No
doubt everybody knows about Oscar Wilde, and many of you might know
also about Merlin Holland who is also a writer, of historical stories
and anecdotes of the 19th century. But, very few of us would have known
that Holland is Oscar Wilde's grandson, when their surnames don't match.
Holland is Holland because his father, son of Wilde, was brought up with his mother's name, growing up as though his father had never existed. Possibly the mother wanted to protect him from the scandal of Wilde having been in jail for the 'crime' of being a homosexual (A crime in England until 1967). The grandson had recovered the record of the legal process of his grandfather's ordeal, and the written testimonies of his in depth insight of human nature, his brilliant wit and sharp humour, which is often classified as being deliberately wicked by many, but nevertheless adored by everybody. I am certainly an unconditional fan of all his works. I find every word he uttered intelligent and witty, and every gesture he made calculatedly but delightfully funny, in a contained sort of way. I have read quite a lot of plays he wrote and seen many played on stage in different countries, or in films, and always eager to read anything I could find about him. Anyway it was Holland I wish to know a little more about. He has compiled a full record of the trial of Wilde, and decided to let people know better about his grandfather, as well as make known the family connections. He didn't know about the family secret until he was 15, and later decided to investigate the whole legal process, his grandfather's life, the many gossips and accusations, and his early death at the age of only 46. A huge loss in the literary world. He attributes Wilde's later utter loneliness and abject despondency to his being locked up and shun away by society, quite against his free spirited nature, his treasured value of liberty of speech and action, resulting in the rapid deterioration of his body, mind and soul. He was a man who needed to live in society, amongst people, to constantly able to display his wisdom and wit, with humour or irony. Consequences was not the part that concerned him. This more than once caused him great inconvenience, definitely contributing to his earning the guilty sentence of being a homosexual, as he himself had practically collaborated with the accusation when, even in court in his own trial, he couldn't resist the temptation to air his arrogance, by answering the accusing question of whether he had kissed a certain young man, he answered "Oh never! He's not at all good looking." Or, his answer much later, when he had been set free after 2 years in jail, to the question in everybody's mind, whether he truly loved that young man Bosie, he said: " How can I not love him? He ruined my life!" Holland's new book is 'The Marquis and the Sodomite'. Included are many memorable quotes of Oscar Wilde. I will practice at least one of his doctrines today:'Always forgive your enemies; nothing would infuriate them more.' |
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