On October 16, 1854, one of the most iconic authors and gay icons was born. Oscar Wilde was born to William and Jane Wilde. He was their second son, a middle child, and he grew up in Dublin Ireland. His father was notorious for being a serial cheater; he had three kids with three other women, and three kids with his wife, Jane. Oscar’s mother was six feet tall, and regularly hosted parties in the parlor of their home. Oscar and his older brother were invited to sit in the room of the parties, however, they were not to talk to anyone. This is where Oscar learned to captivate an audience.
At the age of 9, Oscar was sent to Portora Royal School, a boarding school, with his brother. Later, he received a scholarship to Trinity College in Ireland, followed a few years later by a scholarship to Oxford, in England. During his time at Oxford, Oscar really came into his own. He was a six foot two, proud Irishman, who was obsessed with aesthetics. He told many people he wanted to become a work of art. He wore a lot of velvet and silk clothes and grew out his hair. In 1878, Oscar became well-known because he placed first in his finals. When asked what his next move would be, he told many people he would become a poet, writer, or playwright. He is also quoted saying, “I will become famous, if not famous, notorious.” Surprisingly, he achieved all of these things, in that order.
Oscar started writing poems when he was at Trinity College, and so, in 1881 Oscar published his first collection of Poems. The collection sold quite a bit, but many critics said the poetry was bland. It was during this time that Oscar was quoted saying, “There’s one thing worse than being talked about and that is not being talked about.” Many people were making fun of Oscar at this time. However, he went on tour in America with the play Patience, a play that was satirical of the aesthetic movement. During his tour, he was to speak to the audience about how the aesthetic movement was a good thing. By the time he returned to London, Oscar had become an international celebrity.
In 1883, Oscar moved to Paris and changed his aesthetic. He did this by adding a flower to his breast pocket. He started smoking gold-tipped cigarettes that he carried in a gold case. He also adorned a cane, for fashion. During his time in Paris, he wrote The Duchess of Padua. Soon after, he had many travels. He went to New York, London, and son back to Dublin. In Dublin, he ran into Constance Lloyd, a woman he had met in London in 1881. The two got married in 1884 and they had their first son in 1885 followed by their second a few months later. However, many people comment about how Oscar didn’t know he was gay when he was married. He was even heard making comments about his wife’s appearance. He said that he was disgusted with how she looked because her very slim body had become swollen with pregnancy. Many believe that this is because before she was pregnant, Constance resembled a male figure. Also, at age 32, Oscar became the editor of a magazine titled Lady’s World, later renamed, Woman’s World. Around the same time, Oscar began tutoring a boy named Robert Ross who was obsessed with Wilde’s poetry. It was at this time where Oscar began living a double life because Ross had seduced him.
In 1890, The Picture of Dorian Gray was published in Lippincott’s Magazine. The Picture of Dorian Gray was seen and scandalous and was highly criticized. Many people called the work ‘unclean.’ In 1891, at age 36, Oscar fell in love with an Oxford student named Alfred “Bosie” Douglas. Alfred was the encompassment of Dorian Gray with blonde hair and overall, gorgeous. However, Alfred was sixteen years younger than Wilde, making him twenty years old. Truthfully, the two were perfect for each other, and Oscar gave Alfred many gifts and they spent a lot of time together. Oscar even went as far as telling his wife that he spent time in hotels because he needed privacy for writing, however, he was staying in hotels with Alfred. Wilde even wrote many plays with titles that alluded to his secret life. For example, “An Ideal Husband” and “A Woman of No Importance.” Oscar caused himself to go into debt because the more money he made the more money he spent. He was spending the modern equivalent of $10,000 a week.
Alfred and Oscar were lovers in many settings, however, they spent a lot of time together ‘hunting’ for other lovers for themselves, or for the other. It is said that Wilde got ‘addicted’ to the danger of the homosexual underworld in London. The homosexual underworld, meaning gay prostitutes. Also, Oscar did not have a lot of time for his wife and children. However, he never tried too hard to hide his secret life. He essentially hid it in plain sight. Oscar essentially lived life thinking that if he didn’t say anything about his secrets, then there was nothing going on, even though many people saw Oscar engaging in suspicious acts.
Soon, Alfred’s father, the Marquess of Queensberry, grew suspicious of the relationship between his son and Oscar. He confronted them many times but did not find out much. In 1894, Queensberry met with Wilde on Tite Street and made his feelings clear to Wilde. “I do not say that you are it, but you look it, and pose it. Which is just as bad. If I catch you and my son again in any public restaurant, I will thrash you.” Wilde only responded to this with, “I do not know what the Queensberry rules are, but the Oscar Wilde rule is to shoot on sight.”
In February 1895, Alfred’s father left his calling card at Wilde’s club. It said, “For Oscar Wilde, posing somdomite.” Wilde, who was encouraged by his lover, initiated a private prosecution against Queensberry since the note was a public accusation that Wilde had committed the crime of sodomy. Queensberry was arrested for criminal libel. He could only avoid conviction for libel only if he could present evidence that his accusation was true, and also that there was public benefit to having the accusation made openly. Thus, Queensberry’s lawyers hired private detectives to find evidence of Wilde’s homosexual activities. During their investigation, the private detectives leaked information about Oscar’s private affairs to the press. At the end of the trial, Queensberry was found not guilty and the court found that his accusation was justified. Thus, the end of the trial rendered Wilde legally liable for the expenses Queensberry had incurred and left Wilde bankrupt.
On April 6, 1895, Wilde was arrested for gross indecency under section 11 of the criminal law amendment act of 1885. This act referred to homosexual acts not amounting to buggery. Wilde’s prosecution opened on April 26, 1895. He pleaded not guilty, but the trial ended with a hung jury. Wilde, then, was able to post bail, and then went into hiding. The trial was, essentially, reopened and on May 25, 1895, Oscar and Alfred were convicted of gross indecency and were sentenced to two years’ hard labor. Wilde was incarcerated from 25 May 1895 to 18 May 1897. Once released from prison, Wilde immediately fled to Paris and never returned to the UK. Wilde spent his last years impoverished and in exile. Alfred and Oscar reunited in Naples, during this time. Also, Constance offered Oscar 150 pounds a year to stop seeing Alfred. She had also moved herself and their children to Switzerland. Alfred and Oscar soon had to stop seeing each other because of the fear of having truly, nothing. Constance took away the money from Oscar and then died four months later. There also was no chance of Oscar ever seeing his children again.
In November 1900, Oscar died of cerebral meningitis at the age of 46.
In his life, Oscar faced quite a bit of prejudice, yet he somehow stayed true to himself. He achieved all of his goals and is one of the most iconic authors of all time.
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