This course explores the rich interplay between literature, aesthetics, and queer expression through the works of Oscar Wilde. A central figure in the late-Victorian Aesthetic Movement, Wilde famously championed “art for art’s sake” while simultaneously challenging the gender norms, sexual mores, and social conventions of his time. Our focus will be on some of Wilde’s major fictional works – including The Picture of Dorian Gray, The Importance of Being Earnest, and Lady Windermere’s Fan – which we will read closely and discuss in light of key concepts in queer theory and aesthetics.
Throughout the semester, we will ask: In what ways do Wilde’s works encode queer desires and identities, even when they seem to reinforce social norms? What does it mean to read “queerly,” and how can literary form itself be considered queer? To help answer these questions, we will pair Wilde’s fiction with his theoretical essays – such as “The Decay of Lying” and “The Soul of Man under Socialism” – as well as accessible secondary readings in queer theory and aesthetics by scholars such as Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, José Esteban Muñoz, and Jack Halberstam.
The course is designed for Bachelor students in English Literature, with no prior knowledge of queer theory or Aestheticism required. By the end of the semester, students will have developed a toolkit of queer reading strategies, sharpened their close reading skills, and will write a research essay on a topic of their choosing related to Wilde and queer aesthetics.
- Teacher: Nino Liam Töndury