Happy birthday Oscar Wilde! It’s October 16th, and while he might not have a Google Doodle to commemorate this day, he has readers all over the world thinking about him. Whether it’s The Importance of Being Earnest, or The Picture of Dorian Gray, Oscar Wilde’s legacy lives on through his words, which always bring a new layer of fun and meaning to life.
Here are a few of our favorite quotes:
“The truth is rarely pure and never simple.”
Ironic, because isn’t that a simple truth? Has he made a paradox?
“Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.”
So many variations of the “be yourself” quote, and this one I always like best. It’s short, sweet, straightforward, and very pragmatic.
“True friends stab you in the front.”
And they laugh at/with you as they do it.
“We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars.”
Isn’t it so beautiful? It addresses the unfortunate circumstances of life that we’re all trapped in, but still manages to capture the breathtaking view of hopes and dreams–it also puts everyone, no matter what status, in the same place.
“I can resist everything except temptation.”
Possibly his most well know epigram, and also a perfect picture of myself before all chocolatey desserts. It’s not that I have no discipline–it’s just that all of it vanishes in the face of temptation. It’s such a perfect statement–short and satirical, classic Oscar Wilde.