Books by Oscar Wilde

Book SynopsisExam board: Edexcel Level & Subject: AS and A Level English Literature First teaching: September 2015 Next exams: 2025Trade Review“The new Collins Classroom Classic editions are perfect for schools – clear text, bright covers, a good size for pockets and bags, and a great price that makes buying new class or cohort sets very attractive in these budget-conscious times.” de Stafford School

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Book SynopsisOscar Wilde (Author) Oscar Wilde was born in Dublin on 16 October 1854. He studied at Trinity College, Dublin and Magdalen College, Oxford. He later lived in London and married Constance Lloyd there in 1884. Wilde was a leader of the Aesthetic Movement. His only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, was first published in Lippincott's Monthly Magazine in 1890. He published a revised and expanded edition in 1891 in response to negative reviews which criticised the book's immorality. Wilde became famous through of the immense success of his plays such as Lady Windemere's Fan (1892), An Ideal Husband (1895) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1895).In 1985, after a public scandal involving Wilde's relationship with Lord Alfred Douglas, he was sentenced to two years' hard labour in Reading Gaol for 'gross indecency'. His poem The Ballad of Reading Gaol was based on his experiences in prison and was published in 1898. After his release, Wilde never lived in England again and died in Paris on 30 November 1900. He is buried in Père Lachaise cemetery.Alexis Deacon (Illustrator) Alexis Deacon graduated from the University of Brighton, where he studied Illustration, gaining a first class honours degree. Alexis Deacon was one of Booktrust's ten Best New Illustrators in 2008, and Beegu was a New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Book of the Year and shortlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal. Alexis lives in London.Trade ReviewThe timeless morality tale ... is simply but effectively retold in this superbly illustrated edition. The contrast between the apocalyptic desolation of the giant’s nightmarish isolation and the rich vitality of the restored, child-filled garden is dramatic and filled with telling detail, and the gradual realisation of the havoc he has wreaked makes the giant’s conversion quite moving. Easily understood by even the youngest of readers. * Daily Mail *Deacon breathes new life into Wilde’s timeless fairytale in a stunning new abridged version of the classic * The Bookseller *Alexis Deacon has interpreted, and enriched, this much-loved Oscar Wilde fairytale with stunning new illustrations. The transformation of the giant from selfish to caring is beautifully realised * Carousel *Deacon has abridged the story here for early years children and his bold, atmospheric illustrations paint a memorable portrait of the dark and light shades of this timeless story which emphasises the power of love and the importance of sharing and forgiveness.Beautifully designed and produced, this marvellous adaptation is an ideal gift for all young readers. * Driffield Today *Illustrator Alexis Deacon has been rightly praised for his beautiful drawings, and he has put his talents to good use by breathing life into Oscar Wilde’s timeless fairytale The Selfish Giant. * Burnley Express *

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Book SynopsisWITH AN INTRODUCTION BY IRVINE WELSHDorian is a good-natured young man until he discovers the power of his own exceptional beauty. As he gradually sinks deep into a frivolous, glamorous world of selfish luxury, he apparently remains physically unchanged by the stresses of his corrupt lifestyle and untouched by age.Trade Review[A] remarkable work of imagination...A wonderfully entertaining parable of the aesthetic ideal * Guardian *A heady late-Victorian tale of double-living -- Sarah WatersThere's an incurable disease afflicting females - ageing. Men, on the other hand, never pass their amuse-by dates. Sean Connery is still cutting the sex god mustard and, if time flies, then HE has frequent air miles. Yet, you never hear a man described as mutton dressed as ram, now do you? This is a book about a bloke who realises that the night is young, but he is not... -- Kathy LetteIn The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde set the gold standard for chroniclers of decadence * Guardian *Very decadent and Victorian * Savidge Reads *

