Oscar Wilde in Spain

Abstract

HE ARTISTIC and intellectual climate in Spain at the end of the nineteenth century developed under the influence of many European authorities preaching complex and often conflicting ideologies. Several studies have defined the nature and scope of Spanish indebtedness to such figures as Nietzsche, Ibsen, Zola, and D'Annunzio.1 The reception and interpretation of Oscar Wilde have not been investigated, despite a general acknowledgment of his importance and enduring appeal.2 The history of his fortunes in Spain extends over at least two generations, from the Modernists to the twentieth-century Vanguard, and forms an essential chapter in the debate over the role of art and the artist in society. I propose to present here an introduction to the topic of Wilde in Spain, tracing the popularization of his works through translations, productions of his plays, and critical references.3 Most prominent writers of the period found it necessary to adopt some attitude toward Wilde the personality and artist-critic; their stance was determined by their position on the question of art's response to its social milieu. For Wilde, only artistic criteria influence the con-