Aestheticism Vs Hermeneutics and the Implications of Essence In Oscar Wilde’s “An Ideal Husband”
An Ideal Husband is a four-act play by Oscar Wilde written in 1895. The play revolves around political corruption, power and ambition, perceptions of honour, success, and love, and the dilemma of morality. The play proved to be an immediate success. As the 19thcentury society was obsessed with the mania for morality, a communal trend emerged for everyone to pose as a paragon of virtue, purity, and incorruptibility. The image of idealism is promoted with no tolerance for human frailties. Such a trend opposes human nature and the purpose for which God has created this world. The play depicts corrupt politics and social life, a moral society where illicit love affairs flourish in secret, “Not a year passes in England without somebody disappearing. Scandals used to lend charm, or at least interest, to a man – now they crush him” (An Ideal Husband, 28). Though the play is classified as a comedy, it deals with serious issues. The description of the Octagon room at Sir Robert Chiltern’s house in Grosvenor Square refers to a powerful and wealthy society. The artistic decoration reflects an appreciative sense of art, but a predominant ambiance of appearances, as much as the houses are luxuriously decorated so are elaborate women’s dresses, while men wear plain clothes.
