Oscar Wilde wrote 7 works on prose, 5 plays and 10 poems and a critical text “The Decay of Lying”. However, I provide the plot of his works on prose and his plays, the poems could be better understood if we read them, therefore, I add the links of Victorian web’s original texts. I must go further and say that other pieces of the Oscar Wilde’s works and plays that you could be interested in, they appear on Victorian web, I link all of they are in the webpage. I use Imdb search engine to find some films related to these works and plays, I add the films down the plot of each work.
Prose
The picture of Dorian Gray (1890)
The novel tells of a young man named Dorian Gray, the subject of a painting by artist Basil Hallward. Basil is impressed by Dorian's beauty and becomes infatuated with him, believing his beauty is responsible for a new mode in his art. Dorian meets Lord Henry Wotton, a friend of Basil's, and becomes enthralled by Lord Henry's world view. Espousing a new hedonism, Lord Henry suggests the only things worth pursuing in life are beauty and fulfillment of the senses. Realizing that one day his beauty will fade, Dorian (whimsically) expresses a desire to sell his soul to ensure the portrait Basil has painted would age rather than him. Dorian's wish is fulfilled, plunging him into debauched acts. The portrait serves as a reminder of the effect each act has upon his soul, with each sin displayed as a disfigurement of his form, or through a sign of aging.
Films:
It has 5 films filmed during 1913-1917
Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime (1891)
His first attempted murder victim is his elderly Aunt Clementina, who suffers from heartburn. Pretending it is medicine, Lord Arthur gives her a capsule of poison, telling her to take it only when she has an attack of heartburn. Reading a telegram in Venice some time later, he finds that she has died and victoriously returns to London to learn that she has bequeathed him some property. Sorting through the inheritance, his future wife Sybil Merton finds the poison pill, untouched; thus Lord Arthur's aunt died from natural causes and he finds himself in need of a new victim. After some deliberation, he obtains a bomb from a friendly German Anarchist, disguised as a carriage-clock, and sends it anonymously to a distant relative, the Dean of Chichester. When the bomb goes off, however, the only damage done seems like a novelty trick, and the Dean's son spends his afternoons making tiny, harmless explosions with the clock. In despair, Lord Arthur believes that his marriage plans are doomed, only to encounter the same chiromantist who had told his fortune late at night on the bank of the River Thames. Realising the best possible outcome, he pushes the man off a parapet into the river where he dies. A verdict of suicide is returned at the inquest and Lord Arthur happily goes on to marry. In a slight twist, the chiromantist is denounced as a fraud, leaving it up to the reader as to whether the story is a result of free will or destiny.
Films:
I find some works related to it in French, German and series on TV.
The Happy Prince and Other Tales (1892)
(This work has a discussion combined with the following topicà Pater in Wilde's The Happy Prince and Other Tales and A House of Pomegranates)
(Also sometimes called The Happy Prince and Other Stories)It is an 1888 collection of stories for children by Oscar Wilde. It is most famous for The Happy Prince, the short tale of a metal statue who befriends a migratory bird. Together, they bring happiness to others, in life as well as in death.The stories included in this collection are:
The Happy Prince
The Nightingale and the Rose
The Selfish Giant
The Devoted Friend
The Remarkable Rocket
The stories convey an appreciation for the exotic, the sensual and for masculine beauty.
Films:
A House of Pomegranates (1892)
It is a collection of fairy tales, written by Oscar Wilde, which was published as a second collection for The Happy Prince and Other Tales (1892). Wilde once said that this collection was "intended neither for the British child nor the British public."
The stories included in this collection are as follows:
The Young King
The Birthday of the Infanta
The Fisherman and his Soul
The Star-Child
The Canterville Ghost (1891)
It is related in "The Canterville Ghost" that, when a family from the United States buys Canterville Chase, they are told by all that it is haunted by a horrible spirit; but this does not deter them in the slightest. Indeed, when they find a recurring blood stain on the floor, and hear creaking chains in the night, even seeing the ghost himself, all they do is clean up the blood and insist that the ghost oil his manacles if he is going to keep living in the house. This perturbs the ghost to no end, and he does everything he can to try to frighten the family.
