Karl Beckson – författare

This volume of Poems and Poems in Prose inaugurates the Oxford English Texts Complete Works of Oscar Wilde , which will for the first time provide students of Wilde with scholarly and textually accurate texts of his complete oeuvre. In it, Bobby Fong and Karl Beckson provide reliable texts of all Wilde's poems and poems in prose, including 21 never published in his lifetime, together with information on the locations of extant manuscripts; bibliogaphical details of each poem's publishing history; commentaries that identify and clarify contexts and allusions to figures and events; and emendations and variant readings, in manuscripts and printed editions, which illuminate Wilde's craftsmanship in revising. The variety of poetic forms in Wilde's 199 poems–from his earliest known verse, written while a student at Oxford, to his final masterpiece, The Ballad of Reading Gaol–reveals a versatility and accomplishment that previously has often been overlooked. Many of the poems, most of which were written before Wilde achieved fame, express themes developed in his later work in prose and drama, pointing to a continuity now perceived by critics. This new edition includes an informative introduction by Ian Small, one of the general editors of the Complete Works, which provides the historical context for an understanding of Wilde's career, information about the conditions surrounding the publication of his poetry, and insight into the current resurgence of scholarly interest in the man and his writing. Publication of the Complete Works will confirm Wilde's centrality in the development of early Modernism towards the end of the nineteenth century.

"I love scandals about other people, but scandals about myself don't interest me. They have not got the charm of novelty", one of Oscar Wilde's characters says. Another remarks, "I never travel without my diary. One should always have something sensational to read in the train". Before Wilde himself was brought down in one of the most sensational scandals of his time, he was sought after for his flamboyant personality, his scintillating conversation and his sophisticated wit. "I Can Resist Everything Except Temptation" captures the best of those witicisms at which Oscar Wilde excelled. Naturally aphoristic, his remarks are among some of the most familiar in the English language, encompassing a wide range of subjects and people; there is hardly a topic for which he didn't have a witty comment, from pleasure ("Pleasure is what we take from others, duty what we expect from others, and genius what we deny to others") to dying ("I an dying, as I have lived, beyond my means"), from fiction ("Anyone can write a three-volumed novel.It merely requires a complete ignorance of both life and literature") to sentimentality ("One must have a heart of stone to read the death of Little Nell without laughing"). This book also contains selections from personal letters - letters filled with poignant remarks on his life and on the human condition. Karl Beckson has selected more than 1,000 quotations on subjects from absinthe to Zola. With its comprehensive citation of source material, "I Can Resist Everything Except Temptation" is not only a boon to writers, but a lovingly crafted portrait of one of history's most quotable figures.

This set comprises 40 volumes covering 19th and 20th century European and American authors. These volumes will be available as a complete set, mini boxed sets (by theme) or as individual volumes. This second set compliments the first 68 volume set of Critical Heritage published by Routledge in October 1995.

This set comprises 40 volumes covering 19th and 20th century European and American authors. These volumes will be available as a complete set, mini boxed sets (by theme) or as individual volumes. This second set compliments the first 68 volume set of Critical Heritage published by Routledge in October 1995.