80 Oscar Wilde Quotes & 6 Exciting Facts about the Writer

Christina Smith (Senior Editor)

Regarded as one of the greatest playwrights of all time, Oscar Wilde was a larger than life figure full of wit and charm. Discover our collection of Oscar Wilde’s best quotes below and share your favorite with fellow literature enthusiasts.

Oscar Wilde was a colorful character who led a fascinating life. His penchant for indulgence and the finer things in life, combined with his homosexuality, starkly contrasted the Victorian morals of his day.

This made him quite the topic of discussion at the time, and not much has changed, as his work and life continued to be studied to this day.

His writings are widely revered and full to the brim of stand-out quotes that will make you think, make you laugh, and definitely make you want to share.

Best Quotes from Oscar Wilde to Think about

Best Quotes from Oscar Wilde to Think about

Irish playwright, poet, dramatist and author, Oscar Wilde (1854–1900), is best known for his works “The Picture of Dorian Gray” and “The Importance of Being Earnest.”

His witty nature has made him one of the most humorous writers of his time.

His writing and way of life often brought controversy upon him, but despite this he was a well-loved character with high social standing, and was even somewhat of a celebrity in his day.

His colorful writing and cutting humor are still as relevant today as they were 120 years ago.

As such, we have collected a wide range of Oscar Wilde’s best quotes below, divided into a number of different categories from love and life to sarcasm and humor. If you want some insight into the life of this flamboyant character, the quotes below will give you just that.

Find here quotes about books and quotes about reading.

Oscar Wilde Quotes about Love

Oscar Wilde Quotes about Love

The love life of Oscar Wilde was quite the topic of conversation during his time. First married to Constance Lloyd, with whom he had two sons, he also had a number of male lovers both before and after his marriage.

Thus, Wilde had a lot to say on the topic of love, and left us with many insightful love quotes on matters of the heart, which you can find below.

1. Never love anyone who treats you like you’re ordinary.
2. Women are meant to be loved, not to be understood.
3. The heart was made to be broken.
4. You don’t love someone for their looks, or their clothes, or for their fancy car, but because they sing a song only you can hear.
5. Everything in the world is about sex except sex. Sex is about power.
6. The very essence of romance is uncertainty.
7. Keep love in your heart. A life without it is like a sunless garden when the flowers are dead. The consciousness of loving and being loved brings a warmth and a richness to life that nothing else can bring.
8. To love oneself is the beginning of a lifelong romance.
9. Love is a misunderstanding between two fools.
10. Men always want to be a woman’s first love – women like to be a man’s last romance.
11. The mystery of love is greater than the mystery of death.
12. When one is in love, one always begins by deceiving one’s self, and one always ends by deceiving others. That is what the world calls a romance.
13. Who, being loved, is poor?

Quotes by Oscar Wilde about Life

Quotes by Oscar Wilde about Life

Given that Oscar Wilde led such an extravagant life, his writings included many insights on how best one should live their own, as well as reflections on other people’s lives.

If you’re seeking some wisdom on the intricacies of human existence, these Oscar Wilde quotes about life will offer you some inspiration and may change your perspective on life.

1. To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.
2. Live! Live the wonderful life that is in you! Let nothing be lost upon you. Be always searching for new sensations. Be afraid of nothing.
3. No good deed goes unpunished.
4. Life is far too important a thing ever to talk seriously about.
5. Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else’s opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.
6. A man who does not think for himself does not think at all.
7. There are moments when one has to choose between living one’s own life, fully, entirely, completely-or dragging out some false, shallow, degrading existence that the world in its hypocrisy demands.
8. To regret one’s own experiences is to arrest one’s own development. To deny one’s own experiences is to put a lie into the lips of one’s own life. It is no less than a denial of the soul.
9. One’s real life is so often the life that one does not lead.
10. There are only two tragedies in life: one is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it.
11. Life is a nightmare that prevents one from sleeping.
12. Life is too short to be in a hurry.

Find here beautiful quotes about life.

Most Famous Oscar Wilde Quotes

Most Famous Oscar Wilde Quotes

As one of the greatest producers of Irish literature, Oscar Wilde’s words are among the most recognizable when it comes to famous quotes.

The quotes below include reflections on life’s truths, thoughts on what matters in life, and advice on how people should conduct themselves.

Have a read of these famous Oscar Wilde quotes; you’re sure to recognize some.

1. Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.
2. We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.
3. You can never be overdressed or overeducated.
4. The truth is rarely pure and never simple.
5. An idea that is not dangerous is unworthy of being called an idea at all.
6. We are each our own devil, and we make this world our hell.
7. If one cannot enjoy reading a book over and over again, there is no use in reading it at all.
8. Experience is merely the name men gave to their mistakes.
9. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness.
10. The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest intention.
11. Everything in moderation, including moderation.
12. Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.

Here you’ll find more famous quotes.

Sarcastic Oscar Wilde Quotes

Sarcastic Oscar Wilde Quotes

One thing Oscar Wilde was renowned for was his wit – and he often used sarcasm to express it. His writings are full of many cheeky, sarcastic sayings that are guaranteed to bring a smile to your face.

If you also share a sarcastic flair, you’ll love the sarcastic quotes from the writer below. You may even incorporate them into your own repertoire of witty remarks.

1. Every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future.
2. I have the simplest tastes. I am always satisfied with the best.
3. I don’t want to go to heaven. None of my friends are there.
4. I am not young enough to know everything.
5. The only thing to do with good advice is pass it on. It is never any use to oneself.
6. Morality is simply the attitude we adopt towards people whom we personally dislike.
7. Only dull people are brilliant at breakfast.
8. We live in an age when unnecessary things are our only necessities.
9. I like talking to a brick wall- it’s the only thing in the world that never contradicts me!
10. The man who says his wife can’t take a joke, forgets that she took him.
11. Bigamy is having one wife too many. Monogamy is the same.

