This paper consisting of five pages contrasts and compares Wilde's works and discusses the views of free will versus determination and their social relevance. Five sources are cited in the bibliography.
Name of Research Paper File: TG15_TGowilde.rtf
Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
and The Picture of Dorian Gray by Tracy Gregory, October 2001 -- properly! Oscar Wilde was
regarded as a sexual deviant during his lifetime, but in death, has been revered as one of the most brilliant literary artists of the Victorian Age. His opinion of
the rigid British social system was similarly low, and his disdain for what he regarded as its pomposity was reflected in his plays and novels, most notably, The Importance of
Being Earnest (1895) and The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890). While, except for the author, these works might appear to have little in common on the surface, with one
being a comic play and the other being a dramatic novel, their similarities are actually quite striking. Wilde employed his art not only as a means of expressing creativity,
but also as a type of social commentary. He delighted in attacking what he perceived as the hypocrisy of British society with his most effective weapon - his pen.
Wildes satirical The Importance of Being Earnest has been lauded as one of the most entertaining comedies ever written. It also was a perfect way for Wilde to successfully
lampoon the British aristocracy. The sophisticated farce enabled Wilde to fulfill a lifelong goal, to take the esteemed elite of high society, and transform them into utter fools.
The plays premise is that of two young ladies, Gwendolyn and Cecily, who are determined to marry a man named Ernest. As Gwendolyn tells her suitor, Jack Worthing, the
man she presumed is named Ernest, "We live, as I hope you know, Mr. Worthing, in an age of ideals... and my ideal has always been to love someone