All Roads Lead to Rome?: Decadence, Paganism, Catholicism and the Later Life of Oscar Wilde

This article examines paganism, Catholicism and decadence in the life and letters of the writer and wit Oscar Wilde, focusing in particular on the period after his release from Reading Gaol. In his travels through France and Italy between 1897 and 1900, Wilde labels the behaviour that led to his imp...

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Main Author: Shushma Malik
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Presses Universitaires de la Méditerranée 2014-09-01
Series:Cahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.openedition.org/cve/1456
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author Shushma Malik
author_facet Shushma Malik
author_sort Shushma Malik
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description This article examines paganism, Catholicism and decadence in the life and letters of the writer and wit Oscar Wilde, focusing in particular on the period after his release from Reading Gaol. In his travels through France and Italy between 1897 and 1900, Wilde labels the behaviour that led to his imprisonment as belonging to his decadent ‘pagan days’ and ‘Neronian hours’. As the writer struggles to reconcile his past paganism with his present, renewed, Catholicism, he goes back and forth between the two, and only at Rome can Wilde find his solution. In a city that exhibits both its paganism and Catholicism to its visitors, Wilde can finally indulge all aspects of his ‘Romanness’ in one place at the same time.
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spelling doaj-art-3fb5be01b2ff4610a0c6f747a023bf3b2025-01-30T10:20:39ZengPresses Universitaires de la MéditerranéeCahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens0220-56102271-61492014-09-018010.4000/cve.1456All Roads Lead to Rome?: Decadence, Paganism, Catholicism and the Later Life of Oscar WildeShushma MalikThis article examines paganism, Catholicism and decadence in the life and letters of the writer and wit Oscar Wilde, focusing in particular on the period after his release from Reading Gaol. In his travels through France and Italy between 1897 and 1900, Wilde labels the behaviour that led to his imprisonment as belonging to his decadent ‘pagan days’ and ‘Neronian hours’. As the writer struggles to reconcile his past paganism with his present, renewed, Catholicism, he goes back and forth between the two, and only at Rome can Wilde find his solution. In a city that exhibits both its paganism and Catholicism to its visitors, Wilde can finally indulge all aspects of his ‘Romanness’ in one place at the same time.https://journals.openedition.org/cve/1456Wilde (Oscar)classical traditionimperial Romereligiondecadence
spellingShingle Shushma Malik
All Roads Lead to Rome?: Decadence, Paganism, Catholicism and the Later Life of Oscar Wilde
Cahiers Victoriens et Edouardiens
Wilde (Oscar)
classical tradition
imperial Rome
religion
decadence
title All Roads Lead to Rome?: Decadence, Paganism, Catholicism and the Later Life of Oscar Wilde
title_full All Roads Lead to Rome?: Decadence, Paganism, Catholicism and the Later Life of Oscar Wilde
title_fullStr All Roads Lead to Rome?: Decadence, Paganism, Catholicism and the Later Life of Oscar Wilde
title_full_unstemmed All Roads Lead to Rome?: Decadence, Paganism, Catholicism and the Later Life of Oscar Wilde
title_short All Roads Lead to Rome?: Decadence, Paganism, Catholicism and the Later Life of Oscar Wilde
title_sort all roads lead to rome decadence paganism catholicism and the later life of oscar wilde
topic Wilde (Oscar)
classical tradition
imperial Rome
religion
decadence
url https://journals.openedition.org/cve/1456
work_keys_str_mv AT shushmamalik allroadsleadtoromedecadencepaganismcatholicismandthelaterlifeofoscarwilde