Resumen
Resumen de Reseñas
Para quién es
For readers who enjoy sharp opinions, elegant sentences and the Victorian literary scene, and fans of Wilde's plays and essays. These reviews explore art, beauty and the creative work of criticism.
De qué trata este libro
Reviews gathers the book notices and short critical pieces that Oscar Wilde wrote for magazines and newspapers in the years before his plays made him a household name. Most of them appeared in the 1880s and early 1890s, when Wilde wrote for the Pall Mall Gazette and edited the magazine Woman's World. They were collected after his death in a volume of his works edited by his friend Robert Ross.
You will not find a single argument that runs from page to page. You will find a clever man at his desk, judging poems, histories, novels and essays, and showing how he judges. Along the way he sets out a view of art that he would later make famous. The first key point is a simple one: these pieces were work, and the work shaped the writer.
En este resumen
- 1A critic learns his trade by reviewingFree
- 2Criticism can itself be an art
- 3Beauty matters more than moral lessons
- 4Wit is his method and his lasting appeal
Idea clave 1 de 4
A critic learns his trade by reviewing
Before he wrote The Picture of Dorian Gray or his comedies, Wilde earned money and a name as a reviewer. Editors sent him books, and he wrote on them quickly and for a general audience. The subjects were varied. He wrote on poetry, on history, on translations and on essays, and he did not pretend to specialise in one field.
That range matters. It shows a writer reading widely and forming tastes in public, one short article at a time. The pieces were meant to be read over breakfast, so they are brisk and easy to follow.
The habit also taught him how to say a lot in a small space. A review gives a writer a paragraph in which to praise, a paragraph in which to doubt, and a sentence to leave the reader smiling. Many of the later epigrams in his plays have the same shape. Reading the reviews, you can watch that skill being practised before it was applied to the stage.
That’s 1 of 4 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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Questions about Reseñas
What is Oscar Wilde's Reviews about?
It is a collection of book reviews and short critical pieces Wilde wrote for periodicals in the 1880s and early 1890s. They cover poetry, history, essays and more, and show his views on art and style.
When were Wilde's reviews written and collected?
Wilde wrote them for magazines and newspapers in the years before his major plays, mainly in the 1880s and early 1890s. They were gathered into a volume after his death, edited by Robert Ross.
Is Wilde's Reviews hard to read?
No. The pieces are short, witty and written for a general audience.
What is the main idea in Wilde's criticism?
Wilde argues that a work of art should be judged by its beauty and craft, not by its moral lessons, and that a good critic creates something of his own in response.
Is Reviews worth reading if I like Wilde's plays?
Yes, if you enjoy his wit and his ideas about art. The reviews show how his epigrams and views on beauty took shape before they appeared in his better-known works.