A little sincerity is a dangerous thing and a great deal of it is absolutely fatal.

— Oscar Wilde

A little sincerity is a dangerous thing, and a great deal of it is absolutely fatal.

— Oscar Wilde

All art is at once surface and symbol. Those who go beneath the surface do so at their peril.

— Oscar Wilde

All art is quite useless.

— Oscar Wilde

All authority is quite degrading. It degrades those who exercise it, and degrades those over whom it is exercised. When it is violently, grossly, and cruelly used, it produces a good effect by creating, or at any rate bringing out, the spirit of revolt and individualism that is to kill it. When it is used with a certain amount of kindness, and accompanied by prizes and rewards, it is dreadfully demoralizing. People, in that case, are less conscious of the horrible pressure that is being put on them, and so go through their lives in a sort of coarse comfort, like petted animals, without ever realizing that they are probably thinking other people's thoughts, living by other people's standards, wearing practically what one may call other people's second-hand clothes, and never being themselves for a single moment.

— Oscar Wilde

All bad poetry springs from genuine feeling.

— Oscar Wilde

All bad poetry springs from genuine feeling. To be natural is to be obvious, and to be obvious is to be inartistic.

— Oscar Wilde

All charming people, I fancy, are spoiled. It is the secret of their attraction.

— Oscar Wilde

All I want now is to look at life.

— Oscar Wilde

All I want to do now is look at life. You may come and look at it with me, if you care to.

— Oscar Wilde