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Book SynopsisSelection includes The Portrait of Mr W.H., Wilde''s defence of Dorian Gray, reviews, and the writings from ''Intentions'' (1891): ''The Decay of Lying, ''Pen, Pencil, Poison'', and ''The Critic as Artist''.Wilde is familiar to us as the ironic critic behind the social comedies, as the creator of the beautiful and doomed Dorian Gray, as the flamboyant aesthete and the demonised homosexual. This volume presents us with a different Wilde. Wilde emerges here as a deep and serious reader of literature and philosophy, and an eloquent and original thinker about society and art.Table of ContentsThe Soul of Man under Socialism and Selected Critical ProseIntroductionNote on the TextsEight Reviews (1885-90)1. Mr. Whistler's Ten o'Clock2. The Relation of Dress to Art3. A Sentimental Journey through Literature4. Mr. Pater's Imaginary Portraits5. [The Actor as Critic]6. Poetical Socialists7. Mr. Swinburne's Last Volume8. Mr. Pater's Last VolumeThe Portrait of Mr. W. H. (expanded version 1889) In Defence of Dorian Gray (1890-91)The Soul of Man Under Socialism (1891)Intentions (1891)1. The Decay of Lying2. Pen, Pencil and Poison3. The Critic as Artist - Part IThe Critic as Artist - Part II4. The Truth of MasksNotesFurther Reading

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Book SynopsisThe crowning plays of one of Ireland's most heralded artistsOscar Wilde was at once a family man and a homosexual outsider, a socialite, socialist, and Irish nationalist. His contradictions inspired him to ponder the roles and masks donned in conventional society, and his acute and wry insights are wonderfully displayed in this collection of his essential plays. Known not only for his brilliant, epigrammatic language, but also for his sense of theatrical design, color, and staging, Wilde created an enduring body of finely crafted works, whose delights and ironies still speak to modern audiences. In addition to Lady Windermere's Fan, Salomé, A Woman of No Importance, An Ideal Husband, A Florentine Tragedy, and The Importance of Being Earnest, this edition contains an introduction, notes and commentaries, and an excised scene from The Importance of Being Earnest.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

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Book SynopsisEnthralled by his own exquisite portrait, Dorian Gray exchanges his soul for eternal youth and beauty. Influenced by his friend Lord Henry Wotton, he is drawn into a corrupt double life; indulging his desires in secret while remaining a gentleman in the eyes of polite society. Only his portrait bears the traces of his decadence. The novel was a succès de scandale and the book was later used as evidence against Wilde at the Old Bailey in 1895. It has lost none of its power to fascinate and disturb.

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Book SynopsisCalling on diverse examples from Ancient Greek sculpture to contemporary paintings, this title creates a witty, paradoxical world in which the only art worth loving is that built on complete untruths.

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Book SynopsisOffers a collection of wit and wisdom that demonstrates the author's vision and his style.

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Book SynopsisA haunting, magical fairy-tale collection, in which Oscar Wilde beautifully evokes (among others) The Happy Prince who was not so happy after all, The Selfish Giant who learned to love little children and The Star Child who did not love his parents as much as he should. Each of the stories shines with poetry and magic and will be enjoyed by children of every age. A perfect collection for children young and old, introduced by Markus Zusak, bestselling author of The Book Thief.

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Book Synopsis''He was not blind to the fact that murder, like the religions of the Pagan world, requires a victim as well as a priest...''Wilde''s supremely witty tale of dandies, anarchists and a murderous prophecy in London high society.Introducing Little Black Classics: 80 books for Penguin''s 80th birthday. Little Black Classics celebrate the huge range and diversity of Penguin Classics, with books from around the world and across many centuries. They take us from a balloon ride over Victorian London to a garden of blossom in Japan, from Tierra del Fuego to 16th-century California and the Russian steppe. Here are stories lyrical and savage; poems epic and intimate; essays satirical and inspirational; and ideas that have shaped the lives of millions.Oscar Wilde (1854-1900). Wilde''s works available in Penguin Classics are De Profundis and Other Prison Writings, The Complete Short Fiction, The Importance of Being Earnest and Other Plays, The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Soul of Man Under Socialism and Selected Critical Prose.