Funny Quotes from Oscar Wilde

Funny Quotes from Oscar Wilde

A dash of humor can brighten anyone’s day – and Oscar Wilde’s writing is abundant in it. The quick-witted writer was well known for his sense of humor, and this shines through in his quotes.

Share the funny quotes from Oscar Wilde below with anyone whose day could do with cheering up and bring a smile to their face.

1. Always forgive your enemies; nothing annoys them so much.
2. I am so clever that sometimes I don’t understand a single word of what I am saying.
3. I have nothing to declare except my genius.
4. The best way to appreciate your job is to imagine yourself without one.
5. Hear no evil, speak no evil, and you’ll never be invited to a party.
6. Some cause happiness wherever they go; others whenever they go.
7. The world is a stage, but the play is badly cast.
8. There is only one thing in life worse than being talked about, and that is not being talked about.
9. Work is the curse of the drinking classes.
10. When I was young I thought that money was the most important thing in life; now that I am old I know that it is.
11. I can resist anything except temptation.
12. The old believe everything, the middle-aged suspect everything, the young know everything.
13. To get back my youth I would do anything in the world, except take exercise, get up early, or be respectable.
14. I never put off till tomorrow what I can possibly do – the day after.
15. People who count their chickens before they are hatched act very wisely because chickens run about so absurdly that it’s impossible to count them accurately.
16. I may not agree with you, but I will defend to the death your right to make an ass of yourself.

Oscar Wilde Quotes about Marriage and Friendship

Oscar Wilde Quotes about Marriage and Friendship

Relationships are some of the most important things in our lives. Whether it is marriage or friendship, relationships can provide comfort, happiness and a sense of purpose. They can, of course, also have their downsides.

Oscar Wilde had a lot to say about the nature of marriage and friendship. The quotes below illustrate his opinions on these relationships with his characteristic witty manner of writing.

1. A good friend will always stab you in the front.
2. Men marry because they are tired; women, because they are curious: both are disappointed.
3. Anybody can sympathize with the sufferings of a friend, but it requires a very fine nature to sympathize with a friend’s success.
4. How can a woman be expected to be happy with a man who insists on treating her as if she were a perfectly normal human being.
5. An excellent man; he has no enemies; and none of his friends like him.
6. When a woman marries again, it is because she detested her first husband. When a man marries again, it is because he adored his first wife. Women try their luck; men risk theirs.
7. Ultimately the bond of all companionship, whether in marriage or in friendship, is conversation.
8. Marriage is the triumph of imagination over intelligence. Second marriage is the triumph of hope over experience.
9. Between men and women there is no friendship possible. There is passion, enmity, worship, love, but no friendship.
10. There is nothing in the world like the devotion of a married woman. It is a thing no married man knows anything about.
11. Laughter is not at all a bad beginning for a friendship, and it is far the best ending for one.
12. Friendship is far more tragic than love. It lasts longer.
13. The proper basis for marriage is a mutual misunderstanding.
14. An acquaintance that begins with a compliment is sure to develop into a real friendship.
15. Marriage is the one subject on which all women agree and all men disagree.
16. It is a very dangerous thing to know one’s friends.

Find here more quotes about true friendship.

Interesting Facts about Oscar Wilde

Interesting Facts about Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde’s quotes alone are enough to convey what a character this man truly was. His clever, flamboyant turns of phrases just give a small insight into this literary giant.

If you’re eager to learn more about the life of this famous writer, we’ve gathered a number of facts about Oscar Wilde below that are sure to surprise you.

Have a read and delve into the colorful life of this esteemed author.

His Mother Was a Successful Poet and Irish Nationalist

His mother published poems in a weekly Irish nationalist newspaper under the pseudonym Speranza, meaning hope in Italian.

She used this pen name as she believed she was descended from Italian poet Dante, and wanted to spare her family and embarrassment from her writing. She was a household name in Ireland.

He Worked as an Editor for a Woman’s Magazine

Wilde’s first job was as an editor for the magazine The Woman’s World, formerly known as The Lady’s World. Wilde changed the name to reflect the magazine content of more than just women’s fashion but also their thoughts and feelings.

He Only Wrote One Novel

He Only Wrote One Novel

Although Wilde is most commonly thought of as an author, he only published one novel during his life, The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Although it was heavily criticized for its decadence and homoerotic overtones upon its publication, it is now considered a classic and is widely taught in schools.

He Was Tried for Sodomy

Wilde’s relationship with Sir Alfred Douglas resulted in him being brought to court for sodomy by his lover’s father. Homosexuality was illegal at the time, and Wilde ended up being sentenced to hard labor in prison. During this time, he contracted cerebral meningitis, which ultimately lead to his demise.

He Was Baptized by the Catholic Church

He Was Baptized by the Catholic Church

Although living his life as a Protestant, Wilde was always drawn to Catholicism. However, his father threatened to cut him off if he ever fully converted to Catholicism.

As such, it wasn’t until he was on his deathbed that Wilde was baptized by the Catholic Church.

His Last Words Were Characteristically Witty

Well known for his witty remarks during his life, Wilde was no different on his deathbed. Despite the effect of cerebral meningitis on his mind, Wilde maintained his humor til the last.

His final word: “My wallpaper and I are fighting a duel to the death. One or other of us has got to go.”

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