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The Life of Oscar Wilde
The remarkable and tragic story of Oscar Wilde, legendary wit and conversationalist, author of perhaps the most perfect comedy in the English language, yet seemingly doomed by his own flawed temperament to suffer at the hands of a censorious and hypocritical society...
Music: Widor, Curzon, Dvorák, Grieg, Tchaikovsky, Chabrier
Music: Widor, Curzon, Dvorák, Grieg, Tchaikovsky, Chabrier
Audiobook
First published January 1, 1946
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About the author
Hesketh Pearson
91 books1 followerEdward Hesketh Gibbons Pearson was an English actor, theatre director and writer. He is known mainly for his biographies; they made him the leading British biographer of his time, in terms of commercial success.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
July 14, 2020
It had seemed to me that this biography was the best one before Ellmann’s, the most objective and truthful. And it was written by a contemporary (published in 1946), which interested me. However, I had one (1) huge problem with it, which was Pearson’s treatment of Bosie. Bosie didn’t appear until right before the trials, when in reality he was relevant for 5ish years before that. Their whole relationship was glossed over, and felt like a side note. Bosie wasn’t characterized well, and his personality simply fell flat.
Wait, I also had a second (less huge) problem, which was that Pearson would present a whole page of Oscar’s epigrams to show that he believed X or had this attitude about Y. Amusing but unnecessary in a biography.
I think that for the most part, Pearson was objective, and he did a good job of explaining things like De Profundis and why Oscar decided to stay during the trials. Overall, it was a good biography, and with the exception of Bosie, very complete.
Wait, I also had a second (less huge) problem, which was that Pearson would present a whole page of Oscar’s epigrams to show that he believed X or had this attitude about Y. Amusing but unnecessary in a biography.
I think that for the most part, Pearson was objective, and he did a good job of explaining things like De Profundis and why Oscar decided to stay during the trials. Overall, it was a good biography, and with the exception of Bosie, very complete.
September 1, 2025
Concise, interesting, loved the narrator (Simon Russel Beale) overall a good listen!
October 21, 2017
Excellent book on Oscar Wilde written by a contemporary of Wilde. Lots of surprises about him. His first book of poetry was self-published after he borrowed money from a female friend.
August 13, 2023
Found this book on The Big Orme, Llandudno. I read a biography of Wilde many years ago that went into, in prurient detail, all the things Oscar had done with rent boys. This was far more interesting & enjoyable & focussed on Oscar's life & work. HP is refreshingly brisk, non-judgemental & clear although he is also remarkably certain, eg, that 'de profundis' is no good. Because HP was an actor he concentrates almost exclusively on the plays. He dismisses TPODG & his comments on Wilde's poetry are brief & sometimes, TBH, a bit shallow. Also, he has his favourites & dis-favourites. He loathes Frank Harris & constantly tries to belittle him & to redeem Bosie, no matter how much harm he did. All the same, this told me how much I didn't know about Oscar! In fact, let me enumerate all the things I learnt about Oscar from this book.
1 He was a big lump
Oscar stood well over 6' when people were generally shorter than today. He usually towered over everyone in his company. In later years he also became well overweight, making him even more imposing.
2 He could handle himself
Because of his self-styled status as an aesthete the young Oscar was targeted by roughs. HP rather overdoes Oscar's physical prowess but it is certainly true that in Dublin & Oxford he was involved in fights & came out the winner. He wasn't Floyd but he could fight a bit.
3 He was Irish
I think I bought into that 'Anglo-Irish' ****. Oscar had one English great-great-grandparent. He was as English as Joe Biden is Irish (i.e not at all). His parents met through a campaigning 'Home Rule' newspaper. Oscar Fingall Wills O'Flahertie Wilde was Irish through & through.
4 He wasn't posh
I assumed he was aristocratic because the most autobiographical character in all his work is Lord Henry Wooton in TPODG. Oscar's father was a successful doctor, his mother's family were steady but not wealthy, there was no land. Oscar was exactly the same as Saki, Wodehouse & Evelyn Waugh, a middle-class boy observing the aristocracy from the outside.
5 He liked a drink
Didn't he just! I would've loved to have a drink with Oscar but he wasn't exactly a pint of bitter man, more a claret punch, gin, brandy, champagne & absinthe man. His brother was an Alky, & a lot of people close to Oscar thought he might go the same way.
6 So many sayings
HP makes clear that Oscar's great talent was conversation. Over long lunches & dinners, fuelled by gallons of strong drink, he would produce thousands of sparkling epigrams, paradoxes & other witticisms. Most of them found their way into his work but some never did. E.g, I didn't know that 'every saint has a past, every sinner has a future' was one of Oscars's! Now, you would struggle to go to any prison, gym or poor estate & not see that tattooed on someone. Oscar would've been so pleased with that!
