“A man who does not think for himself does not think at all.”
Oscar Wilde book The Soul of Man under Socialism
The Soul of Man Under Socialism (1891)
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@xy, member from Sept. 25, 2023Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet
A Few Maxims for the Instruction of the Over-Educated (1894)
“I hate people who are not serious about meals. It is so shallow of them.”
Oscar Wilde The Importance of Being Earnest
Source: The Importance of Being Earnest
“Illusion is the first of all pleasures.”
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet
Voltaire, "L'illusion est le premier plaisir" from the satirical poem "La Pucelle d’Orléans" [The Maid of Orleans]. For a complete review see the misattributed quotation entry at Oscar Wilde in America http://oscarwildeinamerica.org/quotations/illusion-first-of-all-pleasures.html. <br class="br">Misattributed <br class="br">Variant: Illusion is the first of all pleasures.
“One should always play fairly when one has the winning cards.”
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet
“Punctuality is the thief of time”
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet
Variant: Punctuality is the thief of time.
“Life has been your art. You have set yourself to music. Your days are your sonnets.”
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet
“We women, as some one says, love with our ears, just as you men love with your eyes…”
Oscar Wilde book The Picture of Dorian Gray
Source: The Picture of Dorian Gray
“She behaves as if she was beautiful. Most American women do. It is the secret of their charm.”
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet
Oscar Wilde book The Soul of Man under Socialism
The Soul of Man Under Socialism (1891)
Context: Art is the most intense mode of individualism that the world has known. I am inclined to say that it is the only real mode of individualism that the world has known. Crime, which, under certain conditions, may seem to have created individualism, must take cognisance of other people and interfere with them. It belongs to the sphere of action. But alone, without any reference to his neighbours, without any interference, the artist can fashion a beautiful thing; and if he does not do it solely for his own pleasure, he is not an artist at all.
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet
Review of Herbert Giles translation of the works of Zhuangzi (Chuang Tsu) in The Speaker (8 February 1890)
“The work of art is to dominate the spectator: the spectator is not to dominate the work of art.”
Oscar Wilde book The Soul of Man under Socialism
The Soul of Man Under Socialism (1891)
Context: If a man approaches a work of art with any desire to exercise authority over it and the artist, he approaches it in such a spirit that he cannot receive any artistic impression from it at all. The work of art is to dominate the spectator: the spectator is not to dominate the work of art. The spectator is to be receptive. He is to be the violin on which the master is to play. And the more completely he can suppress his own silly views, his own foolish prejudices, his own absurd ideas of what Art should be, or should not be, the more likely he is to understand and appreciate the work of art in question.
Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) Irish writer and poet
The Critic as Artist (1891), Part II
Context: It is to do nothing that the elect exist. Action is limited and relative. Unlimited and absolute is the vision of him who sits at ease and watches, who walks in loneliness and dreams.