scholarly journals Towards an Ethical Aestheticism: Christianity, Christhood and Martyrdom in the Fiction of Oscar Wilde

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Shey Pope-Mayell
Keyword(s):  
Oscar Wilde ◽  
Christian Ethics ◽  
Common Interest ◽  
Father Figure ◽  
Ethical Concerns ◽  
Ethical Guidance ◽  
Picture Of Dorian Gray ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
The Rose ◽  
Aesthetic Ideal

<p>Oscar Wilde is part of our world. With his dandyish witticisms and decadent demeanour, he continues to serve as a model of subversive grace, an aesthetic beacon drawing his readers towards a lighthouse of beauty, even more than a century after his death. Few would suspect that Wilde’s work should offer any ethical guidance, given the tendency of fin-de-siècle aestheticism to place artistic beauty above ethical concerns. It is the purpose of this thesis to argue otherwise.  The aim of this thesis is twofold. First, it intends to show that Wilde’s fiction, from his early fairy stories to his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, is connected by a common interest in Christian ethics. Second, and more ambitiously, it intends to disprove the notion that aestheticism and ethics are irreconcilable. Throughout his work, Wilde develops an image of an aesthetic Jesus Christ, a martyr of beauty. Wilde dedicates much of his fictional oeuvre to illustrating this vision of Christ, usually through martyrdom and the relinquishment of selfhood. In doing so, this thesis argues that he connects artistic beauty with Christian ethics, synthesising an ethical aestheticism, only achievable through self-sacrifice in service of love – the aesthetic ideal.   This kind of aesthetic martyrdom is present throughout Wilde’s fiction, the most commonly cited examples coming from two of his early fairy stories, “The Happy Prince” and “The Nightingale and the Rose” respectively. In these stories, the titular characters work to realise the vision of the aesthetic Christ – what this thesis calls his ‘aesthetic ideal’ – and achieve a higher appreciation of beauty, both bodily and immaterial. Christianity, this thesis finally argues, is the basis for Wilde’s ethical aestheticism and it is Christian ethics that Wilde uses to orientate his readers towards aesthetic Christhood, not with the cold, judging hand of a Victorian preacher but the warm, caring shoulder-pat of an aesthetic father-figure.</p>

scholarly journals Towards an Ethical Aestheticism: Christianity, Christhood and Martyrdom in the Fiction of Oscar Wilde

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Shey Pope-Mayell
Keyword(s):  
Oscar Wilde ◽  
Christian Ethics ◽  
Common Interest ◽  
Father Figure ◽  
Ethical Concerns ◽  
Ethical Guidance ◽  
Picture Of Dorian Gray ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
The Rose ◽  
Aesthetic Ideal

<p>Oscar Wilde is part of our world. With his dandyish witticisms and decadent demeanour, he continues to serve as a model of subversive grace, an aesthetic beacon drawing his readers towards a lighthouse of beauty, even more than a century after his death. Few would suspect that Wilde’s work should offer any ethical guidance, given the tendency of fin-de-siècle aestheticism to place artistic beauty above ethical concerns. It is the purpose of this thesis to argue otherwise.  The aim of this thesis is twofold. First, it intends to show that Wilde’s fiction, from his early fairy stories to his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, is connected by a common interest in Christian ethics. Second, and more ambitiously, it intends to disprove the notion that aestheticism and ethics are irreconcilable. Throughout his work, Wilde develops an image of an aesthetic Jesus Christ, a martyr of beauty. Wilde dedicates much of his fictional oeuvre to illustrating this vision of Christ, usually through martyrdom and the relinquishment of selfhood. In doing so, this thesis argues that he connects artistic beauty with Christian ethics, synthesising an ethical aestheticism, only achievable through self-sacrifice in service of love – the aesthetic ideal.   This kind of aesthetic martyrdom is present throughout Wilde’s fiction, the most commonly cited examples coming from two of his early fairy stories, “The Happy Prince” and “The Nightingale and the Rose” respectively. In these stories, the titular characters work to realise the vision of the aesthetic Christ – what this thesis calls his ‘aesthetic ideal’ – and achieve a higher appreciation of beauty, both bodily and immaterial. Christianity, this thesis finally argues, is the basis for Wilde’s ethical aestheticism and it is Christian ethics that Wilde uses to orientate his readers towards aesthetic Christhood, not with the cold, judging hand of a Victorian preacher but the warm, caring shoulder-pat of an aesthetic father-figure.</p>