7 He identified with Jesus
Oscar wasn't a believer but he knew the bible backwards & he became increasingly obsessed with the character of Jesus. Jesus was always the smartest guy in the room, he spoke in parables & MoFo didn't understand him. Nuff said,
8 He briefly went mad
There was a point where Oscar had 3 plays on in the West End & was taking in more than all the others put together. At this point he went completely barking. His long-suffering wife, Constance, said 'he has been mad these past 3 years'. You often here her comment dismissed as terrible homophobia (he must have gone mad to prefer boys to me), but that wasn't what she said. Oscar had been completely honest about his past homosexuality when they married. It wasn't, TBH, unusual for anyone who had gone to public school. Conan Doyle, who had liked Wilde, said that he met him in the street & Oscar immediately began talking about his plays in the third person saying they were the works of a divine genius. At this point Doyle couldn't get away quickly enough! Long before MJ or Elvis, Oscar was finding that Celebrity is a killer.
9 He reconciled with Bosie
Not sure if it was wise. HP is quick to condone in 'Bosie' behaviour that seems unforgivable. HP also doesn't have much time for people like 'Robbie' Ross who were unfailingly loyal. This is probably the weakest part of the book & I guess you wold've had to be there to know.
1 He was a big lump
Oscar stood well over 6' when people were generally shorter than today. He usually towered over everyone in his company. In later years he also became well overweight, making him even more imposing.
2 He could handle himself
Because of his self-styled status as an aesthete the young Oscar was targeted by roughs. HP rather overdoes Oscar's physical prowess but it is certainly true that in Dublin & Oxford he was involved in fights & came out the winner. He wasn't Floyd but he could fight a bit.
3 He was Irish
I think I bought into that 'Anglo-Irish' ****. Oscar had one English great-great-grandparent. He was as English as Joe Biden is Irish (i.e not at all). His parents met through a campaigning 'Home Rule' newspaper. Oscar Fingall Wills O'Flahertie Wilde was Irish through & through.
4 He wasn't posh
I assumed he was aristocratic because the most autobiographical character in all his work is Lord Henry Wooton in TPODG. Oscar's father was a successful doctor, his mother's family were steady but not wealthy, there was no land. Oscar was exactly the same as Saki, Wodehouse & Evelyn Waugh, a middle-class boy observing the aristocracy from the outside.
5 He liked a drink
Didn't he just! I would've loved to have a drink with Oscar but he wasn't exactly a pint of bitter man, more a claret punch, gin, brandy, champagne & absinthe man. His brother was an Alky, & a lot of people close to Oscar thought he might go the same way.
6 So many sayings
HP makes clear that Oscar's great talent was conversation. Over long lunches & dinners, fuelled by gallons of strong drink, he would produce thousands of sparkling epigrams, paradoxes & other witticisms. Most of them found their way into his work but some never did. E.g, I didn't know that 'every saint has a past, every sinner has a future' was one of Oscars's! Now, you would struggle to go to any prison, gym or poor estate & not see that tattooed on someone. Oscar would've been so pleased with that!
7 He identified with Jesus
Oscar wasn't a believer but he knew the bible backwards & he became increasingly obsessed with the character of Jesus. Jesus was always the smartest guy in the room, he spoke in parables & MoFo didn't understand him. Nuff said,
8 He briefly went mad
There was a point where Oscar had 3 plays on in the West End & was taking in more than all the others put together. At this point he went completely barking. His long-suffering wife, Constance, said 'he has been mad these past 3 years'. You often here her comment dismissed as terrible homophobia (he must have gone mad to prefer boys to me), but that wasn't what she said. Oscar had been completely honest about his past homosexuality when they married. It wasn't, TBH, unusual for anyone who had gone to public school. Conan Doyle, who had liked Wilde, said that he met him in the street & Oscar immediately began talking about his plays in the third person saying they were the works of a divine genius. At this point Doyle couldn't get away quickly enough! Long before MJ or Elvis, Oscar was finding that Celebrity is a killer.
9 He reconciled with Bosie
Not sure if it was wise. HP is quick to condone in 'Bosie' behaviour that seems unforgivable. HP also doesn't have much time for people like 'Robbie' Ross who were unfailingly loyal. This is probably the weakest part of the book & I guess you wold've had to be there to know.
May 31, 2023
’It was in the late 80s when wild became practising homosexual. It is possible that Wild would have lived to respectable age and received a knighthood if in an unfortunate moment he would not have been introduced to lord Alfred Douglas’
'The Life of Oscar Wilde' by Hesketh Pearson is a short exploration of the renowned playwright and wit, Oscar Wilde. As an audiobook, it offers an engaging experience, narrated skillfully, allowing listeners to delve into the fascinating life of this literary icon. However, it is important to note that the book's treatment of Wilde's homosexuality leaves much to be desired.