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Book SynopsisThe complete short stories of the masterful Irish writerFairy tales, ghost stories, detective fiction and comedies of manners—the stories collected in this volume made Oscar Wilde's name as a writer of fiction, showing breathtaking dexterity in a wide range of literary styles. Victorian moral justice is comically inverted in Lord Arthur Savile's Crime and The Canterville Ghost, and society's materialism comes under sharp, humorous criticism in The Model Millionaire, while The Happy Prince and The Nightingale and the Rose are hauntingly melancholic in their magical evocations of selfless love. These small masterpieces convey the brilliance of Wilde's vision, exploring complex moral issues through an elegant juxtaposition of wit and sentiment.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best work

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Book SynopsisEnthralled by his own exquisite portrait, Dorian Gray exchanges his soul for eternal youth and beauty. Influenced by his friend Lord Henry Wotton, he is drawn into a corrupt double life; indulging his desires in secret while remaining a gentleman in the eyes of polite society. Only his portrait bears the traces of his decadence.

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Book SynopsisWord count 6,347

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Book SynopsisThis authoritative edition was formerly published in the acclaimed Oxford Authors series under the general editorship of Frank Kermode. It brings together a unique combination of Wilde''s poetry and prose short stories, plays, critical dialogues and his only novel - to give the essence of his work and thinking. Oscar Wilde''s dramatic private life has sometimes threatened to overshadow his great literary achievements. His talent was prodigious: the author of brilliant social comedies, fairy stories, critical dialogues, poems, and a novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray. In addition to Dorian Gray, this volume represents all these genres, including such works as Lady Windermere''s Fan and The Importance of Being Earnest, ''The Happy Prince'', ''The Critic as Artist'', and ''The Ballad of Reading Gaol''. ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World''s Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford''s commitment toTable of Contents* INTRODUCTION * TEXTUAL NOTE * BIBLIOGRAPHY * CHRONOLOGY * EXPLANATORY NOTES *INDEX

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Book SynopsisPenguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online.Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers'' story comprehension and develop vocabulary.Visit the Penguin Readers websiteExclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and answer keys.An American family buy Canterville Hall - a house with a ghost. But the ghost is not happy because it cannot frighten the family.

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Book SynopsisPenguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online.Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers'' story comprehension and develop vocabulary.Visit the Penguin Readers websiteExclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and answer keys.An artist paints a beautiful young man called Dorian Gray. When Dorian sees the picture, he decides to give his soul to keep his beautiful face. He lives a bad life and he is bad to many people, but his face never changes. However, in a room upstairs, the portrait gets uglier and uglier.

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Book SynopsisPenguin Readers is an ELT graded reader series for learners of English as a foreign language. With carefully adapted text, new illustrations and language learning exercises, the print edition also includes instructions to access supporting material online.Titles include popular classics, exciting contemporary fiction, and thought-provoking non-fiction, introducing language learners to bestselling authors and compelling content.The eight levels of Penguin Readers follow the Common European Framework of Reference for language learning (CEFR). Exercises at the back of each Reader help language learners to practise grammar, vocabulary, and key exam skills. Before, during and after-reading questions test readers'' story comprehension and develop vocabulary.The Happy Prince, a Starter level Reader, is A1 in the CEFR framework. Starter level is ideal for readers who are learning English for the first time. Short sentences contain a maximum of two clauses, using the present simple and continuous tenses, possessives, regular and irregular verbs, and simple adjectives. Illustrations support the text throughout, and many titles at this level are graphic novels.In an old town in England, there is a statue of a happy prince. But the prince is not happy. He can see the sad things in the town. Then he meets a swallow. They help the people.Visit the Penguin Readers websiteExclusively with the print edition, readers can unlock online resources including a digital book, audio edition, lesson plans and answer keys.