Efek Estetis dalam Cerpen Bunga Mawar dan Burung Bul-Bul Karya Oscar Wilde (Kajian Stilistika) (Aesthetic Effect in the Rose and the Nightingale by Oscar Wilde (Stylistic Study) )

JALABAHASA ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 20
Author(s):  
Muchammad Faisal Tjakrawiriadi
Keyword(s):  
Short Story ◽  
Qualitative Method ◽  
Oscar Wilde ◽  
Literary Work ◽  
Literature Research ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
Language Styles ◽  
And Function ◽  
Meaning And Function ◽  
The Rose

ABSTRAKMakna sebuah karya sastra bergantung pada penggunaan gaya bahasa. Penggunaan gaya bahasa dimaksudkan oleh pengarang untuk menimbulkan efek tertentu bagi pembaca terutama efek estetik. Cerita pendek “Bunga Mawar dan Burung Bul-Bul” karya Oscar Wilde yang sudah diterjemahkan oleh Amrisa Nur merupakan cerpen yang menarik untuk dikaji dalam penelitian sastra dengan menggunakan pendekatan stilistika. Tujuan penelitian stilistika adalah untuk menguraikan dan mengungkap gaya bahasa yang digunakan oleh pengarang. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode kualitatif dengan tujuan untuk menemukan makna dan fungsi stilistika itu dalam karya sastra yang diteliti. Ada beberapa unsur yang akan difokuskan oleh peneliti yaitu: unsur leksikal, unsur sintaksis (kalimat), dan unsur retorika yang terdapat dalam cerpen Bunga Mawar dan Burung Bul-Bul.ABSTRACT The meaning of a literary work depends on the use of the language style. The use of language styles is intended by the author to have a certain effect on the readers,especially the aesthetic effects. The short story of The Rose and The Nightingale by Oscar Wilde translated by Amrisa Nur is an interesting short story for literature research using a stylistic approach. The purpose of stylistic research is to interpret and reveal the style of language used by the author. This study uses qualitative method. This study also aimed to find the meaning and function of the stylistic in this literary work. There are several elements that will be focused by the researcher, there are: lexical elements, syntax elements (sentences), and elements of rhetoric that contained in the short story The Rose and The Nightingale.

scholarly journals Aesthetic Moral Metaphor in The Picture of Dorian Gray and Its Influence on Modern Chinese Aesthetic Literature

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 77
Author(s):  
Fang Yang
Keyword(s):  
Oscar Wilde ◽  
The Novel ◽  
Social Morality ◽  
Modern Chinese ◽  
The Social ◽  
Picture Of Dorian Gray ◽  
Dorian Gray ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
Art For Art's Sake ◽  
The Devil

In “The Picture of Dorian Gray” Oscar Wilde displays his artistic pursuit on art, life and society. Although he advocates “art for art’s sake”, yet his works could not be isloated from the social morality. In the novel, as Dorian sells his soul to the devil for his eternal beauty in appearance, the portait burdens the change of his ugliness. In some respect, the portait is a moral metaphor of Dorian himself. Basil Hallward, the painter of the protait, can be regarded as an artist metaphor to Wilde himself. Lord Henry Wotton, a famous dandy in the novel, manifests Wilde’s aestheic belief in lifestyle. So by analyzing the three main characters, this paper probes into the aesthetic moral metaphors involved in the novel, and talks about its influence on the modern Chinese aesthetic literature.

