I this book because...
As an academic whose recent work has been LGBTQ+ history, it has been amazing and humbling to recognize that we havenât a complete account of one of the most famous events of allâthe trials of Oscar Wilde.
This absence hasnât stopped us from speculating and theorizing about them and their significance, but that work will be easier in the future because of Bristowâs masterful book. Utilizing hard-to-find materials in archives and the digitization of newspapers, Bristow gives us the closest weâre likely to get to an accurate understanding of what happened in 1895.
It is a powerful case for how to understand the trials today, what we can conclude Wilde was guilty of, and how he was victimized by an unjust legal process.
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The most authoritative account of a pivotal event in legal and cultural history: the trials of Oscar Wilde on charges of "gross indecency"
Among the most infamous prosecutions of a literary figure in history, the two trials of Oscar Wilde for committing acts of "gross indecency" occurred at the height of his fame. After being found guilty, Wilde spent two years in prison, emerged bankrupt, and died in a cheap hotel room in Paris a few years after his release. The trials prompted a new intolerance toward homosexuality: habits of male bonding that were previously seen as innocent were nowâŚ