About this product

Product Identifiers

PublisherOxford University Press, Incorporated

ISBN-100198121830

ISBN-139780198121831

eBay Product ID (ePID)72447

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Number of Pages236 Pages

LanguageEnglish

Publication NameRevising Wilde : Society and Subversion in the Plays of Oscar Wilde

Publication Year1996

SubjectEuropean / English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh

TypeTextbook

AuthorSos Eltis

Subject AreaLiterary Criticism

SeriesOxford English Monographs

FormatHardcover

Dimensions

Item Height0.7 in

Item Weight14.5 Oz

Item Length8.5 in

Item Width5.4 in

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Intended AudienceCollege Audience

LCCN96-014369

Dewey Edition20

Reviews"[A]dopts a...contextually compelling perspective..."Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900 "The argument of this book...is a compelling one, and likely to be influential--partly because of the fluent articulation Eltis gives it, partly because of the sheer weight of archival evidence that she has assembled from little-known source plays and manuscripts."--Victorian Studies, "[A]dopts a...contextually compelling perspective..."Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900"The argument of this book...is a compelling one, and likely to be influential--partly because of the fluent articulation Eltis gives it, partly because of the sheer weight of archival evidence that she has assembled from little-known source plays and manuscripts."--Victorian Studies, 'The argument of this book on the whole is a compelling one, and likely to be influential - partly because of the fluent articulation Eltis gives it, partly because of the sheer weight of archival evidence that she has assembled from little-known source plays and manuscripts.'Kerry Powell, Victorian Studies, Summer 1997, "[A]dopts a...contextually compelling perspective..." Studies in English Literature, 1500-1900 "The argument of this book...is a compelling one, and likely to be influential--partly because of the fluent articulation Eltis gives it, partly because of the sheer weight of archival evidence that she has assembled from little-known source plays and manuscripts."-- Victorian Studies, 'Revising Wilde, has a strong contribution to make in innovative study of the Society Comedies in particular ... this book is ... refreshing. It has new information to offer in the shape of the consideration of the drafts of the plays, and it presents it in a clear and frank manner. Eltis's style is free from the clutter of terminology which often masks critical works and makes them unintelligible to the uninitiated reader and dense to the initiated. Herpresentation makes her argument clear and easy to follow ... its clarity does it much credit.'The Wildean 10'The argument of this book on the whole is a compelling one, and likely to be influential - partly because of the fluent articulation Eltis gives it, partly because of the sheer weight of archival evidence that she has assembled from little-known source plays and manuscripts.'Kerry Powell, Victorian Studies, Summer 1997'intriguing study'Nineteenth-Century Literature 51:3 (December 1996), 'Revising Wilde, has a strong contribution to make in innovative study of the Society Comedies in particular ... this book is ... refreshing. It has new information to offer in the shape of the consideration of the drafts of the plays, and it presents it in a clear and frank manner. Eltis'sstyle is free from the clutter of terminology which often masks critical works and makes them unintelligible to the uninitiated reader and dense to the initiated. Her presentation makes her argument clear and easy to follow ... its clarity does it much credit.'The Wildean 10

IllustratedYes

Dewey Decimal822.8

SynopsisA radical re-examination of Oscar Wilde's plays, Revising Wilde challenges long-established views of the writer as a dilettante and dandy, revealing him as a serious philosopher and social critic who used his plays to subvert traditional values. Sos Eltis examines early drafts of the major plays (Lady Windermere's Fan; A Woman of No Importance; An Ideal Husband; and The Importance of Being Earnest) as well as thelittle-known Vera; or, The Nihilists, to demonstrate that Wilde was in fact an anarchist, a socialist, and a feminist., A radical re-examination of Oscar Wilde's plays, Revising Wilde challenges long-established views of the writer as a dilettante and dandy. Instead Wilde emerges as a serious philosopher and social critic who used his plays to subvert the traditional values of Victorian literature and society. Sos Eltis traces Wilde's painstaking revisions and redrafting of his plays, and uncovers Wilde's subtle methods of lampooning his conventional sources. In the process Eltis discovers, concealed in successive versions, Wilde the anarchist, the socialist, and the feminist. Taking into account the most recent scholarship and criticism, this accessible study will be of interest to Wilde specialists and enthusiasts alike., A radical re-examination of Oscar Wilde's plays, Revising Wilde challenges long-established views of the writer as a dilettante and dandy, revealing him instead as a serious philosopher and social critic who used his plays to subvert the traditional values of Victorian literature and society. By tracing Wilde's painstaking revisions and redrafting of his plays, Sos Eltis uncovers themes subsequently concealed in successive versions which demonstrate that Wilde wasin fact an anarchist, a socialist and a feminist. Wilde borrowed plots and incidents from numerous contemporary French and English plays, but he then subtly rewrote his plagiarized materialin order to mock the conventions he imitated. By analysing previously unconsidered manuscript drafts, and comparing the finished plays with their sources, Eltis displays a surprising depth and complexity to Wilde's work. The little-known early play, Vera; or, The Nihilists is revealed as a politically radical drama, the society plays are shown to challenge Victorian sexual and social mores, and The Importance of Being Earnest is interpreted as an anarchic farce, whichreflects the Utopian vision of Wilde's political essay, 'The Soul of Man Under Socialism'. Taking into account the more recent scholarship and criticism, this accessible study will be of interest to Wilde specialists andenthusiasts alike., A radical re-examination of Oscar Wilde's plays, Revising Wilde challenges long-established views of the writer as a dilettante and dandy, revealing him instead as a serious philosopher and social critic who used his plays to subvert the traditional values of Victorian literature and society. By tracing Wilde's painstaking revisions and redrafting of his plays, Sos Eltis uncovers themes subsequently concealed in successive versions which demonstrate that Wilde was in fact an anarchist, a socialist and a feminist. Wilde borrowed plots and incidents from numerous contemporary French and English plays, but he then subtly rewrote his plagiarized material in order to mock the conventions he imitated. By analysing previously unconsidered manuscript drafts, and comparing the finished plays with their sources, Eltis displays a surprising depth and complexity to Wilde's work. The little-known early play, Vera; or, The Nihilists is revealed as a politically radical drama, the society plays are shown to challenge Victorian sexual and social mores, and The Importance of Being Earnest is interpreted as an anarchic farce, which reflects the Utopian vision of Wilde's political essay, 'The Soul of Man Under Socialism'. Taking into account the more recent scholarship and criticism, this accessible study will be of interest to Wilde specialists and enthusiasts alike.

LC Classification NumberPR5827.D7E48 1996

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Oxford English Monographs: Revising Wilde : Society and Subversion in the Plays of Oscar Wilde by Sos Eltis (1996, Hardcover)

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