Paradox Resolved: An Analysis Of "Individualism" In Oscar Wilde's Intentions And His Personal Life

Oscar Wilde(1854-1900)is interesting in different ways:as a writer,he is popularly read for his witticism and use of paradox;as an aesthete,he is the most ardent advocate for "art for art's sake";as a citizen,he was imprisoned for gross indecency with men at the height of his fame and success.Nurtured in the environment of Aestheticism(or The Aesthetic Movement),Wilde has a view of art that inevitably contains a view of life.His aesthetic stance and his tragic story make the connection of his art criticism and his personal life an interesting topic.This thesis aims to find a common element in Wilde's art criticism and his personal life.Drawing on Wilde's own claim that he is an "individualist",this thesis will attempt to explore the theme of"individualism" in Wilde's Intentions,a collection of Wilde's essays on art,and in his personal life,hoping to achieve a theoretical and practical understanding of art's relation to life in the case of Oscar Wilde.Also,an analysis of individualism embodied in Wilde's use of paradox will be analyzed to illuminate his own understanding of "individualism" in both art and life.This thesis consists of five chapters.The first chapter provides a brief view of Wilde's life and the research background of Intentions and offers a synoptic introduction to the thesis structure.The second chapter looks into the social change and cultural response in the Victorian age and defines Wilde's "Individualism" within this social and cultural context.The next two chapters analyze Wilde's "individualism"expressed in art,criticism,and life respectively,together with an analysis of"individualism" in the way Wilde uses paradox.The last chapter of this thesis will summarize the points made before and go further to explore the significance of Wilde 's tragedy for the advancement of human society.