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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. How did Oscar Wilde describe homosexuality in court?

2. Oscar Wilde said that men resemble which celestial body?

3. What was the subject of much of Oscar Wilde's correspondence in the period when he was writing the Ballad of Reading Gaol?

4. How did Oscar Wilde escape from being prosecuted for homosexuality?

5. What happened as a consequence of Oscar Wilde's move to Naples?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happened when Oscar Wilde sued his lover's father, Lord Queensberry, for libel?

2. Why does Oscar Wilde refuse to flee from England to Paris?

3. What was the outcome of Oscar Wilde's lawsuit against his lover's father, Lord Queensberry?

4. Where does Oscar Wilde go after he is released from prison?

5. How is "The Picture of Dorian Gray" seen as a work about homosexuality?

6. What relationships does Oscar Wilde resume after leaving prison?

7. How do the people of Paris receive Oscar Wilde in 1891?

8. How is "Lady Windermere's Fan" received when it premieres in London?

9. What is the plot of Oscar Wilde's novel, "The Picture of Dorian Gray"?

10. Describe the conditions under which Oscar Wilde was writing "The Importance of Being Earnest."

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

From 1887 to 1889, Oscar Wilde edited magazines. How did his editorial work change his literary style? Did it affect his plays? His poems? His aesthetic theories? His public personality? Did his work as a magazine editor help or hurt his development as a literary writer and critic?

Essay Topic 2

Oscar Wilde was not only homosexual, but openly, even flagrantly homosexual. What explains his openness? What did he gain by it? How did it hurt him personally? How did it affect his career?

Essay Topic 3

More than one of Oscar Wilde's plays was not produced on the stage. What effect do these failures have on his career? How does he compensate for failing to produce the plays? What does he learn from the experiences? Does he benefit in any way from the plays not being produced?

(see the answer keys)

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