Born in Dublin in 1854, Oscar Wilde was one of history's most scandalous and controversial writers. Best known for his play, "The Importance of Being Earnest,"(1895), he had originally set out to be a great poet.
Coming from a literary family, both of Wilde's parents were writers, he attended Trinity College in Dublin from 1871-1874, and found early success as a poet. Later, at Oxford, he won the prestigious Newdigate Prize, in 1878, for his poem, "Ravenna." While there his deepest influences came from John Ruskin and Walter Pater.
Living in London, Wilde soon became the leader of a cult, preaching the gospel of "beauty." This brought him the opportunity to travel throughout England and the Continent,lecturing. In 1882, he traveled to the U.S. for a tour, speaking about his "Esthetic Philosophy," which encompasses views gathered from several others, including Rossetti and Keats, with Wilde's own twist. His theory of "art for arts sake," "manners before morals," and other ideas that promoted the aesthetic appearance of one's self, such as "clothes are the man."
He married Constance Lloyd in 1884 and had two sons, although Wilde was later imprisoned after the Marquess of Queensbury accused him of "posing as a sodomite," fueled by an apparent affair Wilde entertained with the Marquess' son, Lord Douglas. Wilde sued Queensbury, however unsuccessfully, and was prosecuted for indecent acts, sentencing him to 2 years (1895-1897 hard labor. This time however gave Wilde the opportunity to compose 2 works, "Ballad of Reading Gaol,"(1895) and an autobiographical essay entitled, "De Profundis," (1905).
At the time of his imprisonment, Wilde was at the height of his career, and regarded as one of London's most prominent playwrights, receiving great successes from several of his plays.
The first of which was created for actress, Lillie Langtry, "Lady Windermere's Fan," and coined the infamous quote, "What is a cynic? A man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing." His second success came in the form of, "A Woman of No Importance," (1893), followed by "The Importance of Being Earnest," (1895). Finally, "Salome," a play Wilde had written in 1893 in french was translated by Lord Douglas and produced in 1896 in Paris after being banned from
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