Oscar Wilde (16 October 1854 – 30 November 1900) was an Irish poet and playwright. After completing his education in Ireland and the UK, Wilde became associated with the philosophy of
aestheticism and then settled in London. After writing in different forms throughout the 1880s, including plays, poems and lectures, he became one of the most popular playwrights in London in the early 1890s, with works including
Salome (1891),
An Ideal Husband (1895) and
The Importance of Being Earnest (1895). He also wrote his sole novel
The Picture of Dorian Gray around this time. At the height of his fame and success, Wilde prosecuted the
Marquess of Queensberry for
criminal libel. The Marquess was the father of Wilde's lover,
Lord Alfred Douglas. The libel trial unearthed evidence that caused Wilde to drop his charges and led to his own arrest and trial for
gross indecency with men; he was convicted and jailed from 1895 to 1897. After his release, he spent his last three years impoverished and in exile in France before his death from
meningitis. His last works included
De Profundis (published posthumously in 1905), a letter discussing his spiritual journey through his trials, and
The Ballad of Reading Gaol (1898), a poem about the harsh rhythms of prison life.
Photograph credit: Napoleon Sarony; restored by Adam Cuerden
