own cultural icon.
Influence on Ireland and the Literary World
Oscar Wilde had an immense influence on the literary world in both the United Kingdom and Ireland. His writing, heavily displaying aesthetics, was one of the most influential aspects of Wilde’s works, both in his own lifetime and beyond. He often satirised Victorian society, and he was renowned for his witty and pointed critiques of the bourgeoisie and their values.
Wilde was firmly embedded in the Irish diaspora in London and his works were praised in and outside of the literary world. His plays, namely The Importance of Being Earnest, set a benchmark for the comedy of manners further developed by later playwrights.
In Ireland, Wilde continues to have an important legacy as a major cultural figure and is celebrated as a prominent Irishman in the United Kingdom and beyond. The Oscar Wilde Centre and the Oscar Wilde House, located in his birth city, Dublin, both pay homage to his life and work, and to the famous character of his own making. There are also collections of his writings, works and memorabilia, such as the Oscar Wilde Collection at the National Library of Ireland.
Wilde’s legacy remains as one of the defining figures of the Victorian period. His witty and often rueful view of Victorian social norms lives on in his works, and to this day, audiences, both professional and recreational, still flock to see his iconic plays, such as The Importance of Being Earnest.
