‘Disobedience, in the eyes of any one who has read history, is man’s original virtue. It is through disobedience that progress has been made, through disobedience and through rebellion.’
‘To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.’
Oscar Wilde is best known for his comedy The Importance of Being Earnest and his classic decadent novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. However, despite his flamboyance, his critical writings and essays show a writer of great depth with a deep understanding of philosophy and literature. The eloquently written essays in this volume contains Wilde's ideas regarding art and society. Readers will find that Wilde is not only an original thinker, but also a thinker who thoroughly understood the human condition and an advocate for restructuring society in such a way that allows each and every individual to achieve his or her true potential.
This volume contains “The Soul of Man under Socialism” and Intentions, a collection of his best essays which includes “The Decay of Lying”, “Pen, Pencil, and Poison”, “The Critic as Artist”, and “The Truth of Masks”.
Oscar Wilde was a poet, playwright, and novelist best known for his witticism and his tragic imprisonment and untimely death. He was also known for being a promoter of aesthetic philosophy and an essayist. His best known writings are The Importance of Being Earnest, The Picture of Dorian Gray, and The Soul of Man under Socialism.