One of the key aspects of Oscar Wilde's life was his sexual orientation and the impact it had on his personal and professional life. Unfortunately, in this biography, Hesketh Pearson's approach to this crucial aspect seems disappointing. Instead of openly addressing Wilde's homosexuality with sensitivity and respect, the author appears sometimes to obscure or even ridicule this fundamental part of Wilde's identity. It is crucial to approach biographies with sensitivity and respect, particularly when it comes to marginalized identities. Unfortunately, this book falls short in that regard.
'The Life of Oscar Wilde' by Hesketh Pearson is a short exploration of the renowned playwright and wit, Oscar Wilde. As an audiobook, it offers an engaging experience, narrated skillfully, allowing listeners to delve into the fascinating life of this literary icon. However, it is important to note that the book's treatment of Wilde's homosexuality leaves much to be desired.
One of the key aspects of Oscar Wilde's life was his sexual orientation and the impact it had on his personal and professional life. Unfortunately, in this biography, Hesketh Pearson's approach to this crucial aspect seems disappointing. Instead of openly addressing Wilde's homosexuality with sensitivity and respect, the author appears sometimes to obscure or even ridicule this fundamental part of Wilde's identity. It is crucial to approach biographies with sensitivity and respect, particularly when it comes to marginalized identities. Unfortunately, this book falls short in that regard.
February 13, 2021
A great biography that focuses on what it set out to do: paint a vibrant portrait of Oscar Wilde as a character and a man, in both his good and bad, avoiding martyrisation and focus on his sexual promiscuity.
Informed by interviews with many contemporaries, contemporary articles, and a long time of reading Wilde's work.
Pearson is clearly charmed by the character of Wilde, as all his avid readers are and were, but not fully won over.
Wilde can do wrong and his work isn't flawless, and Pearson doesn't avoid fair critiques when he pleases.
While his treatment of how much Wilde's personal life was tied up with his sexual (especially among certain friends), Pearson is rather restrained, but he expresses explicitly something along the lines of "deviancy is boring to read" and I can't disagree. He refers to prior works who focus on the sexual drama or tragedy of his life, but does not want to beat the same dead horse, which I respect.
Don't come to this book looking for that fixation on Wilde as a gay figure, and Pearson's view of homosexuality could be seen as somewhat offensive in a contemporary setting; if you want to see the many sides of the author as a man, a character of great kindness and inexhaustible wit, I can't reccomend this biography more.
Informed by interviews with many contemporaries, contemporary articles, and a long time of reading Wilde's work.
Pearson is clearly charmed by the character of Wilde, as all his avid readers are and were, but not fully won over.
Wilde can do wrong and his work isn't flawless, and Pearson doesn't avoid fair critiques when he pleases.
While his treatment of how much Wilde's personal life was tied up with his sexual (especially among certain friends), Pearson is rather restrained, but he expresses explicitly something along the lines of "deviancy is boring to read" and I can't disagree. He refers to prior works who focus on the sexual drama or tragedy of his life, but does not want to beat the same dead horse, which I respect.
Don't come to this book looking for that fixation on Wilde as a gay figure, and Pearson's view of homosexuality could be seen as somewhat offensive in a contemporary setting; if you want to see the many sides of the author as a man, a character of great kindness and inexhaustible wit, I can't reccomend this biography more.
September 15, 2018
Witty and entertaining. I should like to read more of Pearson and of Wilde of course! This book is morally some what light, and alas some what disparaging of religion. At least Wilde became a Catholic in the end- the very ultimate end. Pearson annoys me at times; a certain tone and manner- but the overall effect is pleasing.
January 24, 2019
I love this book and this man and will go back to it over and over because he was such an interesting creature!
May 29, 2021
Exaggeration or factuality; almost always compelling narration.
July 10, 2021
[strandlines]
May 27, 2013
I knew next to nothing about Oscar Wilde when I started this. This is a great audio, very enlightening as well as easy to listen to. It is really not that long and parts actually made me laugh out loud.
He was certainly one of a kind. Some of the clever things he said would make great little plaques or just a bunch of sticky notes through out the house. It has inspired me to go on and read some of his works.
P.S. Found book on Kindle called Oscar Wilde's Wit and Wisdom for 98 cents.
He was certainly one of a kind. Some of the clever things he said would make great little plaques or just a bunch of sticky notes through out the house. It has inspired me to go on and read some of his works.
P.S. Found book on Kindle called Oscar Wilde's Wit and Wisdom for 98 cents.
Want to read
March 1, 2010STAND-IN: THIS TITLE, Oscar Wilde: His Life and Wit was published originally in 1946, here in a "Genuine UNIVERAL Library" pb. First sentence of Prologue: "Early in January 1943, I mentioned to Bernard Shaw that I wished to write a Life of Oscar Wilde".
April 29, 2017
Very readable biography.
May 17, 2014
lo amo <3
July 6, 2016
very interesting, the author has really done his research, interviews with close friends etc, lot of things here that i didnt know
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews