The Happy Prince and Other Tales
Oscar Wilde
The Happy Prince and Other Tales
Five literary fairy tales about generosity, vanity, friendship, poverty, and the cost of seeing other people's suffering.
Read our takeLord Arthur Savile's Crime and Other Stories
Oscar Wilde
Lord Arthur Savile's Crime and Other Stories
by Oscar Wilde
Comic and supernatural stories about murder as duty, a ghost who cannot frighten Americans, a secretless socialite, and a disputed Shakespeare portrait.
- 1891
- Atmospheric
- lyrical
- funny
- voice-driven
About Oscar Wilde
The story, briefly
Spoiler-freeLord Arthur Savile's Crime and Other Stories gathers Wilde's comic and supernatural short fiction. The title story follows a gentleman who is told he will commit murder and decides he must do it before marriage. 'The Canterville Ghost' sends an American family into an English haunted house. Other stories test whether society prefers truth, performance, or a good explanation.
The story, in more detail
The collection turns respectable logic into absurd action. Lord Arthur treats murder as an item of social duty; the Canterville family treats haunting as a household maintenance problem.
Modern editions differ in contents. The 1891 collection included the title story, 'The Canterville Ghost,' 'The Sphinx Without a Secret,' and 'The Model Millionaire'; some added 'The Portrait of Mr. W. H.'
The stories
Each story stands alone and uses a different kind of deception: prophecy, haunting, social mystery, mistaken identity, or literary theory.
The Canterville Ghost is the gentlest entrance; the title story is the sharpest example of Wilde making polite duty morally ridiculous.
Why we recommend it
Why it matters
It is the best bridge from the fairy tales to Wilde's adult social comedy.
Where it fits
Read it before the society plays if you want to watch the comic machinery develop.
What this book explores
Timeline
1891
James R. Osgood, McIlvaine and Company published Lord Arthur Savile's Crime and Other Stories in 1891.
Modern editions
Editors continue to publish the work alone and in collections; introductions and notes explain the relevant performance or textual history.
Book editions
Hardcover
- Hardcover
- James R. Osgood, McIlvaine and Company
- 1891
Reader reviews
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Lady Windermere's Fan
Oscar Wilde
Lady Windermere's Fan
A society comedy in which a young wife suspects her husband, an excluded woman returns, and a fan becomes evidence that tells the wrong story.
Read our takeLord Arthur Savile's Crime and Other Stories: frequently asked questions
What is Lord Arthur Savile's Crime and Other Stories by Oscar Wilde about?
Lord Arthur Savile's Crime and Other Stories gathers Wilde's comic and supernatural short fiction. The title story follows a gentleman who is told he will commit murder and decides he must do it before marriage. 'The Canterville Ghost' sends an American family into an English haunted house. Other stories test whether society prefers truth, performance, or a good explanation.
When was Lord Arthur Savile's Crime and Other Stories published?
James R. Osgood, McIlvaine and Company published Lord Arthur Savile's Crime and Other Stories in 1891.
Should I read Lord Arthur Savile's Crime and Other Stories first?
Usually not. Start with The Importance of Being Earnest for comedy, The Picture of Dorian Gray for fiction, or The Happy Prince and Other Tales for short stories, then return to Lord Arthur Savile's Crime and Other Stories.