Jack Worthington is an upstanding gentleman in Victorian society. He just has one secret-he tells everyone that he has a brother named Earnest, when, in reality, Earnest is his alter ego. This allows him a certain duality; he can go out and party as Earnest, but have a sterling reputation as Jack. However, he must merge the two when Jack discovers that his lover, Gwendolyn, will only marry a man named Earnest. Meanwhile, Algernon, a family friend,...

A young man known as Guido is set upon revenge, planning to murder the duke of Padua, who murdered Guido's father years before. However, Guido soon finds that he has fallen in love with the duke's wife, the duchess of Padua, and their romance complicates Guido's intentions. Originally composed for a particular actress, Mary Anderson, who eventually rejected the play, The Duchess of Padua was not performed on the stage until years after its composition....

A rich merchant, Simone, discovers that his wife, Bianca, is having an affair with a prince named Guido Bardi. Incensed by the indignity visited upon him by the prince, Simone challenges his rival to a duel. Although Oscar Wilde's A Florentine Tragedy was left incomplete, the story about Simone and Bianca was nonetheless adapted several times by composers and playwrights from around the world, and has been performed in various forms since the 1890s,...

After becoming involved with the Nihilist movement and being trained as an assassin, Vera falls in love with Alexis, another member of the group. But Vera soon finds out that the truth about Alexis puts the two of them at odds, and she will have to choose between him and her cause. Loosely based on the life of Russian revolutionary Vera Zasulich, Vera was not performed until years after it was written, when an American actress, Marie Prescott, and...

The Canterville Ghost - Oscar Wilde - "The Canterville Ghost" is a humorous (Horror) short story by Oscar Wilde♥. The story is about an American family who moved to a castle haunted by the ghost of a dead English nobleman, who killed his wife and was then walled in and starved to death by his wife's brothers. It has been adapted for the stage and screen several times. ★Summary of the Canterville Ghost by Oscar Wilde★ "The Canterville Ghost"...

Witty playwright Oscar Wilde is most famous for his 1895 play "The Importance of Being Earnest." The two protagonists use a false identity, Earnest, as a way to escape from unwanted social obligations. However, they encounter difficulties keeping up their personas as their social circles draw closer together. Wilde drew upon what he thought were outrageous social conventions of the Victorian Era and used satire to show the absurdity of its beliefs,...

Lady Windermere misinterprets her husband's interest in an older woman, Mrs. Erlynne, causing a rift that could lead to both marital and societal ruin. Lady Windermere's Fan Is an intriguing tale that examines intention versus outcome in a world driven by perception. Lady Windermere is a young wife who's concerned by her husband's connection to the mysterious, Mrs. Erlynne. She believes the woman is a threat to her marriage and livelihood. Despite...

Oscar Wilde's play Salome is a twist on the execution of John the Baptist, fuelled by motives of lust and slaughter. Wilde's interpretation is deeply rooted in the Biblical story of Salome's dance to please Herod and her mother's plea for John the Baptist's head. Wilde's twist on the biblical story focuses on the personality of Salome and the hypersexual implications.

When the prophet Jokanaan is brought to the attention of the princess Salomé, he rebukes her interest, which causes her to make a brutal declaration. Oscar Wilde's one-act tragedy explores the repercussions of her horrifying decision. Originally composed in French in 1892, Salomé is a controversial tale full of cruelty and retribution. Wilde expands on the Biblical story of John the Baptist, whom was captured and beheaded by Herod Antipas....

Written originally in French in 1892, Wilde's one-act tragedy Salome was translated into English by Lord Alfred Douglas, inspired some of Aubrey Beardsley's finest illustrations, and served as the text (in abridged form) for Strauss' renowned opera of the same name. A masterpiece of the Aesthetic movement, it enacts the biblical tale of a wanton woman's erotic dance and the martyrdom of John the Baptist. This volume reprints the complete text of the...