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Book SynopsisOscar Wilde's grand U.S. tour, captured in dozens of newspaper interviewsTrade Review"A generous and welcome sampling."--New York Review of Books "Highly recommended."--Choice"[A] rewarding, absorbing, and necessary book."--The Gay and Lesbian Review "Wilde was a source of fascination and provocation, and these assembled portraits reveal the rawness and the refinements, the pride and the anxieties, of American culture in the making during this important period. A vital and valuable book."--Eric Haralson, editor of Reading the Middle Generation Anew: Culture, Community, and Form in Twentieth-Century American Poetry"This stimulating work is an invaluable record of Wilde's speech, appearance, and demeanor. An excitingly fresh study of interest both to Wilde specialists and to general readers."--Donald Mead, chairman of the Oscar Wilde Society and editor of The Wildean: A Journal of Oscar Wilde StudiesTable of ContentsIntroduction; Interviews; 1 "Oscar Wilde's Arrival," New York World, 3 January 1882; 2 "Oscar Wilde," New York Evening Post, 4 January 1882; 3 "Our New York Letter," Philadelphia Inquirer, 4 January 1882; 4 "The Theories of a Poet," New York Tribune, 8 January 1882; 5 "The Science of the Beautiful," New York World, 8 January 1882; 6 "A Talk with Wilde," Philadelphia Press, 17 January 1882; 7 "The Aesthetic Bard," Philadelphia Inquirer, 17 January 1882; 8 "What Oscar Has to Say," Baltimore American, 20 January 1882, 4; 9 "Wilde and Forbes," New York Herald, 21 January 1882, 3; 10 "An Interview with the Poet," Albany Argus, 28 January 1882; 11 "Oscar Wilde," Boston Herald, 29 January 1882; 12 "The Aesthetic Apostle," Boston Globe, 29 January 1882; 13 Lilian Whiting, "They Will Show Him," Chicago Inter-Ocean, 10 February 1882; 14 "A Man of Culture Rare," Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, 8 February 1882; 15 "Wilde Sees the Falls," Buffalo Express, ca 9 February 1882; rpt Wheeling Register, 27 Feb 1882; 16 "The Apostle of Art," Chicago Inter-Ocean, 11 February 1882; 17 "Truly Aesthetic," Chicago Inter-Ocean, 13 February 1882; 18 "Wilde," Cleveland Leader, 20 February 1882; 19 "With Mr Oscar Wilde," Cincinnati Gazette, 21 February 1882; 20 "Oscar Wilde," Cincinnati Enquirer, 21 February 1882; 21 "Utterly Utter," St Louis Post-Dispatch, 25 February 1882; 22 "Speranza's Gifted Son," St Louis Globe-Democrat, 26 February 1882; 23 "Oscar As He Is," St Louis Republican, 26 February 1882; 24 "Oscar Wilde," Chicago Tribune, 1 March 1882; 25 "Philosophical Oscar," Chicago Times, 1 March 1882; 26 "David and Oscar," Chicago Tribune, 5 March 1882; 27 "Oscar Wilde in Omaha," Omaha Weekly Herald, 24 March 1882; 28 "Oscar Wilde: An Interview with the Apostle of Aestheticism," San Francisco Examiner, 27 Mar 1882; 29 "Oscar Wilde's Views," San Francisco Morning Call, 27 March 1882; 30 "Lo! The Aesthete," San Francisco Chronicle, 27 March 1882; 31 "Oscar Arrives," Sacramento Record-Union, 27 March 1882; 32 Mary Watson, "Oscar Wilde at Home," San Francisco Examiner, 9 April 1882; 33 "Oscar Wilde," Salt Lake Herald, 12 April 1882; 34 "Oscar Wilde," Denver Rocky Mountain News, 13 April 1882; 35 "Art and Aesthetics," Denver Tribune, 13 April 1882; 36 "What Mr Wilde Says about Himself," Manchester Examiner and Times; rpt New York Tribune, 11 June 1882; Chicago Tribune, 17 June 1882, 3; 37 "Aesthetic / An Interesting Interview with Oscar Wilde," Dayton Daily Democrat, 3 May 1882; 38 "Oscar Wilde's Return," New York World, 6 May 1882; 39 "Oscar Wilde in Montreal," Montreal Witness, 15 May 1882; 40 "Oscar Wilde: The Arch-Aesthete on Aestheticism," Montreal Star, 15 May 1882; 41 "Oscar Wilde," Toronto Globe, 25 May 1882; 42 "The Aesthete at the Art Exhibition," Toronto Globe, 26 May 1882; 43 "Oscar Wilde / Talks of Texas," New Orleans Picayune, 25 June 1882; 44 "Oscar Wilde: Arrival of the Great Aesthete," Atlanta Constitution, 5 July 1882; 45 "Oscar Dear, Oscar Dear!" Charleston News and Courier, 8 July 1882; 46 "Loveliness and Politeness," New York Sun, 20 August 1882; 47 "The Apostle of Beauty in Nova Scotia," Halifax Herald, 10 October 1882; 48 "Oscar Wilde Thoroughly Exhausted," New York Tribune, 27 November 1882; Appendix Wilde's lecture "Impressions of America"; Bibliography of Wilde interviews; Works Cited