MAKOTO AS THE INITIAL PRINCIPLE OF THE ETHICAL AND AESTHETIC BELIEFS OF THE JAPANESE

2020 ◽  
pp. 126-138
Author(s):  
M. P. Gerasimova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Moral Obligation ◽  
Driving Factors ◽  
Chinese Characters ◽  
Spiritual Values ◽  
Conceptual Apparatus ◽  
Hieroglyphic Writing ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Aesthetic Ideal

Makoto (まこと, lit.: truth, genuineness, reality, “realness”) is an element of the conceptual apparatus of the traditional worldview of the Japanese. In Japan, it is generally accepted that makoto is a philosophical and aesthetic concept that underlies Japanese spirituality, involving among other principles understanding of the order and laws of the truly existing Universum (shinrabansho̅; 森羅万象) and the universal interconnectedness of things (bambutsu ittai; 万物一体), the desire to understand the true essence of everything that person meets in life, and, unlike other spiritual values, is purely Shinto in origin. After getting acquainted with the Chinese hieroglyphic writing three Chinese characters were borrowed for the word makoto. Each of these characters means truthfulness, genuineness, but has its own distinctive nuances: 真 means truth, authenticity, truthfulness, 実 signifies truth, reality, essence, content, and 誠 again means truthfulness, sincerity, and truth. Makoto (“true words”) and makoto (“true deeds”) imply the highest degree of sincerity of words and honesty, correctness of thoughts, actions, and deeds. The relationship “true words — true deeds” can be seen as one of the driving factors of moral obligation, prompting everyone in their field, as well as in relations between people, to strive to be real. This desire contributed to the formation of a heightened sense of duty and responsibility among the Japanese, which became a hallmark of their character. However, makoto has not only ethical connotation, but aesthetic one as well, and can be considered as the basis on which were formed the concept of mono no aware (もののあ われ、 物の哀れ) and the aesthetic ideal of the same name, that became the first link in the chain of japanese perceptions of beauty. Each link in this chain is an expression of a new facet of makoto, which was revealed as a result of certain elements of the worldview that came to the fore in the historical era.

Wilde’s New Republic

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marylu Hill
Keyword(s):  
Oscar Wilde ◽  
Specific Focus ◽  
Classical Training ◽  
Picture Of Dorian Gray ◽  
New Republic ◽  
Dorian Gray ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Philosophical Questions

As a result of his classical training in the Honours School of Literæ Humaniores at Oxford, Oscar Wilde drew frequently on the works of Plato for inspiration, especially the Republic. The idea of a New Republic and its philosophy resonated profoundly with Wilde—so much so that the philosophical questions raised in Plato’s Republic become the central problems of The Picture of Dorian Gray. This chapter maps the parallels between the Republic and Dorian Gray, with specific focus on several of Plato’s most striking images from the Republic. In particular, the depiction of Lord Henry suggests not only the philosophical soul gone corrupt, but also the ‘drone’ who seduces the oligarchic young man into a life of ‘unprincipled freedom’, according to Plato’s definition of democracy. By invoking the Socratic lens, Wilde critiques Lord Henry’s anti-philosophy of the ‘New Hedonism’ and contrasts it with the Socratic eros.

Keats and the Aesthetic Ideal

1997 ◽  
Vol 85 (4) ◽  
pp. 140-145
Author(s):  
David Bromwich
Keyword(s):  
The Aesthetic ◽  
Aesthetic Ideal

COMPARATIVE LITERATURE: EAST AND WEST STUDIES

2021 ◽  
Vol 02 (09) ◽  
pp. 8-14
Author(s):  
Aziza Komilovna Akhmedova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Literature ◽  
Professional Ethics ◽  
Research Work ◽  
Literary Studies ◽  
The Novel ◽  
World Science ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Aesthetic ◽  
Aesthetic Ideal ◽  
The Ideal

The article analyzes the results of the research on the representation of the aesthetic ideal through the image of the ideal hero in two national literatures. For research purposes, attention was paid to highlighting the category of the ideal hero as an expression of the author's aesthetic views. In Sinclair Lewis’s “Arrowsmith” and Pirimkul Kodirov's “The Three Roots”, the protagonists artistically reflect the authors' views on truth, virtue, and beauty. In these novels, professional ethics is described as a high noble value. The scientific novelty of the research work includes the following: in the evolution of western and eastern poetic thought, in the context of the novel genre, the skill, common and distinctive aspects of the creation of an ideal hero were revealed by synthesis of effective methods in world science with literary criteria in the history of eastern and western literary studies, in the example of Sinclair Lewis and Pirimkul Kodirov.

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