These notes on genre, audience and purpose help to broaden your understanding of Oscar Wilde's De Profundis. This text's sense of voices are strategically pulled apart and analysed.
A – People interested in him / his story / homosexuality / laws
P – Inform his readers of his current state of mind – persuade people to accept homosexuality –
reflective of his self
Main Senses of Voice:
1) Blaming
2) Optimistic / proud / care free / confident
3) Honourable / authoritative
4) Self-realisation / reflective / peaceful
5) Hyperbolic / serious / dramatic / shocking
Oscar Wilde, a poet during the late 1800s, was imprisoned for homosexual relations. He wrote this
section of his autobiography whilst he was in prisoned, so it is expected to see a blaming or bitter
sense of voice. “When my father sent me to Oxford and society sent me to prison.” Firstly, his use
juxtaposition highlights the negative turn that his life took once he was found to be homosexual. The
parallel phrasing also helps to highlight this contrast and weigh up positivity and negativity of these
events. His use of sibilance, ‘society sent’, creates a negative, wicked image surrounding the word
society. This may probe his readers to reflect on themselves and the morals which they hold. He is
blatantly blaming society for him being sent to prison and the direct address emphasises his feelings
of betrayal. Additionally, the personification of, ‘society sent’ suggests how he feels as though
everyone around him is against him.
Wilde also creates an optimistic, confident sense of voice. “I will not say that prison is the best thing
that could have happened to me”. Here, the litotes highlight how he was little affected by being sent
to prison. His care free attitude also illuminates the difference he feels between him and society and
how he feels betrayed. Moreover, the high register, ‘will not’ shows how his confidence has not been
shattered and his spirit has not been broken in prison. It additionally shows how Wilde accepts the
person that he is, and he shows authority by using this high register. Similarly, Wilde creates a
confident sense of voice through his religious reference, ‘It is no less than the denial of the soul”. This
would have been highly shocking for the reader at this time (1905) as he has aligned homosexuality
(one of the biggest sins in Christianity) and Christianity / religion. The fact that he did this shows that
he has the authority to do so meaning that he held a lot of power despite his imprisonment. Here,
Wilde is also emphasising the natural ‘nature’ of homosexuality and how, to deny it, would be a great
(personal) sin. This emphasises the confidence he has in who he really is.
Wilde also creates a serious, dramatic sense of voice. “It was ruinous advice” This short declarative
emphasises his need to express his true self as to conceal it would ruin him completely. Moreover,
the short declarative draws the tone back and also creates an honest, careless sense of voice as he is
disregarding the advice of others around him. Therefore, this may also indicate an offensive sense of
voice. Also, to create a hyperbolic sense of voice, Wilde uses anaphora which works to emphasise the
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