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Book SynopsisOscar Wilde's grand U.S. tour, captured in dozens of newspaper interviewsTrade Review"A generous and welcome sampling."--New York Review of Books "Highly recommended."--Choice"[A] rewarding, absorbing, and necessary book."--The Gay and Lesbian Review "Wilde was a source of fascination and provocation, and these assembled portraits reveal the rawness and the refinements, the pride and the anxieties, of American culture in the making during this important period. A vital and valuable book."--Eric Haralson, editor of Reading the Middle Generation Anew: Culture, Community, and Form in Twentieth-Century American Poetry"This stimulating work is an invaluable record of Wilde's speech, appearance, and demeanor. An excitingly fresh study of interest both to Wilde specialists and to general readers."--Donald Mead, chairman of the Oscar Wilde Society and editor of The Wildean: A Journal of Oscar Wilde Studies

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Book SynopsisThe handsome appearance of dissolute young Dorian Gray remains unchanged while the features in his portrait become distorted as his degeneration progresses.

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Book Synopsis“This edition is of the utmost importance to those interested in Wilde and literary modernism. It seems certain to become the standard edition of Dorian Gray.” —Ned Lukacher, University of Illinois at Chicago

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Book SynopsisPart of the Norton Library series

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Book SynopsisThis volume contains everything Wilde wrote in dramatic form

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Book Synopsis Few works in English literature have so peculiar a history as Oscar Wilde''s play Salome. Written originally in French in 1892 and ridiculed on its publication, translated into English by Lord Alfred Douglas (Bosie himself) and again heaped with scorn, it has survived for 75 years, served as the text (in abridged form) for Richard Strauss'' world-famous opera, and emerged as an acknowledged masterwork of the Aesthetic movement of fin de siècle England.The illustrations that Aubrey Beardsley prepared for the first English edition have no less strange a story. Beardsley liked neither the play nor its author. Yet, it inspired some of his finest work. It is an open question as to how suited the drawings actually are to the text that Wilde wrote. Yet, the two, the play and the Beardsley illustrations, have nevertheless become so identified with each other as to be inseparable.This edition reprints the first edition (1894) text, with A Note on ''Salome'' by Robert Ross. The Beardsley drawings it superbly reproduces (mostly from a rare early portfolio) include not only the 10 full-page illustrations, the front and back cover designs, the title and List of Illustrations page decorations, and the cul de lampe from the original edition, but also three drawings that were not used, an alternate cover sketch, and the drawing entitled J''ai baisé ta bouche, Iokanaan, which Beardsley did earlier for The Studio. Furthermore, all of the illustrations are reproduced in their original state, not as expurgated in the first and most subsequent editions.

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Book SynopsisA collection of literature anthologies and reference books for Key Stage 3 onwards.Table of ContentsCambridge literature; Introduction; The cast; The importance of being earnest; Resource notes; Glossary; Further reading.

