pointless to demand that there be any similarity between reality
and its depiction in art. Thus, he was a supporter of the “art-for-
art’s sake” doctrine.
In his plays the author mainly dealt with the life of educated
people of refined tastes. Belonging to the privileged layer of
society they spent their time in entertainments. In “The Importance
o f Being Earnest” the nUtlior shows what useless lives his
characters are leading. Some of them are obviously caricatures,
but their outlook and mode o f behavior truthfully characterize
London’s upper crust. Wilde rebels against their limitedness,
strongly opposes hypocrisy, but, being a representative ofthe upper
class himself, he is too closely connected with that very society;
that is why his opposition bears no effective resistance.
The most popular works of the author are “The Happy Prince
and Other Tales” (1888), “The Picture of Dorian Gray” (1891),
and the comedies “Lady Windermere’s Fan” (1892). “A Woman
of No Importance” (1893), “An Ideal Husband” (1895), “The
Importance of Being Earnest” (1895). At the height ofhis popularity
and success a tragedy struck. He was accused o f immorality
and sentenced to two years imprisonment. When released from
prison in 1897 he lived mainly on the Continent and later in Paris.
In 1898 he published his powerful poem, “Ballad of Reading
Gaol”. He died in Paris in 1900.
“The Picture of Dorian Gray” is the only novel written by
Oscar Wilde. It is centered round problems of relationship be
tween an: and reality. In the novel the author describes the spiri
tual life o f a young mao and touches upon many important prob
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