Bowerbird: Oscar Wilde and the Curated Identity: Recent Episodes
A Scholar of No Importance
An intellectual biography of sorts discussing Oscar Wilde’s collecting habits, from the tangible to the intellectual, to the artistic, to the social, and even the spiritual. Examining the way Wilde curated his world in order to fashion his complex, enduring identity.
CONTENT WARNING: Alcohol and addiction
It's Oscar's birthday (or was, when I recorded this, thanks Audible for fumbling in the 11th hour). As a bonus episode and proof of life after a long accidental hiatus, I'm bringing you a little present in the form of my very first lecture on Oscar Wilde: Absinthe and Oscar, which was commissioned by Don Spiro of the Green Fairy Society of New York and given as a live event with music, burlesque, and absinthe tastings way back in 2018! I've dusted it off, tweaked it, and even added some new information!
In this lecture, I discuss the ways absinthe is linked to Oscar Wilde in the popular imagination-- then and now-- as well as why the green fairy might have held a personal fascination for Oscar Wilde, or been adopted as part of his artistic persona.
Musical Attribution:
Narcissus by Kevin MacLeod
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4113-narcissus
License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
- The Bowerbird podcast is a bookshop.org affiliate! Want to check out any of the books we’ve used for this episode? Help us and your local bookstores out when you buy from https://bookshop.org/shop/bowerbirdlibrary
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Welcome to the first episode of the Bowerbird podcast, a preface of sorts I call “Formidable Intelligence and Unmoored Strangeness: Oscar Wilde’s Parents”. I was initially going to start this series with Oscar Wilde’s childhood from 1854 to Wilde’s entry into Trinity College in 1871, but as I began my research it became apparent that I would have to start a little earlier than that. Oscar Wilde’s parents were every bit as fascinating, self-fashioned, and complex as their youngest son would grow to be. So much so that even giving them their own episode barely scratches the surface. Like Oscar, the elder Wildes defy containment or orderly study, but I have done what I can, with recommendations throughout for those who want to explore in-depth.
Source Notes
Interested in learning more? The Bowerbird Podcast is a Bookshop.Org affiliate, meaning you can support both the show and your favorite local bookstore if you buy any of the books featured in this episode! You can check out the Bowerbird Library Reading List for this episode {HERE} or by clicking on the affiliate link in the source list.
Music attribution
Narcissus by Kevin MacLeod
Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4113-narcissus
License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Acknowledgements:
Script edited by Mimi, who offers her editing services through Ko-Fi
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