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Book SynopsisFlamboyant and controversial, Oscar Wilde was a dazzling personality, a master of wit, and a dramatic genius whose sparkling comedies contain some of the most brilliant dialogue ever written for the English stage. Here in one volume are his immensely popular novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray; his last literary work, “The Ballad of Reading Gaol,” a product of his own prison experience; and four complete plays: Lady Windermere’s Fan, his first dramatic success, An Ideal Husband, which pokes fun at conventional morality, The Importance of Being Earnest, his finest comedy, and Salomé, a portrait of uncontrollable love originally written in French and faithfully translated by Richard Ellmann.Every selection appears in its entirety-a marvelous collection of outstanding works by the incomparable Oscar Wilde, who’s been aptly called “a lord of language” by Max Beerbohm.

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Book SynopsisHigh above the city, on a tall column, stood the statue of the Happy Prince. He was gilded all over with thin leaves of fine gold, for eyes he had two bright sapphires, and a large red ruby glowed on his sword-hilt.The Happy Prince and Other Tales is a collection of five stories: ''The Happy Prince'', ''The Nightingale and the Rose'', ''The Selfish Giant'', ''The Devoted Friend'', and ''The Remarkable Rocket''. The Happy Prince stars the statue of the Prince, who persuades a swallow to deliver his gold and jewels to the poor and needy in his city.Liberty of London and Faber & Faber both offer peerless quality and unrivalled originality. Liberty of London''s patterned, print and floral fabrics are world famous. This partnership brings together the best writers with one of the foremost design teams to create books that will be coveted by artistic shoppers and book lovers the world over.

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Book SynopsisThe Annotated Importance of Being Earnest provides facing-page commentary on Oscar Wilde’s greatest play. Editor Nicholas Frankel highlights the play’s relation to the author’s homosexuality and to the climate of sexual repression that led to Wilde’s imprisonment just months after the play’s London opening in 1895.Trade Review[This] edition admirably achieves its stated aim to enlarge the understanding and pleasure of readers and students of Wilde’s most perfect, most studied, and most frequently performed play. -- John Sloan * The Wildean *Frankel’s command of all the relevant materials—textual, literary-critical, historical, biographical—is impressive, and he puts that knowledge to splendid use in The Annotated Importance of Being Earnest. -- Stephen Arata, University of VirginiaAn excellent edition with new insights and superb annotations that continues Frankel’s lively and important work on Wilde. -- Linda Peterson, Yale University

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Book SynopsisOscar Wilde is best remembered for his longer works, his criticism and journalism, and his eventful life. But nothing distills his brilliance like his short fiction. Published here with facing-page annotations and an informative introduction by Nicholas Frankel, the stories pulse with Wilde’s trademark wit, sharp social critique, and tragic love.Trade ReviewA perfect selection of Oscar Wilde stories, with superb annotations by Nicholas Frankel, who is one of the most astute, perceptive, and knowledgeable writers on Wilde. -- Colm TóibínAlthough Oscar Wilde’s literary reputation rests mainly on his plays and essays, he was also the author of a passel of great short stories, ranging from the acerbic ‘Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime’ to the delicate and heartbreaking ‘The Happy Prince,’ which brings tears to my eyes every time I read it. Edited with thoughtful precision by Nicholas Frankel and replete with beautiful illustrations, The Short Stories of Oscar Wilde will delight Wilde’s admirers. For those reading his work for the first time, it will prove revelatory. -- David LeavittNicholas Frankel’s Introduction and notes open up new contexts and rich complications that make this new edition of the short stories of Oscar Wilde essential reading—and indeed rereading. -- Kate Hext, University of ExeterThis carefully chosen selection brings together some of Oscar Wilde’s most beautiful and haunting stories. Frankel expertly relates Wilde’s tales to the author’s Irish heritage and to the lively scene of Victorian publishing, providing a fascinating account of the material history of the books and periodicals in which they first appeared. -- Stefano Evangelista, University of OxfordOscar Wilde’s stories continue to delight and challenge us today, just as they did his contemporaries. The pleasure of reading them is further enhanced by Nicholas Frankel’s informative and often fascinating annotations. This is a splendid volume. -- Stephen Arata, University of Virginia

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Book SynopsisWritten from Wilde''s prison cell at Reading Gaol to his friend and lover Lord Alfred Douglas, De Profundis explodes the conventions of the traditional love letter and offers a scathing indictment of Douglas''s behavior, a mournful elegy for Wilde''s own lost greatness, and an impassioned plea for reconciliation. At once a bracingly honest account of ruinous attachment and a profound meditation on human suffering, De Profundis is a classic of gay literature. Richard Ellmann calls De Profundis 'a love letter...One of the greatest, and the longest, ever written.'This Modern Library Paperback Classics edition contains newly commissioned notes.

