An Analysis Of Wilde's The Soul Of Man Under Socialism
THE IMPLICATIONS OF “DEATH”
In the sight of Wilde, the predominant morality eulogized by most traditional fairy tales became a sort of burden or social repression in Victorian society since such hypocritical morality exacerbated the plight of the poor in reality. Through the unconventional application of “death”, for instance, the detailed suffering of characters and unfortunate endings, Wilde’s tales indict the burden such utilitarian moral instruction places on individuals through art works.
The Hypocrisy of Victorian Morality. Some scholars believed that Morality was established and often hypocritically applied by the upper class for the purpose of continuing their family line in Victorian society. For example, Bayley has suggested the hypocrisy of the upper class and the moral standards upheld by them: “the upper class intended to stay on top and wealthy… [They attempt to]
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In his essay “The Soul of Man under Socialism”, Wilde affirmed that the misguided humanitarian, promulgated by those on the upper rungs of the social ladder, exacerbated the plight of the poor: “the majority of people spoil their lives by an unhealthy and exaggerated altruism are forced, indeed, so to spoil them” (The Complete Works 1079). For the sake of a better society, Wilde strove for the freedom of every individual, especially the artists, from the rigid set of the “unhealthy and exaggerated altruism”. He stressed the necessity of breaking from the institutionalized moralism that was imposed on individuals by the society, or more accurately, by the hypocritical upper class “who would extol the virtues of charity and compassion for the less fortunate while establishing and supporting the class system responsible for their condition” (Jones
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Use Of Figurative Language In On Compassion
593 Words | 3 PagesIn Barbara Lazear Ascher's essay “On Compassion”, she describes various situations she's observed in New York City to imply that “compassion is not a character trait like a sunny disposition. It must be learned… adversity that becomes so familiar that we begin to identify and empathize it.” While observing these two scenes, Ascher expresses her admiration towards the curiosity behind compassion by availing pathos, use of questioning and variant figurative language to illustrate the encounters. Combine these two sentences. Through the use of pathos, Ascher exemplifies a description of the homeless as dressed unwell, unhygienic, filthy, and acrid.
Oscar Wilde And Civil Disobedience And Social Progress
995 Words | 4 PagesIrish author Oscar Wilde claimed that disobedience is a valuable human trait, and that it promotes social progress; thus, without it, social progress would not be made. Civil disobedience is to social progress as hard work is to academic success. With hard work comes academic success, and with civil disobedience comes social progress. Though some see disobedience as a negative trait, it is what has promoted social progress in history by challenging social standards and requiring new social rules to be made. Civil disobedience challenges social standards by expanding views on the current guidelines.
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919 Words | 4 PagesWilde portrays the upper class’ attitudes towards the rest
Michael J. Sandel's Justice Analysis
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Classism In Oscar Wilde's The Importance Of Being Earnest
3890 Words | 16 PagesOscar Wilde wrote his plays against the backdrop of the Victorian English society. It therefore helps to discuss the salient aspects of the Victorian society. Victorian England is known for many paradoxes -- glaring contrasts between the rich and the poor, insistence on morality on the one hand and the practice of cynicism on the other, blooming creativity pitted against blatant constriction, imperial grandeur since Britain was then ruling almost one fifth of the total surface of the earth and domestic squalor since the majority of people did not have decent means of livelihood, and finally collectivity dictated by tradition opposed to the rapidly developing individualism. The class system denied the talented members of the lower classes access to social and economic advancement. The upper classes alone had the privilege of working in the government, the armed forces, and the church, while trade was monopolized by the rising middle class.
Literary Analysis Of Oscar Wilde's Impressions Of America
718 Words | 3 PagesIn the 1800’s, America was the subject of many romantic visions and musings. The British and East Coasters alike saw everything west of Appalachia as a wild wonderland: home to cowboys, adventure, and opportunity. Oscar Wilde, a renowned British author and satirist, voyaged across America to test the truth of these claims. Afterwards, he published his findings and opinions in a piece known as Impressions of America. In the piece, he makes it clear that America did not live up to his expectations, and would disappoint his readers as well.
Karl Marx And Capitalism Essay
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Being Earnest: Oscar Wilde's Criticism On The Upper Class
1059 Words | 5 Pagesarch 2018 The Importance of Being Earnest: Oscar Wilde’s Criticism on the Upper Class Using humor, cleverness, and style, Oscar Wilde illustrates the lives of the Victorian upper class in The Importance of Being Earnest. More specifically, the “Trivial Comedy for Serious People” reveals in a satirical manner the insignificant concerns of Great Britain’s aristocracy. In the introduction of The Picture of Dorian Gray and Other Writings, editor Richard Ellmann creates an overview of Wilde’s best known work.
Gender Roles In Oscar Wilde's The Importance Of Being Earnest
928 Words | 4 PagesWilde’s representation of the British upper class, its values and opinions, is presented most notably through Lady Augusta Bracknell. She is a dignified aristocratic residing fashionable London society circles. On the surface, she is very typical Victorian woman. As a mother to Gwendolen Fairfax, she has a great authority over her controlling her life. She has even a list of ”eligible young man” whom she is ready to interview in order to select a suitable partner for her daughter.
The Picture Of Dorian Gray Moral Analysis
873 Words | 4 PagesBut, taking into account all of Wilde’s arguments to defend the book, one must understand that this book isn’t looking to have a moral impact, but instead to free art from morality and social punishment, making society understand what aestheticism really is. Therefore, this book is neither moral nor
Marriage In Oscar Wilde's The Importance Of Being Earnest
1653 Words | 7 PagesOscar Wilde’s Victorian melodramatic play The Importance of Being Earnest opened on February 14, 1895. Wilde used this play to criticize Victorian society through clever phrasing and satire. Throughout the play The Importance of Being Earnest, Wilde displayed the themes of the nature of marriage, the constraints of morality, and the importance of not being earnest. One of the themes that Oscar Wilde includes in the play is the nature of marriage.
Hedonism In Oscar Wilde's The Picture Of Dorian Gray
1283 Words | 6 PagesAs a writer one is greatly influenced by their personal experiences with social, historical, and cultural context within their specific time period. Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray was shaped by the aspects of the world around him. The themes of the text are are influenced by morality in the Victorian Era. Throughout the Victorian Era a deeper movement was also prominent in London called Aestheticism. Aestheticism is the worship of beauty and self-fulfillment.
The Importance Of Being Earnest Satire Analysis
1876 Words | 8 PagesWhile many have been familiar with the title of the play The Importance of Being Earnest by Oscar Wilde, one should also pay attention to its subtitle, ‘trivial comedy for serious people’. The play is a satire that ridicules the upper class to point out its fault (Kreuz and Roberts 100).The aim is to ridicule the ‘serious people’, members of the upper class in Victorian society. The characters were too attentive to social propriety and etiquette, which were as trivial as the comedy suggests in the eyes of Wilde. As they were too stubborn to alter the behaviour, the propriety and etiquette became superficial and meaningless. Their idleness and hypocrisy are other points at which Wilde recurrently mock in the play.
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