Lady Windermere’s Fan by Oscar Wilde (Illustrated)

By Oscar Wilde

This eBook features the unabridged text of ‘Lady Windermere’s Fan’ from the bestselling edition of ‘The Complete Works of Oscar Wilde’.

Having established their name as the leading publisher of classic literature and art, Delphi Classics produce publications that are individually crafted with superior formatting, while introducing many rare texts for the first time in digital print. The Delphi Classics edition of Wilde includes original annotations and illustrations relating to the life and works of the author, as well as individual tables of contents, allowing you to navigate eBooks quickly and easily.

eBook features:
* The complete unabridged text of ‘Lady Windermere’s Fan’
* Beautifully illustrated with images related to Wilde’s works
* Individual contents table, allowing easy navigation around the eBook
* Excellent formatting of the textPlease visit www.delphiclassics.com to learn more about our wide range of titles

• Language: English
• Publisher: Publishdrive
• Release date: Jul 17, 2017
• ISBN: 9781786561558

Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) was a Dublin-born poet and playwright who studied at the Portora Royal School, before attending Trinity College and Magdalen College, Oxford. The son of two writers, Wilde grew up in an intellectual environment. As a young man, his poetry appeared in various periodicals including Dublin University Magazine. In 1881, he published his first book Poems, an expansive collection of his earlier works. His only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, was released in 1890 followed by the acclaimed plays Lady Windermere’s Fan (1893) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1895).

Book preview

The Complete Works of

OSCAR WILDE

VOLUME 3 OF 41

Lady Windermere’s Fan

Parts Edition

By Delphi Classics, 2013

Version 6

COPYRIGHT

‘Lady Windermere’s Fan’

Oscar Wilde: Parts Edition (in 41 parts)

First published in the United Kingdom in 2017 by Delphi Classics.

© Delphi Classics, 2017.

All rights reserved.  No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form other than that in which it is published.

ISBN: 978 1 78656 155 8

Delphi Classics

is an imprint of

Delphi Publishing Ltd

Hastings, East Sussex

United Kingdom

Contact: [e-mail]

www.delphiclassics.com

Oscar Wilde: Parts Edition

This eBook is Part 3 of the Delphi Classics edition of Oscar Wilde in 41 Parts. It features the unabridged text of Lady Windermere’s Fan from the bestselling edition of the author’s Complete Works. Having established their name as the leading publisher of classic literature and art, Delphi Classics produce publications that are individually crafted with superior formatting, while introducing many rare texts for the first time in digital print. Our Parts Editions feature original annotations and illustrations relating to the life and works of Oscar Wilde, as well as individual tables of contents, allowing you to navigate eBooks quickly and easily.

Visit here to buy the entire Parts Edition of Oscar Wilde or the Complete Works of Oscar Wilde in a single eBook.

Learn more about our Parts Edition, with free downloads, via this link or browse our most popular Parts here.

OSCAR WILDE

IN 41 VOLUMES

Parts Edition Contents

The Plays

1, Vera

2, The Duchess of Padua

3, Lady Windermere’s Fan

4, A Woman of No Importance

5, Salomé

6, An Ideal Husband

7, The Importance of Being Earnest

8, La Sainte Courtisane

9, A Florentine Tragedy

The Poetry

10, The Complete Poems

The Novel

11, The Picture of Dorian Gray - the Original 13 Chapter Version

12, The Picture of Dorian Gray - the Revised 20 Chapter Version

The Short Stories

13, The Portrait of Mr. W. H.

14, The Happy Prince and Other Tales

15, A House of Pomegranates

16, Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime and Other Stories

The Non-Fiction

17, The Decay of Lying

18, Pen, Pencil and Poison - a Study in Green

19, The Critic as Artist

20, The Truth of Masks

21, The Rise of Historical Criticism

22, The English Renaissance of Art

23, House Decoration

24, Art and the Handicraftsman

25, Lecture to Art Students

26, London Models

27, Poems in Prose

28, The Soul of Man Under Socialism

29, Phrases and Philosophies for the Use of the Young

30, A Few Maxims for the Instruction of the Over-Educated

31, De Profundis

32, Oscar Wilde’s Letter to Robert Browning

33, Personal Impressions of America

34, The Decorative Arts

35, The House Beautiful

36, The Truth of Masks

The Journalism

37, The Articles and Reviews

Apocrypha

38, Teleny

The Biographies

39, Oscar Wilde, His Life and Confessions by Frank Harris

40, Memories of Oscar Wilde by G. Bernard Shaw

41, Oscar Wilde: an Idler’s Impression by Edgar Saltus

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Lady Windermere’s Fan

A Play about a Good Woman

By the summer of 1891 Wilde had already written three plays. However, Vera; or, The Nihilists and The Duchess of Padua had found little success, whilst Salome had been censored. Unperturbed, he turned from writing tragedy to composing a comedy, hoping for better success with his audiences. He travelled to the Lake District in the north of England to stay with a friend, in search of inspiration. Wilde, with the encouragement of Sir George Alexander, the actor manager of St James’s Theatre, began writing a play in earnest. Interestingly, several characters in Lady Windermere’s Fan draw their names from the north of England: Lady Windermere from the lake and nearby town Windermere, the Duchess of Berwick from Berwick-upon-Tweed and Lord Darlington from Darlington.

By October the play was finished and Wilde offered it to Alexander, who liked the drama and offered the playwright an advance of £1,000. Wilde, impressed by his confidence, opted to take a percentage instead, from which he would earn £7,000 in the first year alone. Alexander was a meticulous manager and they began exhaustive revisions and rehearsals. Lady Windermere’s Fan was first produced on 22 February 1892 at the St James Theatre in London and was an astounding success. Like many of Wilde’s comedies, it bitterly satirises the morals of Victorian society.

The story concerns Lady Windermere, who suspects her husband might be having an affair with another woman. She confronts her husband, but he instead invites the other woman, Mrs. Erlynne, to her birthday ball. Angered by her husband’s unfaithfulness, Lady Windermere leaves her husband for another lover. After discovering what has transpired, Mrs Erlynne follows Lady Windermere and attempts to persuade her to return to her husband and during this confrontation a shocking secret is revealed.

St James’s Theatre, c. 1836

Inside the theatre, close to the time of Wilde’s first theatrical success ‘Lady Windermere’s Fan’

CONTENTS

THE PERSONS OF THE PLAY

ACT ONE

ACT TWO

ACT THREE

ACT FOUR

THE PERSONS OF THE PLAY

Lord Windermere

Lord Darlington

Lord Augustus Lorton

Mr. Dumby

Mr. Cecil Graham

Mr. Hopper

Parker, Butler

Lady Windermere

The Duchess of Berwick

Lady Agatha Carlisle

Lady Plymdale

Lady Stutfield

Lady Jedburgh

Mrs. Cowper-Cowper

Mrs. Erlynne

Rosalie, Maid

TIME:   

The Present

PLACE: 

London

The action of the play takes place within twenty-four hours, beginning on a Tuesday afternoon at five o’clock, and ending the next day at 1.30 p.m.

Sir George Alexander (1858-1918) was an English actor, theatre producer and theatre manager, who helped Wilde in his early theatrical career.

Wilde, c. 1890

ACT ONE

SCENCE

Morning-room of Lord Windermere’s house in Carlton House Terrace.  Doors C. and R.  Bureau with books and papers R.  Sofa with small tea-table L.  Window opening on to terrace L.  Table R.

[LADY WINDERMERE is at table R., arranging roses in a blue bowl.]

[Enter PARKER.]

PARKER.  Is your ladyship at home this afternoon?

LADY WINDERMERE.  Yes - who