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“ Donohue’s translation modernizes Salomé in an accessible style which might attract a new generation to the play’s audacity. Barry Moser’s powerful illustrations, too, are striking.” - Joseph Bristow, Times Literary Supplement

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Book SynopsisAfter all, who has the right to cast a stone against one who has suffered? Cannot repentance wipe out an act of folly? Why should there be one law for me and another for women?Wilde''s ''trivial play for serious people'', a sparkling comedy of manners, is the epitome of wit and style. This brilliantly constructed satire with its celebrated characters and much-quoted dialogue turns accepted ideas inside out and is generally regarded as Wilde''s masterpiece. This Methuen Drama Student Edition of the play includes commentary and notes by Lucie Sutherland, Assistant Professor in Drama at the University of Nottingham, UK, which investigate the play through a contemporary lens, bringing in the contributions from queer scholarship and discussions of recent productions of the play.Trade ReviewComes as close to perfection as any comedy I can think of. * Daily Telegraph *Oscar Wilde's best-known work always had a claim to be the wittiest play in the English language. * Financial Times *There is a real need for an updated, student-focused edition of this much taught play. * Jenny Stevens, author and series editor *A fresh new edition of a theatrical favourite that fully evinces the contemporary appeal of Wildean theatre. * Chris Megson, Reader in Drama, Royal Holloway, University of London *The play isn’t going anywhere, and Lucie’s expertise and proposed coverage look ideally suited to ‘free up’ the play from the grip of English Literature study and debate, and give something that Drama teachers can meaningfully engage with. * Matthew Nichols, Head of Drama at Manchester Grammar School, UK *Table of ContentsCHRONOLOGY COMMENTARY Context Themes Dramatic Devices Structure Language Performance History Behind-the-Scenes: Practitioner Interview Critical Reception and Academic Debate Suggestions for Further Study THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST NOTES

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Book SynopsisOscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (b. Dublin, 1854) was an Irish playwright, who wrote one of the best loved comedies in the English language - The Importance of Being Earnest (1895). A leading wit and conversationalist in London society, his career was destroyed at its height when he was imprisoned for homosexual offences. Wilde was born in Dublin and educated at Trinity College, Dublin, and Magdalen College, Oxford. Settling in London, he became famous for his extravagant dress, long hair, and paradoxical views on art, literature, and morality. His first play, Vera (1880), a tragedy about Russian nihilists, was produced in New York to poor reviews. Success in the theatre came with the elegant drawing-room comedy Lady Windermere's Fan. A Woman of No Importance (1893) was another success. Other works for the theatre were An Ideal Husband (1895) and the biblical Salomé (1896), written in French for Sarah Bernhardt. Wilde flaunted his homosexual affairs, including his ill-fated liaison with Lord Alfred Douglas. Following a celebrated trial in 1895 he was sentenced to two years' imprisonment with hard labour. The sentence led to public humiliation, poor health, and bankruptcy. On his release in 1897 he left for France and remained in exile there until his death in 1900.

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Book SynopsisOscar Wilde was born in October 1854 in Dublin. After attending Trinity College in Dublin and Magdalen College in Oxford, Wilde embarked on a career as a poet, quickly establishing himself as a leading figure in the aesthetic movement. He was at the height of his powers when the unwise prosecution for libel of the father of his lover, Lord Alfred Douglas, led to imprisonment and social disgrace in 1895. He died in exile in 1900, aged 46.

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