Films:
It has plenty films in some languages
The Sphinx Without a Secret (1891)
(I found an article with photographs and some part of the text written by Oscar Wilde à The Sphinx without a Secret)
In this very short story, Lord Murchison recounts to his old friend a strange tale of a woman he had loved and intended to marry, but was now dead. She had always been very secretive and mysterious, and he one day followed her to see where she went, discovering her stealthfully going to a boarding house. He suspected there was another man, and confronted her the next day. She confessed to having been there, but said nothing happened. He did not believe her and left; she died some time later.He went to the boarding house to speak to the owner, and she confirmed she had rented the room and that the entire lady ever did was come to it and sit alone for a few hours at a time, reading or doing nothing.
After telling his story, he asks his friend if he believes it — that her secret really was that she had no secret — and his friend said he was certain of it. Lord Murchison ends with the reply: "I wonder."
The Model Millionaire (1891)
Hughie Erskine is in love and wants to marry, but the girl's father will not allow it, since Erskine has no money. Erskine's friend, Alan Trevor is a painter, and he visits him at his studio one day to find him with a pitiable beggar—the model for his painting. Erskine only has one coin, which he depends on for transportation, but he decides he can walk for a couple weeks and gives the beggar the coin.The beggar is in reality an immensely wealthy baron, having a portrait of himself as a beggar done for fun. He is so impressed by Erskine's generosity that he gives him £10,000, enough so that the girl's father will consent to his proposal.
PLAYS
Lady Windermere’s Fan (1892)
Mrs. Erlynne was originated by Marion Terry.
The fan in the title can refer to both the physical object—which Lord Windermere buys for her as a 21st birthday present—and to her admirer, Lord Darlington—who pays her deeply flattering compliments and eventually reveals his love for her.
Films:
Salome (1894)
It tells the story of Salome, the stepdaughter of the tetrarch Herod Antipas, who, to her stepfather's dismay but mother's delight, requests the head of Jokanaan (John the Baptist) on a silver platter as a reward for dancing the Dance of the Seven Veils
A Woman of No Importance (1893)
The upper classes have gathered for a weekend house party at Lady Hunstanton’s country estate. The wildly attractive Lord Illingworth is free to show off his seduction skills. The ladies, including the young American, Hester Worsley, must hide their lust for him. When it’s announced that Gerald Arbuthnot has been appointed as Illingworth’s secretary, his mother’s scandalous secret threatens to ruin her son’s success.
Films:
It could be possible that in 2011 we had a films about this Oscar Wilde play.
An Ideal Husband (1895)
Another of Wilde's social satires, 'An Ideal Husband' revolves around the lives of two men, successful political figure Sir Robert Chiltern and his friend the uninspired but utterly charming Lord Arthur Goring. Chiltern's life is perfect thanks to the help of his loving and brilliant wife Gerturde and the support of his quick witted sister Mabel. Goring's life is one of lounging, flirting with Mabel, and avoiding his father's instance that he should marry. The world of these men is turned upside down by the arrival of old acquaintance Mrs. Laura Cheveley who has come with blackmail in mind. Chiltern could lose everything including Gertrude. It is up to his wife and Goring to confront this dilemma, but it could risk Goring's chances to finally win over Mabel. As the comments and lies begin to fly about, it's revealed that the man thought to be perfect is flawed, the man with all the flaws must do something right, and the question remains: what makes an ideal husband?Films:
There are several films about but the most important are these two.
The Importance of Being Earnest (1895)
All about this Oscar Wilde’s play, you can read it in this sections:
The plot
Characters
Themes & motifs
The plot
Characters
Themes & motifs
In addition, we have one essay about the film, compared with the book.
POEMS
"The World is a stage, but the play is badly cast" - Oscar Wilde.
All the images belong to their owners.
All the images belong to their owners.
