Oscar Wilde Myths, Miracles and Imitations [Paperback]

This book explores Oscar Wilde's influence on fin de si?cle and twentieth-century culture and style.Oscar Wilde was a major influence on the culture of his time, and remains relevant today, as a model of wit and style, a sexual icon, and a moral example. John Stokes shows how in the 1880s and 1890s Wilde played a vital part in the development of modern culture, inspiring others to carry his ideas on into the twentieth century. Stokes examines the evidence of diaries, letters, dramatisations of Wilde's plays and impersonations of the man himself, and discusses Wilde's relationship to fin-de-siècle and twentieth-century ideas.Oscar Wilde was a major influence on the culture of his time, and remains relevant today, as a model of wit and style, a sexual icon, and a moral example. John Stokes shows how in the 1880s and 1890s Wilde played a vital part in the development of modern culture, inspiring others to carry his ideas on into the twentieth century. Stokes examines the evidence of diaries, letters, dramatisations of Wilde's plays and impersonations of the man himself, and discusses Wilde's relationship to fin-de-siècle and twentieth-century ideas.Oscar Wilde was a major influence on the culture of his time, and remains relevant today, as a model of wit and style, a sexual icon, and a moral example. John Stokes shows how in the 1880s and 1890s Wilde played a vital part in the development of modern culture, inspiring others to carry his ideas on into the twentieth century. Stokes examines the evidence of diaries, letters, dramatizations of Wilde's plays and impersonations of the man himself, and discusses Wilde's relationship to fin-de-siècle and twentieth-century ideas.List of illustrations; Acknowledgements; List of abbreviations; Introduction; 1. The magic ball; 2. Some gentle criticisms of British justice; 3. Wilde at bay: the diary of George Ives; 4. Romantic reincarnations; 5. Beardsley/Jarry: the art of deformation; 6. Dieppe: 1895 andl“+