Oscar Wilde
Oscar Fingal O'Flahertie Wills Wilde (16 October 1854 – 30 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, he became one of London's most popular playwrights in the early 1890s. He is best remembered for his epigrams and plays, his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray, and the circumstances of his criminal conviction for homosexuality, imprisonment, and early death at age 46.
‘Queer’-ying the Classics: A discussion with Oscar Wilde
Saturday 22nd | 1:00PM
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Oscar Wilde is famous to many as the man quoted on fridge magnet epitaphs, and to others as a literary genius behind works such as The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Importance of Being Ernest. Additionally, he is undoubtedly a champion of gay rights and culture. In 1895, Wilde was imprisoned for ‘gross indecency’ - being homosexual. He faced interrogation and exposure, with love letters exchanged between Wilde and his lover, Alfred Lord Douglas, read allowed to the court. Wilde’s powerful writing has gone on to provide countless readers with hope and comfort in the face of injustice.
Entirely unfiltered and free to speak without fear, ClassiCon 2019 brings visitors a live discussion with Oscar Wilde himself. In the event (chaired by Leanne Nulty) Wilde will discuss his own experiences, the importance of re-examining older works for queer subtext, and contemporary #OwnVoices LGBTQ+ writing.
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Tickets available soon.
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The Importance of Being Earnest is a glorious comedy of mistaken identity, which ridicules codes of propriety and etiquette. Manners and morality are also victims of Wilde's sharp wit in Lady Windermere's Fan, A Woman of No Importance and An Ideal Husband, in which snobbery and hypocrisy are laid bare.
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You can purchase a copy of The Importance of Being Earnest from Waterstones
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ISBN: 9780140436068
RRP: £8.99
'To lose one parent may be regarded as a misfortune; to lose both looks like carelessness.'
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- The Importance of Being Earnest