$20.00
180-page non-fiction book with black and white illustrations printed by Plain and Simple Books.
Book Abstract:
In January 1882, Oscar Wilde embarked on a lecture tour of the United States and Canada. Wilde was lecturing about the English art movement Aestheticism in conjunction with the comic opera by Gilbert and Sullivan called Patience or Bunthorne’s Bride, which mocked the movement. Stretching from the East to West Coast, this was one of the very first press tours of its kind, made possible by new, faster train transportation and more press coverage. With his cunning, witty interaction with the press and his fantastical, gender-role-defying clothing, Wilde embodied a new cultural phenomenon: the counterculture artist celebrity. By detailing how Wilde defied Victorian gender roles while spreading the counterculture ideals of Aestheticism, this book shows the lasting cultural impact of Wilde’s 1882 tour.
Review:
"Joy Shannon takes excellent cultural research and makes it an exciting, humorous and, at times, a poignant read. She takes the reader on the 1882 tour as if it is a rock and roll tour now, with press controversy and hilarious Wildean witicisms abounding."